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Energy Harvesting in Action
Updated December 2011
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Description
Contents, Table & Figures List
FAQs
Pricing
Related Content
Ambient energy
Energy harvesting is the use of ambient energy to provide electricity for small and or mobile equipment, whether electrical or electronic. In 2011, $700 million is spent on the energy harvesting component itself, rising to just under $5 billion in 2021.
Those wishing to use energy harvesting need reassurance that it is a technology that has progressed beyond trials and new product announcements. They need to benchmark best practice. In addition, potential users and those supplying, financing or otherwise involved in energy harvesting need to identify the successful suppliers, technologies and users and learn from the failures out there. The report from IDTechEx "Energy Harvesting in Action" (www.IDTechEx.com/ehaction) provides the answers, with analysis of over 160 successful ongoing uses of energy harvesting in 31 countries. Here we summarise some of the findings.
Most successful applicational sectors
The main ongoing uses so far of energy harvesting are in the following applicational sectors.
However, this is rapidly changing, mainly as more territories catch up with others in different aspects. For example, in energy harvesting for vehicles, Ford, Volvo, Volkswagen, BMW and others are now in extensive trials of energy harvesters for braking and capturing energy from heat.
Overall winners
All report purchases include one hour free consulting with a report author from IDTechEx, by email or telephone. This needs to be used within 3 months of purchasing the report.
In market value, variety of applications and number of devices, the Consumer sector is biggest of all and will remain so for the next ten years. Overall, photovoltaics is the clear winner and we believe its dominance will continue. Overall, China is the main manufacturer of products employing energy harvesting by number and value and this situation will pertain for the foreseeable future. Of the many types of energy harvesting employing electrodynamics, those capturing human energy are hugely successful. They include bicycle dynamos, wind-up radios and lights, kinetic wristwatches and miniature wind turbines.
There is a second generation of energy harvesting where two technologies are combined, notably photovoltaics with electrodynamic in laptops, radio, phone chargers, rock fall monitors, cars and road furniture, etc. This is more successful than piezoelectrics or thermoelectrics now but without the glamour. Indeed, totally new forms of photovoltaics and electrodynamics are now in ongoing use. Examples are non-silicon flexible PV in bags and apparel and electrodynamics in paving.
Suppliers
In our research, most suppliers of energy harvesting turn out to be small companies. In due course there will be a shakeout into large and small niche suppliers with little in between.
Further down the experience curve
The leaders in the energy harvesting market have usually been down the technological dead ends and entered second and third generation technology. There is always a doubt in the minds of potential users when they see newer companies offering technologies abandoned by the leaders yet with no clear breakthrough to explain why they can succeed where others failed. Some even offer what they can make rather than what is needed.
Leading continents and countries
By a big margin, the USA spends far more on energy harvesting products than any other country. Primarily, it takes the form of expenditure by NASA and the US Department of Defense, and the public buying consumer goods, all favouring photovoltaics.
Research in this report
In the IDTechEx report "Energy Harvesting in Action" we give more than 160 case studies of energy harvesting in ongoing use in 31 countries - enough to give some idea of the leading countries, technologies and applications. The number of case studies given by application sector in the report are shown below.
