If we have noticed that most IoT terminals are powered by batteries,and manufacturers will emphasize battery life when launching products: for example,it is said that the battery of NB-IoT smart water meter can be used for 7-10 years without replacement; it is called smart wearable dynamic blood glucose The instrument supports continuous use for 14 days. And in order to extend battery life,players have spent a lot of research and development efforts on the "low power consumption" feature.
However,there are also devices that do not require battery power to complete the work,such as bus cards,bank cards and other NFC applications; or the environment where the device is located is not suitable for the use of batteries. For example,in industrial production environments with high safety requirements,hidden dangers such as battery fires must be eliminated.,and the battery does not work properly in hot or low temperature environments.
As a result,it has become a trend to harvest energy from environmental micro-energy and allow devices without batteries or wires to supply energy by themselves,which is expected to many current application scenarios.
Among the various technical routes including ambient light collection,temperature difference conversion collection,vibration energy collection,and wireless radio frequency collection,wireless radio frequency energy collection can simultaneously complete power supply,networking,and data transmission while communicating. It has been applied in a wider field and received widespread attention.
It is understood that Innovation Technology Co.,Ltd. has the mission of "creating battery-free Internet of Things applications" and the technical direction of "wireless radio frequency micro-energy power harvesting". In terms of product implementation,every new innovation has been formed in the R-nergy series of wireless radio frequency technology solutions (1.0 technical solutions and 2.0 technical solutions have been launched),covering short-range and medium-to-long distance radio frequency power supply,instantaneous power supply and continuous power supply,and different power supply. and other technical solutions,covering various demand types such as one-to-one,one-to-many,and many-to-many for devices.
In order to deeply into the technical mysteries and application potential of wireless radio frequency power harvesting,IoT reporters recently interviewed Mr.,CTO of every new company,to learn more about the detailed information behind the "powerless Internet of Things" of every new company.
The following is a selection of conversations between Mr. and reporters from IoT
IoT Every time a new technical is to take wireless radio frequency power,what are the characteristics of the currently released 1.0 technical solutions and 2.0 technical solutions?
Both the 1.0 and 2.0 solutions use wireless radio frequency to obtain power. This is their similarity.
The 1.0 solution is based on NFC design,the working frequency band is 13.56MHz,the communication distance is generally less than 10 centimeters,and the transmission speed is hundreds of Kbps. It is a short-range inductive coupling communication and has the characteristics of instantaneous release of large power; the 2.0 solution is currently based on the Bluetooth communication environment Designed,this generation of solutions can cover communication or power frequencies including 850MHz,915MHz,2.4GHz,etc. It is not only based on Bluetooth,but has a higher transmission rate. The theoretical power distance can reach 20 meters. It is positioned as a mid-to-long-distance radio frequency power source. .
There is another similarity between the 1.0 solution and the 2.0 solution: due to the use of NFC or Bluetooth technology protocols,both types of solutions support the establishment of communication and interaction with mobile phones.
However,there are also differences between the 2.0 solution and the 1.0 solution: firstly,the communication distance,the 2.0 solution supports radio frequency power collection at a distance; secondly,the power supply duration,the 1.0 solution tends to instantaneous power supply/power consumption scenarios,but the 2.0 solution Bluetooth devices under the device can continuously send radio waves,so the receiving end continuously stores power,and then consumes power according to the set frequency to complete data transmission without manual operation; in addition,the 2.0 solution supports simultaneous power supply and networking of multiple power-free devices.
IoT What application scenarios are suitable for the 1.0 solution and the 2.0 solution?
The 1.0 solution is mainly used in various switch products,such as industrial locks,smart door locks,lighting switches,valves,etc.,as well as electronic ink screen equipment with displays.
Among them,outdoor and special industries represented by electric power and railways are the first areas where the 1.0 plan will be implemented. In these scenarios,there have always been pain points in the management of mechanical locks and keys that are non-digital and easy to be stolen during patrol maintenance. Moreover,due to the complex environment,it is difficult to consider using products with batteries in informatization.
Based on this,the powerless NFC smart padlocks used in industrial scenarios under the new 1.0 solution can replace traditional mechanical locks and keys. The unlocking method can be an authorized mobile phone (because NFC is compatible with mobile phones),or it can be customized per unlock. The smart key can unlock the door in as fast as 0.7 seconds. In addition to the hardware part,each company provides a corresponding IoT platform software system,which can quickly determine whether the inspection has been carried out,whether the lock has been closed,whether the "key" has been returned,etc.
Another solution that creates new 1.0 technology solutions in logistics scenarios is the powerless NFC integrated smart box lock product solution. This solution integrates devices such as electronic paper displays and sensors at the same time,further realizing one-time communication and completing the three major functions of switch lock,electronic paper sheet data refresh,and sensor data return. This solution product has the following three major features:
1. No battery integration,minimalist structure,one product suitable for multiple scenarios
2. Node-based traceability monitoring protects items and is more environmentally friendly
3. Lower-cost security and trust delivery
In addition,based on the "battery-less" feature,the smart door lock market is also interested in the 1.0 solution. It is expected that passive NFC unlocking will be set as an emergency alternative in the smart door lock unlocking method,so as to improve product innovation and solve consumers' frequent problems. The problem encountered is that the lock cannot be unlocked due to a dead battery.
As for the 2.0 solution,it was officially released in July this year. Based on its characteristics of being suitable for realizing simultaneous power supply and networking of multiple powerless devices within medium and long-distance communication distances,it has a richer application space. Among them,hardware product types include sensors,smart labels,health detection and other wearable devices.
After the release of the 2.0 solution,the company received inquiries from all parties and has now provided samples to some companies to promote the implementation of the 2.0 technology solution in customer products and projects.
