According to CORDIS (The Community Research and Development Information Service of one of the European Commissions), about 78 million batteries powering IoT devices will be dumped globally every day by 2025 if nothing is done to improve their lifespan. The report emphasizes that most devices have an operational life of over 10 years, while the batteries that power them last 2 years or less.
The report stresses the need to design the IoT device in such a way that the battery lives longer than the Internet of Things (IoT) devices it powers. One way is to harvest available energy from the environment while reducing IoT device energy consumption.
An IoT (Internet-of-Things) device is a device that is connected to the internet and therefore a connectivity chip is included in the device. In addition, to the connectivity chip, the major parts include a sensor interface and a processor. Generally, the power consumption for the connectivity task represents the lion’s share of the power budget.
Achieving the goal of having the battery life the same or longer than the IoT device life is only possible by using low-power processing chips and most importantly an ultra-low power connectivity chip. In addition, starting a design with ultra-low power chips will make it possible to include harvesting techniques.
Based on conversations with Ubilite’s customers, the power consumption from using Wi-Fi can amount to 75% of the total power usage. Since UBI206 reduces the power consumption by about 10 times for those IoT devices, it therefore extends the life of the battery by at least 3 times. This will make the battery life to get closer to the life of the IoT device. This translates to saving 50 million batteries from going to waste on a daily basis.
As the IoT ecosystem continues to expand, it is imperative to prioritize solutions that not only enhance connectivity but also address the environmental impact. Ubilite's UBI206 stands as a beacon of progress, offering a tangible and impactful step towards reducing battery waste and fostering a sustainable future for IoT technology.