Source IDTechEx report "Energy Harvesting in Action" www.IDTechEx.com/ehaction
Additional Benefits
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Analyst access from IDTechEx
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Further information
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| EXECUTIVE SUMMARY AND CONCLUSIONS | |
| 1. | INTRODUCTION |
| 1.1. | Definition |
| 1.1. | Frazer Nash Namir |
| 1.2. | Size and structure of the market |
| 1.3. | Benefits |
| 1.4. | Primary energy harvesting needs |
| 1.5. | Types of energy harvesting |
| 1.5.1. | Technologies likely to succeed in future |
| 1.5.2. | Using several technologies together |
| 1.5.3. | Payback from energy harvesting |
| 1.5.4. | Importance of the Third World |
| 2. | THIRD WORLD AND HEALTHCARE SUCCESS |
| 2.1. | Afghanistan laptop computers |
| 2.1. | Treadle powered laptop |
| 2.2. | Solar hearing aid charger |
| 2.2. | Brazil, Botswana, Palestine West Bank solar charged hearing aid |
| 2.3. | Burundi mobile phones |
| 2.3. | Proclaimer in action |
| 2.4. | Mobile phone in use in Kenya |
| 2.4. | Haiti "Faith Comes by Hearing" electronic bibles |
| 2.5. | Kenya mobile phone |
| 2.5. | Freeplay postal heart monitor |
| 2.6. | Freeplay wind up radio in Africa |
| 2.6. | South Africa Freeplay foetal heart monitor |
| 2.7. | South Africa Freeplay radio |
| 2.7. | Mobile phone charging shop in Uganda |
| 2.8. | Solar payphone in Uganda |
| 2.8. | Uganda mobile phone |
| 2.9. | Uganda, Tanzania, Kenya, Rwanda, Namibia, Zambia, payphone |
| 3. | MILITARY AND AEROSPACE SUCCESS |
| 3.1. | Canada Trudeau International Airport |
| 3.1. | Trudeau International Airport |
| 3.2. | CNSA moon orbiting satellite with solar cells |
| 3.2. | China National Space Administration satellites |
| 3.3. | France European Space Agency satellites |
| 3.3. | Solar powered ESA satellites |
| 3.4. | Successful ISRO moon satellite |
| 3.4. | India Space Research Organisation satellites |
| 3.5. | Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency |
| 3.5. | JAXA moon project |
| 3.6. | "Ibuki" GOSAT greenhouse gas monitoring satellite |
| 3.6. | Switzerland solar plane |
| 3.7. | UK satellites |
| 3.7. | Swiss solar plane |
| 3.8. | AeroVironment Inc energy efficient electric systems |
| 3.8. | USA aircraft AeroVironment |
| 3.9. | USA Amerigon fuel cells |
| 3.9. | Helios, the 247-foot wingspan solar-powered airplane |
| 3.10. | Combining photovoltaic and electrodynamic harvesting in an aircraft |
| 3.10. | USA military guidance system tester |
| 3.11. | USA Military land vehicles |
| 3.11. | Automotive power flow |
| 3.12. | Thermoelectrics to improve the efficiency of stationary Solid Oxide Fuel Cells |
| 3.12. | USA NASA on Mars- planetary exploration vehicles |
| 3.13. | USA NASA satellites and space vehicles |
| 3.13. | Oshkosh hybrid truck |
| 3.14. | International Space Station |
| 3.14. | USA Textron Bell helicopter sensing |
| 3.15. | Solar panels for the Hubble telescope |
| 3.16. | Helicopter vibration harvester |
| 3.17. | Bell model 412 helicopter |
| 4. | MARINE SUCCESSES |
| 4.1. | Yacht Ferretti |
| 4.1. | Brazil Yacht Ferretti environmental controls |
| 4.2. | Italy mooring buoys |
| 4.2. | Mizunokoshima lighthouse |
| 4.3. | Buoy with tidal power generation |
| 4.3. | Japan lighthouses |
| 4.4. | Japan sea buoys |
| 4.4. | Solar powered boats for tourism cruising at 12 kph on Lake Geneva |
| 4.5. | Buoy with efficient printed lighting |
| 4.5. | Switzerland electric boats |
| 4.6. | UK Rolls Royce turbines |
| 4.6. | Sea buoys |
| 4.7. | USA sea gliders Liquid Robotics |
| 4.7. | UK sea buoys |
| 4.8. | USA sea buoys |
| 4.8. | Wave Glider |
| 4.9. | USA sea gliders Liquid Robotics |
| 5. | SUCCESS IN BUILDINGS AND INDUSTRIAL SITES |
