Energy-harvesting scheme
targets 'sustainable' buildings
George Leopold
(11/12/2008 10:28 AM EST)
MUNICH, Germany — A Siemens spinoff called EnOcean is targeting its
energy-harvesting technology at wireless sensor networks in buildings,
which company executives predict will be a multibillion dollar market.
EnOcean (Oberhaching, Germany) announced a new system architecture here
this week during the Electronica 2008 exhibition. The company claims its
Dolphin architecture creates new industry standards for wireless sensor
networks. The scheme seeks to speed deployment of battery-less actuators and
bidirectional links between sensors.
"Wireless in buildings is really getting more and more visibility," said
EnOcean founder Armin Anders.
Energy harvesting captures the energy generated by differences in
temperature, lighting, pressure or position to power devices like sensors
connected via a wireless network. The technique replaces batteries, thereby
saving energy.
EnOcean supplies energy-harvesting modules to OEMs, and claims to have more
than 500,000 radio nodes installed in "sustainable" buildings. It said
10,000 of its nodes have been installed in two new towers in Madrid. The
devices are used to control room temperatures by powering actuators on
window shades. The technique helps reduce energy usage in offices throughout
the buildings.
The core of the company's architecture is a new single-chip ASIC designed
for energy and sensor management. Depending on volume, Anders said the chip
costs about 10 euros each.
The architecture is also designed so that wireless transmissions on a sensor
network are significantly reduced to further cut energy use.
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