Turnkey Energy Harvesting Reference Design Enables Industry's Most
Power-Efficient Wireless Sensor Node Applications
AUSTIN, Texas--(BUSINESS WIRE)--
Silicon
Laboratories Inc. (NASDAQ: SLAB), a leader in high-performance,
analog-intensive, mixed-signal ICs, today introduced the industry's most
energy-efficient wireless sensor node solution powered by a solar energy
harvesting source. The new turnkey energy harvesting reference design
enables developers to implement self-sustaining, ultra-low-power
wireless sensor networks for home and building automation, security
systems, industrial control applications, medical monitoring devices,
asset tracking systems and infrastructure and agricultural monitoring
systems.
The market for energy harvesting devices is poised to grow exponentially
this decade. IDTechEx forecasts that more than ten billion energy
harvesting devices will ship by 2019 — a 20x increase over the roughly
500 million units that shipped in 2009. Although systems powered by
harvested energy sources have existed for many years, developers have
been challenged to implement wireless sensor nodes within very low power
budgets. Silicon Labs has met this design challenge by creating a
wireless energy harvesting system based on its Si10xx
wireless microcontroller (MCU) family, the industry's most
power-efficient, single-chip MCU and wireless transceiver solution,
which can perform control and wireless interface functions at ultra-low
power levels.
In addition to being environmentally friendly and virtually
inexhaustible, harvested energy provides a cost-effective, convenient
alternative to batteries in many applications such as wireless
networking systems. Batteries can be costly and inconvenient to replace,
especially in large-scale wireless sensor node applications, and they
are unreliable in extreme temperature conditions. Wireless sensor nodes
often use batteries because they are placed in locations where it is not
possible or convenient to run mains power. Energy harvesting simplifies
these applications by eliminating the inconvenience of replacing
batteries in inaccessible locations, while also reducing the quantity of
depleted batteries for recycling or dumped in landfills.
Silicon Labs' comprehensive energy harvesting reference design includes
wireless network and USB software and a complete circuit design with RF
layout, bill of materials (BOM), schematics and Gerber files. The design
consists of three components:
-
A solar-powered wireless sensor node that measures temperature, light
level and charge level, using an Si10xx wireless MCU to control the
sensor system and transmit data wirelessly and a thin-film battery to
store harvested energy.
-
A wireless USB adapter that connects the wireless sensor node to a PC
for displaying sensor data; the adapter features Silicon Labs' Si4431
EZRadioPRO® transceiver with an MCU running USB-HID class software
and EZMac®
wireless software stack.
-
A wireless sensor network GUI that displays data from up to four
sensor nodes.
The thin film battery used in the energy harvesting reference design has
a capacity of 0.7 mAh. In direct sunlight, the battery can be recharged
fully in only two hours. While in sleep mode, the wireless sensor node
will retain a charge for 7,000 hours. If the wireless system is
transmitting continuously, it will operate non-stop for about three
hours, although it is designed to constantly recharge itself at an
appropriate level to keep the thin-film battery from completely
discharging.
"As part of our global commitment to green technology, Silicon Labs has
advanced the use of energy harvesting technology to free wireless
networking systems from the cost, inconvenience and negative
environmental impact of conventional batteries," said Mark Thompson,
vice president of Silicon Labs' Embedded Mixed-Signal products. "By
combining ultra-low-power wireless MCU technology with a
state-of-the-art energy harvesting system, Silicon Labs has delivered
the industry's most energy-efficient, self-sustaining wireless
networking solution."
Silicon Labs' energy harvesting reference design accommodates a wide
range of harvested energy sources. An on-board bypass connector gives
developers the flexibility to bypass the solar cell and tap other energy
harvesting sources such as vibration (piezoelectric), thermal and RF.
Pricing and Availability
Silicon Labs energy harvesting reference design is available now and
priced at $45 (USD). For more information, please visit www.silabs.com/pr/energyharvesting.
For more details about Silicon Labs' Si10xx wireless MCU family, visit www.silabs.com/pr/wirelessmcu.
Silicon Laboratories Inc.
Silicon Laboratories is an industry leader in the innovation of
high-performance, analog-intensive, mixed-signal ICs. Developed by a
world-class engineering team with unsurpassed expertise in mixed-signal
design, Silicon Labs' diverse portfolio of patented semiconductor
solutions offers customers significant advantages in performance, size
and power consumption. For more information about Silicon Labs, please
visit www.silabs.com.
Cautionary Language
This press release may contain forward-looking statements based on
Silicon Laboratories' current expectations. These forward-looking
statements involve risks and uncertainties. A number of important
factors could cause actual results to differ materially from those in
the forward-looking statements. For a discussion of factors that could
impact Silicon Laboratories' financial results and cause actual results
to differ materially from those in the forward-looking statements,
please refer to Silicon Laboratories' filings with the SEC. Silicon
Laboratories disclaims any intention or obligation to update or revise
any forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new information,
future events or otherwise.
Note to editors: Silicon Laboratories, Silicon Labs, the "S" symbol, the
Silicon Laboratories logo and the Silicon Labs logo are trademarks of
Silicon Laboratories Inc. All other product names noted herein may be
trademarks of their respective holders.
Follow Silicon Labs on Twitter at http://twitter.com/silabs
and on Facebook at http://www.facebook.com/siliconlabs.
Silicon Laboratories Inc.
Dale Weisman, +1-512-532-5871
dale.weisman@silabs.com
Source: Silicon Laboratories Inc.
News Provided by Acquire Media