Centre for Plastic Electronics

Brill Power

Brill Power is an Oxford University spinout/startup that develops and supplies battery management systems (BMS) for stationary storage, electric vehicles, and second life batteries.

Walk With Path

Walk With Path is a developer and manufacturer of walking aids and smart insoles, with a focus on improving mobility for people suffering from chronic conditions. The company's core product is a smart insole, which connects to the company's proprietary app. IDTechEx spoke with Lise Pape, Founder and Managing Director of Walk With Path.

The Surgical Company

The Surgical Company makes Sensium, a wireless patient monitoring system with electronic skin patches.

Seaweed-Based Battery Powers Confidence in Sustainable Energy Storage

A research team uses nanomaterials made from seaweed to create a strong battery separator, paving the way for greener and more efficient energy storage.

Wearable Sensors Styled into T-Shirts and Face Masks

Researchers have embedded new low-cost sensors that monitor breathing, heart rate, and ammonia into t-shirts and face masks. Potential applications range from monitoring exercise, sleep, and stress to diagnosing and monitoring disease through breath and vital signs.

3D Printing Drones Build and Repair Structures While Flying

3D printing is gaining momentum in the construction industry. Both on-site and in the factory, static and mobile robots print materials for use in construction projects, such as steel and concrete structures. This new approach to 3D printing uses drones, that use collective building methods inspired by natural builders like bees and wasps who work together to create large, intricate structures.

IONETIC Reveals EV Battery Pack Technology

IONETIC launches its state-of-the-art EV battery pack design platform, which can cut the development cost and time for automotive manufacturers bringing a new electric vehicle to market.

Wearable to Detect COVID-19 Before Onset of Symptoms

Wrist-worn health devices can be combined with machine learning to detect COVID-19 infections as early as two days before symptoms appear,

Cheaper Solar Cells Could be on the Way

New solar cell devices that are cheaper and easier to make could soon make their way to market thanks to materials. Traditional solar cells are made from silicon, which has good efficiency and stability, but is relatively expensive to make and can only be manufactured in stiff panels. Perovskite solar cells offer an intriguing alternative; they can be printed from inks, making them low cost, high efficiency, thin, lightweight and flexible.

Highlights from the Future Propulsion Conference 2022

IDTechEx attended the Future Propulsion Conference in Birmingham, UK, a two day conference held on the 2nd and 3rd March 2022. The event was co-hosted by AVL Powertrain UK and Imperial College London, bringing together industry and academic experts within the powertrain development field. This article presents highlights from the conference presentations. Conference speakers included Ballard Motive Systems, Changan UK, CNH Industrial, Leyland Trucks, JCB, FEV, Cummins, and Ricardo.

Medical Training Robots with Realistic Pain Expressions

A new approach to producing realistic expressions of pain on robotic patients could help to reduce error and bias during physical examination. A team of researchers has developed a way to generate more accurate expressions of pain on the face of medical training robots during physical examination of painful areas.

Synbiosys

Synbiosys is a start-up based in London, UK that is developing a deep learning-based software for the validation of 3D-printed components. IDTechEx spoke with CEO Jose Videira.

Bendy Robotic Arm Twisted Into Shape With Help of Augmented Reality

The flexible arm can twist and turn in all directions, making it readily customisable for potential applications in manufacturing, spacecraft maintenance, and even injury rehabilitation.

Disorder-Engineered Inorganic Crystals Set Record for Ultrathin Solar

Displayed over roof tops and in solar farms, silicon-based solar cells are, so far, one of the most efficient systems in generating electricity from sunlight, but their fabrication can be expensive and energy demanding, aside from being heavy and bulky. The alternative solution of lower-cost thin film solar cells also brings the caveat of being mainly composed of toxic elements such as lead or cadmium, or containing scarce elements such as indium or tellurium.

Phosphorene Nanoribbons Live up to Hype in First Demonstration

Researchers have incorporated phosphorene nanoribbons into new types of solar cells, dramatically improving their efficiency. Phosphorene nanoribbons are ribbon-like strands of the 2D material phosphorous, which, similar to graphene, are made of single-atom-thick layers of atoms. PNRs were first produced in 2019, and hundreds of theoretical studies have predicted how their properties could enhance all kinds of devices, including batteries, biomedical sensors, and quantum computers.

Platform for Controlled Design of Printed Electronics with 2D Material

Scientists have shown how electricity is transported in printed 2D materials, paving the way for design of flexible devices for healthcare and beyond.

Econic Technologies

Econic Technologies is a British start-up working to commercialize catalyst technologies that incorporate carbon dioxide into polymers with a wide range of downstream applications. In August 2021, IDTechEx Technology Analyst Dr Hydra Rodrigues spoke to Econic's CEO, Keith Wiggins.

New SecQuAL Consortium Launches

A group of eleven UK companies has been awarded funding by the Industrial Strategy Challenge Fund for a project designed to bring technology to the fore in the farm-to-fork ecosystem. The award is part of 'Made Smarter Innovation delivered by UK Research and Innovation'

FedTech (printed sensors)

FedTech is a start-up 'venture builder' that aims to provide support and funding to early stage technology-based start-ups. IDTechEx caught up with FedTech partner John Cole to discuss a current project that aims to commercialize low-cost printed gas sensors for food quality monitoring.

Lead From Leaded Petrol Persists in London Air Despite '90s Ban

Lead levels in London's atmosphere have dropped drastically since lead additives in petrol were phased out, and currently meet UK air quality targets. However despite this drop, airborne particles in London are still highly lead-enriched compared to natural background levels, according to new research.