The Internet of Things (IoT) is indisputably one of the most exciting technologies today. It is expanding at a quick pace, and in a very short period of time, it has revolutionized the way we interact with our surroundings. This technology has quickly turned into a very promising technology that can help us by transmitting data without any interaction with a computer system over a network. In fact, it is expected that IoT devices worth trillions of US dollars will be installed across the globe by 2025.
While the promise is tremendous, and this technology has a lot of potential in the future, it is also true that IoT needs ecological energy sources that are compact, lightweight, and low cost. Now, thanks to the initiative HarveStore funded by Future and Emerging Technologies (FET), it looks like we might be able to power the Internet of Things in an environmental-friendly manner using harnessed heat and light. As a part of this initiative, experts are building μ-harvestorers, which are powerful and ecological devices in the size of a fingertip.
Can you imagine powering up #IoT devices autonomously? Take a look at @harvestoreEU and their disruptive technology. #EICPathfinder #InternetofThings
➡️https://t.co/xdvooFeRYh pic.twitter.com/3wkaU8lc5h
— FETFX (@FETFX_EU) July 9, 2020
The Catalonia Institute for Energy Research (IREC) is leading this creation. According to Federico Baiutti from IREC, “When it comes to powering new generation IoT devices, there exists an imbalance between what is needed and the technology which is currently available. Today, for unwired solutions, batteries are the most common energy source. But they are bulky, have limited capacity, and are not ecologically sustainable. Therefore, a breakthrough in micro-energy harvesting and storage technologies is required for the future IoT – and this is the focus of our project.”
As very clearly put by Baiutti, this creation might just be the biggest breakthrough in the world of the Internet of Things. These μ-harvestorers will make use of nano-enabled microtechnology, and all the devices will be made using silicon. Their compact and small size, long life, and reversibility will help in addressing all the current problems of power sources for batteries.
By harvesting as well as storing light and heat energy, it is expected that the IoT devices of the future will be made seamlessly sustainable and kind to the planet.