| 5.1. | Austria Uniqa tower controls |
| 5.1. | Uniqa tower |
| 5.2. | Intelligent lighting system |
| 5.2. | Brazil Philips intelligent lighting |
| 5.3. | Brazil SMT Sandvik headquarters controls |
| 5.3. | SMT Sandvik HA |
| 5.4. | Club Intrawest |
| 5.4. | Canada Club Intrawest Whistler |
| 5.5. | Canada IKEA Brossard |
| 5.5. | Ikea |
| 5.6. | Institute de Cardiologie |
| 5.6. | Canada institute de Cardiologie controls |
| 5.7. | Canada Olympic Village Whistler |
| 5.7. | Interior |
| 5.8. | Olympic village |
| 5.8. | Canada Promutuel insurance building controls |
| 5.9. | Canada Promutuel insurance building controls |
| 5.9. | Promutuel building |
| 5.10. | Promutuel |
| 5.10. | Canada Regulvar office controls |
| 5.11. | Canada St Andrew's Cathedral Victoria |
| 5.11. | Regulvar office |
| 5.12. | Regulvar office 2 |
| 5.12. | Canada St Joseph Elementary School |
| 5.13. | Canada The Citadel of Quebec |
| 5.13. | St Andrew's Cathedral |
| 5.14. | St Joseph school |
| 5.14. | Canada Zero Energy Green Home |
| 5.15. | France Nestlé headquarters controls |
| 5.15. | Citadel |
| 5.16. | Green home |
| 5.16. | Germany Adidas Herzogenaurach building controls |
| 5.17. | Germany Agnes Karl Hospital Laartzen controls |
| 5.17. | Nestlé HQ |
| 5.18. | Adidas Herzogenaurach |
| 5.18. | Germany Alexander Wacker Haus building controls |
| 5.19. | Germany AVIVA Munich controls |
| 5.19. | AK Hospital |
| 5.20. | Alexander Wacker Haus building |
| 5.20. | Germany AXA Maschinenbau |
| 5.21. | Germany BSC headquarters building automation |
| 5.21. | Office building |
| 5.22. | AVIVA |
| 5.22. | Germany Elementary School Bromskirchen |
| 5.23. | Germany Festo AG Technology Center Hamburg |
| 5.23. | AXA |
| 5.24. | Festo AG |
| 5.24. | Germany Hotel Platzl controls |
| 5.25. | Germany Hotel Winkler Brau |
| 5.25. | Hotel Platzl |
| 5.26. | Hotel Winkler |
| 5.26. | Germany ICE Phoenix headquarters controls |
| 5.27. | Germany Juwi Headquarters controls |
| 5.27. | ICE Phoenix |
| 5.28. | Juwi HQ |
| 5.28. | Germany Kaispeicher building controls |
| 5.29. | Germany MAN Werk Munich controls |
| 5.29. | Kaispeicher building |
| 5.30. | MAN |
| 5.30. | Germany MDS Landesfunkhaus Thuringia |
| 5.31. | Germany Medical Center of Quedlinberg controls |
| 5.31. | MDS |
| 5.32. | Medical center |
| 5.32. | Germany Messe Frankfurt |
| 5.33. | Germany Milk production Facility Hocheifel |
| 5.33. | Messe Frankfurt |
| 5.34. | Meuritz Clinic |
| 5.34. | Germany Mueritz Clinic Waren controls |
| 5.35. | Germany Multimedia Center Hamburg |
| 5.35. | Multimedia Center |
| 5.36. | OS3 Intelligent office building |
| 5.36. | Germany OS3 office building controls |
| 5.37. | Germany Premino 11 office building controls |
| 5.37. | Premino 11 |
| 5.38. | Rothermel building |
| 5.38. | Germany residential building Rothermel |
| 5.39. | Germany residential buildings Schorndorf |
| 5.39. | Shorndorf building |
| 5.40. | Rolandsbruecke building |
| 5.40. | Germany Rolandsbruecke office building Hamburg |
| 5.41. | Germany SAP Headquarters Walldorf |
| 5.41. | SAP HQ |
| 5.42. | Semper Opera |
| 5.42. | Germany Semper Opera Dresden controls |
| 5.43. | Germany Siemens Munich |
| 5.43. | Siemens |
| 5.44. | Housing estate |
| 5.44. | Germany Slab Method Housing Estate Neurippon |
| 5.45. | Germany Suddeutsches Kunstoffzentrum Wurtzburg |
| 5.45. | Wurtzburg |
| 5.46. | Takko |
| 5.46. | Germany Takko headquarters |
| 5.47. | Germany Thermokon extension controls |
| 5.47. | Thermokon |
| 5.48. | Modern Housing |
| 5.48. | Germany Weberhaus |
| 5.49. | Japan - East Japan Railway Company |
| 5.49. | Luxembourg school |
| 5.50. | DZ railway station |
| 5.50. | Luxembourg School Axima controls |
