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Date: 20th July 2010
Microchip and Cymbet jointly develop energy
harvesting development kit
Microchip and Cymbet Corporation have co-developed the
XLP 16-bit Energy Harvesting Development Kit for customizable
energy harvesting application. This kit includes a modular
development board populated with the PIC24F16KA102 MCU using
eXtreme low power technology and the capability to add PICtail
daughter boards for the rapid evaluation of a variety of
system functions, including ZigBee and proprietary wireless
connectivity, and SD memory cards. The PIC microcontroller's
eXtreme Low Power technology allows users to gain the longest
possible operation from the included Cymbet EnerChip EH
Eval-08 Energy Harvesting Board, which harvests solar energy
that is stored in the EnerChip solid-state, rechargeable
energy-storage devices.
Power condition and capacity are monitored using energy
conscious software algorithms developed by Microchip and
Cymbet. The information thus received can be reported to
a PC user interface using a USB connection. Complete energy
harvesting application firmware can be fully developed using
the included PICkit 3 programmer/debugger.
Energy Harvesting enables designers to extend the life
of their battery-powered applications, or eliminate batteries
altogether, by scavenging energy from sources such as the
sun or ambient indoor light. This kit provides a customizable
development platform for designers to build and test their
solar energy harvesting applications, without having to
design any hardware.
"Until now, energy harvesting kits were limited to
demonstration," said Mitch Obolsky, vice president
of Microchip's Advanced Microcontroller Architecture Division.
"This new kit offers true application development capability,
and pairs Microchip's industry-leading eXtreme Low Power
PIC microcontrollers with Cymbet's innovative energy harvesting
technology, for the longest and most efficient solar-power
operation."
Price: The XLP 16-bit Energy Harvesting Kit is priced
at US$195
Availability: Now
For more information visit: http://www.microchip.com/get/XW8E.
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