Nextreme eTEG™ HV56 Evaluation & Development Kits

View Product List

The Thermobility™ WPG-1 and WPG-1S Wireless Power Generator Evaluation Kits employ Nextreme Thermobility™, a new power generation technology that uses heat as a source of electricity for low-power wireless applications. Thermobility uses innovative solid-state thin-film thermoelectric technology to convert heat into electricity for a variety of self-contained, autonomous systems.

Thermobility™ uses differences in temperature to enable "wireless power" anywhere there is an adequate heat source and eliminates the need to use traditional wired power sources or replaceable batteries. When paired with wireless transmitters, Thermobility can provide electric power for decades of maintenance-free operation, thus expanding the possibilities for new wireless sensor applications in industrial control, transportation, automotive, and building management.

The WPG-1 and WPG-1S are about the size of a golf ball and each consists of a pin-fin heat sink, a custom circuit board, Nextreme's eTEG™ HV56 thermoelectric power generator and a metal attachment plate that is applied to the desired heat source. Each device incorporates a Linear Technologies LTC®3108 Ultralow Voltage Step-Up Converter and Power Management chip to provide up to 1mW of electrical power, and operates at temperature differentials as low as 15-20K relative to ambient. Larger temperature differences can generate significantly more power.

The WPG-1S also uses the INFINERGY D-MPM101, a development micro power module from Infinite Power Solutions (IPS) that provides efficient battery management, near loss-less energy storage, and output regulation, eliminating power source fluctuations caused by variable heat sources. The D-MPM101 integrates IPS' ultra-thin and rechargeable THINERGY® solid-state micro-energy cells (MECs) to supply up to 2.0 mAh of stored energy for use by an application during periods when the heat source is not available or is intermittent.

Both the WPG-1 and WPG-1S are designed for ease of use with any flat-surface heat source, and the WPG-1S can be customized for pipes and other non-flat surfaces. For simple bench-top testing, each device can be placed directly on a laboratory grade hotplate with temperature control. For evaluation with other surfaces, the attachment plate can be mated with either thermal grease for normal horizontal application or double-stick thermal pad for vertical mounting.

The integrated circuit board includes DIP switches for setting the output voltage. Electrical connections can be made using the on-board 2-pin or 6-pin connectors, or for the WPG-1S, a two-wire pigtail connected to the 6-pin connector. The 6-pin connector mates directly to the Texas Instruments eZ430 wireless target board, making the WPG-1 and WPG-1S ideal wireless power sources for the eZ430 development platform.

View Product Detail

The eTEG™ HV56 Power Generator Evaluation Kit provides customers with an easy-to-use, self-contained first evaluation solution for conducting desktop demonstrations of Nextreme's HV56 TEG device. The kit eliminates the need for a sophisticated laboratory set up and requires only modest equipment to measure the power generated by Nextreme's eTEG HV56 devices.

The eTEG™ HV56 Power Generator Evaluation Kit includes a thick film heater as the heat source, an embedded eTEG HV56 power generator module, a heat sink/fan assembly, and thermocouples for temperature measurement. The kit provides the full thermal path --from heat source to heat sink-- and requires only a power supply for the heater and a volt meter to measure the voltage generated by the eTEG across a load resistor, thereby determining the power output.