New Industry Products

Micropelt Launches New Commercial Energy Harvester to Replace Batteries

April 28, 2010 by Jeff Shepard

Micropelt launched a new commercial energy harvester, which can outperform primary batteries as an energy source for wireless applications. The TE-Power PROBE can fully replace or largely extend the life of batteries of modern WirelessHART, ISA100 and similar transmitters. Mounting the device to a hot side of 20°C above ambient results in a milliwatt net output, equal to about 3 AA cells per year. Between 25 and 90°C 10 mW net are generated, equivalent to as much as 30 AA cells worth of energy as an annual budget for a 3V application.

The TE-Power PROBE collects thermal energy at the most optimal hot spot in proximity to its instrument to be powered. Thus the thermoelectrically harvested power is maximized in favor of more energy and better flexibility for the connected application. The Thermoharvester with its cylindrical 2" (52mm) diameter by 4.2" (80mm) long aluminum body easily connects to the heat source via a threaded copper thermal input pin.

The TE-Power PROBE is offered with different levels of power conditioning, including Thermogenerator dc output, externally configurable 1.6 to 5V, and fully regulated discrete voltages including 2.4, 3.6 and 4.5V. The TE-Power PROBE is priced at €730 for single units and will be sold through Mouser as a worldwide distributor, starting with the 4.5V version.

"This Thermoharvester eliminates all the battery-related operational costs of wireless sensors while giving them virtually infinite service life," said Fritz Volkert, Micropelt’s CEO. "When ordered in batches the unit price will be very competitive. Our customers thus can take full advantage of deploying sensors wherever useful for better process management or more efficient maintenance."

"This self-sustaining green power source can make battery service a thing of the past for the growing installed base of wireless instruments," said Burkhard Habbe, VP Business development at Micropelt.