Micropower Division

TPL Micropower designs, develops and manufactures innovative power systems for wireless sensors. Our EnerPak™ products uniquely realize the potential of energy harvesting systems for meeting the power needs of wireless sensors. Our design uses energy harvesters to provide continuous low-level power while simultaneously charging proprietary energy storage systems that provide back-up and pulse power capabilities.

Applications

• Precision Agricultural
• Process Monitoring & Control
• Meteorological Sensing
• Industrial Automation
• Structural Health Monitoring
• Non Destructive Evaluation
• Battlefield Intelligence
• Connected Home
• Automotive
• Environmental Monitoring

EnerPak™

Features

• Combines Energy Harvesting & Energy Storage for a Stand-Alone Miniaturized Power Supply
• Ultra-Low Power “Control Electronics”
• Form Factor: 2 AA Batteries
• Operating Voltage 2.0-5.0V
• Peak Current: 30 - 50 Ma

Advantages

• No Need to Change Batteries
• No Need to Recharge or Refuel
• Delivers Steady State, Pulse, and Back-Up Power
• Combination Realizes Smallest Size/Longest Life System

Microbatteries and Microsupercapacitors

• Lithium (3V), Lithium Ion (3.7V), Microbatteries
• Aqueous (1V)/Non-Aqueous (2.5V) Micro-Supercapacitors

Generator

• Solar (Commercially Available)
• Vibration Under Development
• Thermal Under Development
• Radioisotope Under Development

Electronics

• Ultra-Low Power Operation
• Very Low Voltage and Current Losses
• Rectifier
• Charging Circuits

By 2010 there will be 150M to 200M wireless sensors being used in factory automation, process and environmental control, security, medicine, and condition-based maintenance, as well as in defense applications and intelligence gathering.

Such wireless sensor systems will require numerous individual devices (known as nodes or motes) to provide comprehensive monitoring capability; will often be located in inaccessible places; and will require long intervals between scheduled maintenance. Periodic maintenance, such as replacing batteries, would clearly increase operating costs, and could be inconvenient, at best, if it required interruption of a continuous process. There is clearly a need to develop an energy source that can last years with little or no maintenance.

EnerPak™ products combine ways of converting small amounts of energy from the environment (e.g., light, vibrations, etc.) into electrical energy and delivering it as needed for the sensor. Because it is harvesting energy from its environment, the EnerPak™ provides an exceptionally long-lived energy source that far out-lasts conventional batteries. Wireless sensor system integrators and wireless sensor node manufacturers can integrate EnerPak™ products into their product offerings to deliver easy-to-use, reliable products that work without changing batteries.

TPL, Inc., 3921 Academy Parkway North NE, Albuquerque, NM 87109, 505-344-6744, Fax 505-344-1412

Copyright 2007 TPL, Inc. All rights reserved.