The thermoelectric effect describes the direct conversion from thermal to electric energy and vise versa. This article provides a short history of thermoelectrics, from the discovery in the early 19th century, to the state of the art today and possible developments in the near future.   The discovery of thermoelectrics Already in 1794, Italien physicist […]

When we talk about the power supply for mobile devices, we instantly think of batteries. But since the beginning of the 20th century, researchers and engineers try to use the human body as a renewable source of electrical energy. Since the 1940s, hand crank-powered radio transmitters were used to compensate for shortcomings in energy availability. […]

You‘ve been in this situation before. Your mobile phone is running out of battery while you still want to use it. Or your battery capacity is so low, you need to charge your phone twice a day. The problem is: The energy you consume is not produced where you need it. With you.   Dating […]

All IoT devices require an energy supply, yet, hardwired connections to the energy grid are impractical or even impossible for most intended use cases. Batteries are the current gold standard in supplying IoT devices and wearables with energy, but tie the user to the grid for recharging. Energy harvesting from environmental sources could extend the […]

Wearable devices are growing to a tremendous pace. The forecast is promising for the near future and commercial products are covering a wide range of applications. Moreover, many start-ups are growing in more niche application with success. However, one of many issues of wearable devices is still the energy availability that limits the lifetime and […]

The implementation of the IoT will result in exciting new applications and possibilities. Until the vision can become reality, there is still a number of challenges that need to be addressed. These challenges include the handling of big data, data security and ownership, the cost of devices and infrastructure, the energy source and comfort and […]

Today, people and technology are almost permanently connected by miniaturized yet powerful computers and sensors. Soon, networks of billions of sensors and computing nodes could span the globe to form the Internet of Things (IoT). The IoT will have a tremendous impact on our personal life, our environment and on global businesses and manufacturing. A […]