IoT It can be understood that the 1.0 solution is growing rapidly,and the 2.0 solution is in the early expansion stage?
Basically yes,the 1.0 process is faster,mainly in the industrial smart lock sector. It was piloted last year,and there will be more mass production and shipments this year. It is expected that it will be further implemented on a large scale next year. In addition,display ink screens based on the 1.0 solution have also begun to be shipped this year. Product types include conference tables,digital transportation,electronic price tags,etc.
IoT According to my understanding,every time the overall R-nergy technology solution is turned on,it works according to the process of "radio frequency power acquisition-power management-power application",so the power storage efficiency and power consumption are the keys to the feasibility of the solution. Factors,what kind of work has been done to achieve this?
It is easier to understand from the formula: receiving end power = transmitting end power × transmitting and receiving antenna gain × wavelength 2÷(4πR2),R refers to the distance between the transmitting end and the receiving end.
There are clear industry specifications for transmit power and there is an upper limit. This means that under a certain transmit power,in order to obtain greater receive power (that is,the power storage efficiency mentioned in the question),we need to pay attention to both antenna gain and communication distance. A large variable,which can be expressed specifically as the better the antenna gain and the closer the distance,the higher the received power.
Therefore,each new R&D team improves the efficiency of radio frequency conversion of electrical energy through technological innovations in antenna gain design and antenna array,multi-level energy conversion and storage,and obtains maximum power conversion output.
In addition,regarding the problem of power consumption when the device is working,every new device adopts a customized Bluetooth protocol stack to reduce the device's sleep power consumption to the nanowatt level and improve power utilization.
IoT Is the stability and reliability of radio frequency power extraction based on Bluetooth technology guaranteed?
We have verified the stability and reliability of radio frequency power extraction.
In principle,because electromagnetic waves are continuously emitted outwards,the product we designed is essentially an integrated circuit,so it can continuously receive electromagnetic waves to obtain power,store power,and use power according to settings. There is no problem in this process. of.
And during actual deployment,we can make calculations based on the scene characteristics (such as static and dynamic characteristics of space,people,etc.) and select the best launcher deployment location to avoid frequent movement of personnel and the placement of equipment or instruments in the scene. Changes and other factors affect electromagnetic propagation paths and electricity storage efficiency.
IoT What about the cost? Are there any differences compared to other technical solutions?
The Bluetooth protocol based on the 2.0 solution is actually a simplified version of the standard Bluetooth protocol. The purpose is to reduce power consumption and achieve battery-free operation,so we must first start based on the "battery-free" point.
When there is no battery,the product can be sealed once and for all,so that the waterproof,pressure resistance,corrosion resistance and other properties are better than ordinary products with batteries,effectively solving the pain points of battery protection and replacement.
Therefore,taking into account the installation cost,maintenance cost,operating cost,etc.,the cost of the non-electricity solution is better than that of the electric solution. And as technology and business mature,the cost reduction capabilities of battery-free solutions will become more prominent.
IoT The 2.0 solution supports the electronic price tag market for supermarkets,but this market already has standard Bluetooth and private 2.4GHz protocols. How to deal with this?
Electronic price tags in supermarkets are only one category of applicable scenarios for the 2.0 solution. The 2.0 solution also has application space in warehouse management,health and sports monitoring,and asset management. Therefore,the specific scenario in which it is implemented is still determined by customer needs. The common points are The scene requirements meet the two characteristics of "low power consumption data transmission and data transmission frequency is not too high".
Because customer needs are diverse,the purpose of creating any new solution for any scenario is not to completely replace other technologies,but to adhere to the "wireless radio frequency power harvesting" technical and provide industry customers with the option of a "battery-free" solution.
We hope that the feature of "IoT terminals can work without batteries" can help our partners and industry upgrades gain more room for growth and iteration,and make more people
IoT At the press conference of the 2.0 solution in July,the company demonstrated the working of a passive temperature and humidity sensor in a warehouse environment. Assuming that the warehouse also needs to monitor smoke or other hazardous gases,are there any difficulties or challenges in integrating these in a passive form?
There are currently many types of sensors. We chose temperature and humidity sensors as an example at the press conference because temperature and humidity sensors are very mature. But in addition to temperature and humidity sensors,many sensor categories have been pre-researched every year. At present,most sensors can be passive.
But the biggest challenge in integrating multiple types of sensors in a battery-less manner is power consumption.
It can be understood that the more sensors are integrated,the operating power consumption will increase,the power consumption in each cycle will increase,and the power storage time may become
In other words,balancing "device power consumption" and "data upload frequency" is a question we need to think about.
IoT What other driving forces do you think are needed to help the 2.0 solution become more popular?
Not only every R-nergy2.0 solution,but also the entire ecology of the wireless Internet of Things requires the collaborative participation of upstream and downstream partners in the ecological chain.
The powerless Bluetooth technology solution is launched for low-power scenarios. The lower the power consumption required by the hardware product for each operation,the more beneficial it is to the stable operation of the entire solution (power extraction-power storage-power consumption process). It is conceivable that if low-power consumption of more types of sensors can be achieved,the powerless Bluetooth technology solution will have wider application space.
In addition,the current applications of Bluetooth are still concentrated on the consumer side,and there are not many deployments on the industrial side. If the penetration rate of the entire Bluetooth ecosystem in industrial scenarios is increased,it will also promote the faster implementation of the 2.0 solution in industrial scenarios and expand the breadth of applications.
IoT Do you think there is a threshold for the wireless IoT industry? If other manufacturers see the trend and get involved,how will the company respond?
We hope that there will be more participants in the field of wireless Internet of Things,and that everyone will work together to break through technical problems and expand the market together. We will also continue to explore and iterate the market and technology,strive to achieve "what others don't have,I have,and what others have,I have the essence",and maintain leadership in technology and business.
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