Information and Communication, Sustainable Environment
Waldo: A Batteryless Sensor
Inventors: Dr. Jacob Sorber
Keywords: Energy - Green Technology, Sustainable, Wireless Sensor
Market Overview
Waldo is the first batteryless, room-level occupancy-monitoring sensor that harvests energy from indoor ambient light reflections while simultaneously detecting human activity using changes in these reflections. The market for motion sensor technologies was evaluated at $4.47 billion in 2017 and is expected to reach $8.17 billion by 2022. Reliable and accurate room-level occupancy tracking systems enable modern smart buildings to better adapt to the needs of occupants and optimize certain resources, including power and air conditioning that waste an estimated 5-20% of energy. Unfortunately, existing occupancy-tracking systems, including passive infrared and ultrasonic sensors, are plagued by large size, high costs and energy consumption, and short battery lifetimes, rendering them ineffective for large-scale and long-term use. Clemson researchers have developed an unobtrusive, longterm, low-cost, and maintenance-free system design for occupancy tracking and energy harvesting.
Applications:
Occupancy Monitoring, Sensors, Energy, Environment, Sustainability, Smart Technology, Computing, Power
Technical Summary:
This commercial occupancy sensor uses light reflections to detect discrete movement events and direction, rather than binary detection (activity / no activity), with accuracies of 97% and 95%, respectively. Waldo consists of solar panels, a detector circuit, microcontroller, and radio, attached to a doorframe or ceiling facing downward. The panels harvest ambient light reflecting off the floor to power the sensor. When a person walks under the sensor, it blocks some of the light and changes the amount of harvested power. The tunable detector circuit monitors the energy harvested and signal the microcontroller whenever the panel voltage changes rapidly. The microcontroller then wakes up, monitors the signals from the inward and outward panels and determines what sort of activity occurred.
Advantages:
- Harvests energy without the use of batteries, reducing maintenance and manufacturing costs
- Uses ambient light reflections to signal human activity and obtain energy, providing a sustainable option that can last for decades
- Design system is integrated with existing smart building systems, eliminating usage of unnecessary lights and HVAC operations in unoccupied spaces
Technology Overview
State of Development
Preliminary Prototype
Patent Type
Provisional
Category
Serial Number
62,848,889
CURF Reference No.
2018-051
Inventors
Dr. Jacob Sorber
For More Info, Contact:
Andy Bluvas
Assistant Director of IP Management
E: curf@clemson.edu
P: (864) 656-0797
Contact
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