Official government website of the Government of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia 
From a familiar everyday scene within the university campus, where the footsteps of passersby crowd the stairs and vehicles move intensely on the roads, an innovative idea was born that seeks to transform this continuous movement into a clean and sustainable energy source, through the “VoltStep” project developed by a group of female students from Qassim University participating in the “Innovation Incubator” at Qassim University.
The project was developed by a team including students: Ola Al-Khudairi, Noura Al-Muzaini, Ru'a Al-Nu'shan, Lamees Al-Arini, Layan Al-Auji, and Munirah Al-Zaydan, in an experience that reflects how everyday observation can turn into an innovative idea with practical solutions for energy and sustainability challenges.
The idea began with a simple but strategically significant question: How can the kinetic energy wasted daily be utilized instead of being lost? For example, in the Two Holy Mosques and crowded places and roads in the Kingdom. From here, female students specializing in Computer Engineering, Computer Science, and Operations Research began working on designing a smart flooring system capable of converting the energy generated by the movement of people and vehicles into electrical energy, through the pressure produced by the weight of people or cars using “Piezo” pressure sensors.
The project aims to utilize this energy to operate surveillance cameras and illuminate corridors around the clock, without carbon emissions, making it a practical solution that supports concepts of sustainability and clean energy, and aligns with the objectives of the Kingdom's Vision 2030, especially in the aspect of promoting reliance on sustainable energy sources.
The female students emphasize that the project has several advantages, most notably its ability to generate energy continuously as long as there is movement. Additionally, its cost is low compared to the expected returns, and it is easy to install in various locations without requiring major structural changes. Furthermore, it is an environmentally friendly innovation.
