From Heat to Motion — and Motion to Power. The Stirling engine was patented in 1816 by Scottish inventor Robert Stirling as a different way to convert heat into useful motion.
Unlike a conventional internal-combustion engine, a Stirling engine uses an external heat source and a sealed working cycle. The principle is simple to describe, but fascinating to watch: heat creates pressure changes, pressure drives the piston, and the piston turns the flywheel.
The mechanical motion of the flywheel is transferred to a small generator, turning movement into electrical output that can power a USB light.In a single desktop object.