| 5.51. | Netherlands DZ railway station |
| 5.51. | University Hall |
| 5.52. | Grenseveien office |
| 5.52. | New Zealand University Hall Canterbury controls |
| 5.53. | Norway Grenseveien office building controls |
| 5.53. | Spain senior residence |
| 5.54. | Torre Espacio |
| 5.54. | Spain building controls |
| 5.55. | Spain senior residence |
| 5.55. | AGS |
| 5.56. | IBM |
| 5.56. | Spain Torre Espacio controls |
| 5.57. | Switzerland AGS Basel building controls |
| 5.57. | Office building |
| 5.58. | Building |
| 5.58. | Switzerland IBM Haltstetter controls |
| 5.59. | Switzerland office building renovation controls |
| 5.59. | Hotel Kempinski |
| 5.60. | Club Surya in London |
| 5.60. | Switzerland Timbered building |
| 5.61. | UAE Hotel Kempinski controls |
| 5.61. | Mond Laboratory |
| 5.62. | Mond interior |
| 5.62. | UK Club Surya dance floor |
| 5.63. | UK Mond laboratory renovation controls |
| 5.63. | 1000 Continental |
| 5.64. | Bryan school |
| 5.64. | UK staircase The Facility |
| 5.65. | USA 1000 Continental King of Prussia |
| 5.65. | Hotel Kahana |
| 5.66. | AdaptivEnergy's Joule-Thief energy-harvesting module |
| 5.66. | USA Bryan High School |
| 5.67. | USA Hotel Kahana Falls Hawaii |
| 5.67. | Park City |
| 5.68. | PulseSwitch lighting switches |
| 5.68. | USA Industrial automation etc |
| 5.69. | USA Leggat McCall building lighting-control |
| 5.69. | Transparent demonstrator |
| 5.70. | PulseSwitch harvesting element |
| 5.70. | USA Park City Utah |
| 5.71. | USA Perrysburg Gym lighting controls |
| 5.71. | Art Museum |
| 5.72. | VA Medical Center |
| 5.72. | USA Pulse Switch Systems building controls |
| 5.73. | USA University Art Museum New Haven |
| 5.73. | Keycard Access Switch |
| 5.74. | USA VA Medical Center |
| 5.75. | USA Wyndham Hotels access controls |
| 6. | AUTOMOTIVE, ROAD AND RAILWAY SUCCESSES |
| 6.1. | Denmark USA Copenhagen bicycle |
| 6.1. | The Copenhagen bicycle |
| 6.2. | The Copenhagen Wheel |
| 6.2. | France, Italy Bluecar |
| 6.3. | Japan Honda cars |
| 6.3. | Bluecar |
| 6.4. | Pininfarina Bolloré Bluecar cross section |
| 6.4. | Japan Nissan Capacitor Hybrid truck |
| 6.5. | Japan Toyota Prius |
| 6.5. | 2010 Toyota Prius |
| 6.6. | Solar panel on roof of the new plug in Prius |
| 6.6. | Sweden Volvo hybrid bus |
| 6.7. | UK 2012 Olympic Games staircase |
| 6.7. | Volvo hybrid bus Sweden |
| 6.8. | Cruise Car Inc solar golf cart |
| 6.8. | UK Think Formula One racing |
| 6.9. | USA Cruise Car golf carts |
| 6.9. | Fisker Karma |
| 6.10. | Tesla Motors Roadster pure EV performance car |
| 6.10. | USA Fisker Karma car |
| 6.11. | USA Tesla car |
| 6.12. | USA train brakes |
| 6.13. | USA wireless PulseSwitch |
| 7. | OUTDOOR INFRASTRUCTURE AND ANIMAL APPLICATIONS |
| 7.1. | Antarctica E-Base |
| 7.1. | China media wall |
| 7.2. | Playmobil Fun Park |
| 7.2. | China media wall |
| 7.3. | Germany Playmobil Fun park Zirndorf controls |
| 7.3. | Power paving |
| 7.4. | Solar and turbine harvesting for road furniture |
| 7.4. | Israel Power Paving |
| 7.5. | Korea street signs |
| 7.5. | Perpetuum electrodynamic harvesting |
| 7.6. | The designers at the solar bus stop in Barcelona |
| 7.6. | Norway Shell Nyhamma gas plant sensors |
| 7.7. | Spain solar bus stop |
| 7.7. | Solar bus stop in San Francisco |
| 7.8. | EyeStop |
| 7.8. | Switzerland rock fall monitor |
| 7.9. | UK Sainsbury car park |
| 7.9. | Sensor monitoring rock net using energy of net movement and solar cells |
| 7.10. | Extramart traffic area |
| 7.10. | USA Australia - smart grid sensing TelepathX |
| 7.11. | USA BP gas pipelines |
| 7.11. | Solar-powered wireless G-Link seismic sensor on the Corinth Bridge in Greece. |
