WISP technology: energy from the air and no batteries

To date, the main limiting factor in the development of new gadgets have batteries. They determine what forms and dimensions can be modern smartphones, tablets and devices. In this sphere of battery technology is very stagnant, and it is unlikely the situation will change in the near future.

However, in the sensory laboratory at the University of Washington (University of Washington) is an unexpected solution to this problem. Scientists have developed a WISP technology - a combination of a sensor and a computer chip, which does not need a battery or any other leading energy source. Instead, it absorbs radio waves, which are emitted by a standard, affordable RFID-reader, and converts it into electricity.




WISP will not be competitive chips modern smartphones or laptops. Its computing power is about equal opportunities fitness tracker like the Fitbit. The system similar in functionality as it has at its disposal a built-in accelerometer and temperature sensor. WISP can perform simple computing tasks, track reading various sensors and communicate with the outside world.

Despite the simplicity, the possibility of connection WISP big enough. The capacity of the unit is approximately equal to Bluetooth Low Energy - technology that lies at the heart of most Bluetooth-enabled speakers and wireless headphones. This same technology provides an unprecedented opportunity WISP device - it can be reprogrammed remotely, without any wired connections. This is the first technology in the world, capable of such manipulation.



Today WISP capacity is not enough to power the wireless laptops or smart phones, but it has its sphere of practical application: for example, architecture and construction. With these sensors, embedded in structural engineering, inspectors can determine whether the building was damaged by an earthquake, without violating the integrity of the structure. Also batteryless computers are ideally suited for medical implants, which are able to monitor the health of patients. Interest in this technology and have shown the workers of agro-industry, which will allow it to monitor the thousands of plants at the same time.

But his main word WISP can say in the formation of the future Internet. The possibilities of the new technology allow you to change the properties of many familiar objects of our environment without any wired connections.