STMicroelectronics and Micropelt Joint to Develop TE-Power NODE Evaluation Kit
The TE-Power NODE evaluation kit combines Micropelt’s Thermogenerator and ST’s EnFilm™ solid-state thin-film battery as energy storage for power backup and pulse current. Power management and charge monitoring circuitry connect to the included graphical user interface software via a 2.4 GHz wireless link. At the heart of the new evaluation kit, a Thermoelectric Generator (TEG) exploits a physical phenomenon known as the Seebeck Effect, in which electric power results from the heat flux produced by a temperature differential across a thermoelectric micro-structured layer. From an effective gradient of 10°C, the TEG generates a voltage of 1.4V. Micropelt’s custom power conditioning converts this into sufficient power to drive the wireless sensor node and charge a battery using excess thermal energy. In the TE-Power NODE evaluation kit, the Micropelt TEG MPG-D751 is housed between a solid Aluminium base plate and a finned heatsink. The base is attached to a suitable heat source, so the cooling effect of the heatsink can create a temperature differential across the embedded TEG…
Thermoharvesting Power Supply
ST’s EnFilm
(Photos from ST Website)