| 7.12. | Multiple solar-powered nodes monitor strain and vibration at key locations on the Goldstar Bridge over the Thames River in New London, Conn |
| 7.12. | USA desert tortoises |
| 7.13. | USA Extramart Convenience Store |
| 7.13. | LED street light |
| 7.14. | Duracell Power Rover |
| 7.14. | USA Greece Corinth bridge monitoring |
| 7.15. | USA Sarasota County street lighting |
| 7.16. | USA Times Square displays |
| 8. | CONSUMER ELECTRONICS SUCCESSES |
| 8.1. | Austria Head Sports Intelligent Ski |
| 8.1. | Intelligent Ski |
| 8.2. | Left, traditional ski - right, Head Intelligence ski with Intellifibers |
| 8.2. | China Bluetooth headset |
| 8.3. | China calculators Texet |
| 8.3. | China Bluetooth headset |
| 8.4. | Texet calculator |
| 8.4. | China Easy Energy handheld charger |
| 8.5. | China Fast Trak lantern |
| 8.5. | Electrodynamic Easy Energy YoGen |
| 8.6. | Wind up lantern |
| 8.6. | China hand cranked flashlight |
| 8.7. | China High Tech Wealth solar phone |
| 8.7. | Hand cranked electrodynamic torch |
| 8.8. | Hi-Tech Wealth's S116 clamshell solar phone |
| 8.8. | China Hong Kong Mascotte phone charging bags |
| 8.9. | China Hong Kong solar bag Mascotte |
| 8.9. | Mascotte G24i Solar bag |
| 8.10. | Solar camera bag powered by G24i launched in 2010 with dedicated camera battery charger |
| 8.10. | China hybrid charger HYmini |
| 8.11. | China in-wheel bicycle dynamo |
| 8.11. | Multimode electrodynamic / solar EH chargers HYmini and MiniSolar. |
| 8.12. | In-wheel dynamo |
| 8.12. | China piezoelectric gas lighter |
| 8.13. | China solar garden lighting |
| 8.13. | Piezoelectric gas lighter |
| 8.14. | Solar garden lighting |
| 8.14. | China solar mole repeller |
| 8.15. | Germany "bottle" bicycle dynamo |
| 8.15. | Solar mole repeller |
| 8.16. | Bosch dynamo |
| 8.16. | Germany Odersun phone charging bags |
| 8.17. | Japan Casio solar wristwatches |
| 8.17. | Odersun solar bag |
| 8.18. | Casio WV-M120E-1VER radio controlled Solar powered Bracelet Digital Watch |
| 8.18. | Japan Citizen wristwatches |
| 8.19. | Japan educational toy Tamiya |
| 8.19. | Citizen EcoDrive photovoltaic wristwatch |
| 8.20. | EH tag |
| 8.20. | Japan Seiko kinetic watch |
| 8.21. | Japan solar phone Sharp |
| 8.21. | Seiko Kinetic mechanism |
| 8.22. | Ultimate Kinetic Chronograph |
| 8.22. | Japan Toppan Forms |
| 8.23. | Korea solar touch phone Samsung |
| 8.23. | Charge indicator |
| 8.24. | Sharp solar phone |
| 8.24. | South Africa foot powered charger |
| 8.25. | Switzerland Swatch Group wristwatches |
| 8.25. | Card with no battery, the image being illuminated by RF power from an RFID reader |
| 8.26. | Flashing flexible OLED display at point of purchase POP |
| 8.26. | USA Australia power umbrella |
| 8.27. | USA iPod Touch |
| 8.27. | Light emitting business card with images that light up sequentially |
| 8.28. | Solar powered photo stand |
| 8.28. | USA Voltaic Systems bag charger |
| 8.29. | Flat sheet type of charger that is flexible |
| 8.30. | OLED posters powered by flexible photovoltaics |
| 8.31. | Light emitting display with audio all powered by ambient light |
| 8.32. | Poster with electrophoretic display counting down to the arrival date of Beaujolais Nouveau. |
| 8.33. | Poster combining flashing LED with Toppan Forms Audio PaperTM sound |
| 8.34. | Samsung solar phone |
| 8.35. | Weza electrodynamic, foot operated charger |
| 8.36. | Tissot Autoquartz watch |
| 8.37. | Power umbrella |
| 8.38. | iPod Touch solar charger |
| 8.39. | Voltaic solar bag |
| APPENDIX 1: GLOSSARY | |
| APPENDIX 2: IDTECHEX PUBLICATIONS AND CONSULTANCY | |
| FIGURES |
Covering over 160 cases from 31 countries
Report Statistics
| Pages | 231 |
|---|---|
| Tables | 5 |
| Figures | 170 |
| Case Studies | 160+ |
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