Kinetic / thermal energy for operation of positioning and sensor units on wild animals
| Reference number | |
| Coordinator | Followit Sweden AB |
| Funding from Vinnova | SEK 75 609 |
| Project duration | October 2017 - December 2017 |
| Status | Completed |
| Venture | The strategic innovation programme Electronic Components and Systems: |
Important results from the project
The aim of the application was to gain knowledge of opportunities and challenges with a kinetic / thermal energy component. The component should be used in environments where charging / replacing battery is complicated. The project is specifically aimed at extracting energy from animal movement or animal body temperature.
Expected long term effects
The result of the project shows that it is possible to extract energy from the animal´s movement or the body´s body temperature. Energy harvesting is low. If kinetic and thermal energy harvesting is an advantage to use on animals, each energy-harvesting unit needs to be designed for each animal species, as both animal species and the environment affect the effectiveness. The project shows that in thermal energy harvesting would need 7 year to generate the same energy as an AA lithium tionyl chloride (LiSOCI2) battery. For kinetic energy, it would take significantly longer time.
Approach and implementation
The project has managed to show what challenges are with energy harvesting and that it is not possible with today´s technology to generate enough energy for 1 year that corresponds to an AA lithium tionyl chloride (LiSOCI2) battery. It is also clear that thermal energy has much higher potential than kinetic energy. In an ev. Continuation of the project will be done in cooperation with a zoo, as tests in fields and on different animal species will be a key part to succeed.