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Tiny ARM-Based Sensor System Makes Battery Replacement Obsolete

Posted by timothy on from the transcend-batteries dept.

An anonymous reader writes "University of Michigan researchers have crammed an ARM Cortex microcontroller, a thin-film battery, and a solar cell into a package that is only 9 cubic millimeters in volume. The system is able to run perpetually by periodically recharging the on-board battery with a solar cell (neglecting physical wear-out of the system)."

7 of 96 comments (clear)

  1. So let me see if I get this straight by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 5, Insightful

    If we ignore wear-out, battery replacement is obsolete.

    Uh hum.

    1. Re:So let me see if I get this straight by arielCo · · Score: 3, Insightful

      “Our system can run nearly perpetually if periodically exposed to reasonable lighting conditions, even indoors [...] Its only limiting factor is battery wear-out, but the battery would last many years.”

      By the time the battery wears out, you have gotten a few years of data; then you toss away the tiny thing.

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      This post contains no rudeness or derision of any kind. All arguments are friendly. Terms and exclusions may apply.
  2. Bogus logic by DavidR1991 · · Score: 2, Insightful

    "Neglecting physical wear" when it comes to batteries is like saying "This car runs forever (neglecting its need for fuel)"

    I didn't think the ability to charge batteries was ever the problem - it's the fact that the innards of the batteries themselves slowly degrade and eventually become unusable

  3. Cool! by chickenrob · · Score: 1, Insightful

    Just like my 1987 calculator? Am I missing something here?

    --
    People say my sig is the best thing about me.
  4. Re:THIS is how you get "infinite" battery life by kju · · Score: 2, Insightful

    Why on earth would they want to attach an ARM to a sensor

    Because it can be done.

    What do you gain by lower power requirements? You probably didn't RTFA, but at least take a look a the picture in full resolution (http://ns.umich.edu/Releases/2010/Feb10/MINISENSOR.JPG). The solar panels are already included in that tiny device, and it powers the ARM already. Decent processing power is good, think encrypting the - probably sensitive - data in the sensor.

  5. Re:THIS is how you get "infinite" battery life by vertinox · · Score: 2, Insightful

    Batteries have a limiting lifespan.

    If they used a capacitor instead, this device would run virtually forever.

    Place this in a solid glass marble, and it might last forever too.

    Note:

    When something is sold as "infinite" or "forever" it doesn't actually have to meet its claims.

    It just has to last longer than the person who paid for it.

    The person who inherits its will think its quaint and let their kids break it.

    --
    "I am the king of the Romans, and am superior to rules of grammar!"
    -Sigismund, Holy Roman Emperor (1368-1437)
  6. Re:THIS is how you get "infinite" battery life by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 2, Insightful

    > It just has to last longer than the person who paid for it.

    Wrong! It just has to last longer than the person who sold it ;-)