The accelerated time frame builds on SOR’s recent development success where it achieved a number of key research breakthroughs.
Tech venture firm Strategic Elements (ASX:SOR) continues to go from strength to strength in the development of game-changing alternative battery technology for the global electronics market.
Recently, the company’s lead research team at the University of NSW flagged two major breakthroughs – the reduction of cell size for increased power output, and the confirmation of robust product flexibility in the textile fabrication process.
Building on that momentum, SOR announced this morning that it’s accelerated the time frame to achieve more important development milestones.
Big ambitions
The first target is to provide confirmation that the battery ink technology can power a wearable electronic device equipped with sensors and Bluetooth Low Energy capability.
Successful completion of that goal will demonstrate the technology’s capacity to provide enough power for successful wireless connectivity – a critical element that enables wearable devices to transfer data to larger hardware systems.
Secondly, the UNSW research team plans to build a prototype battery pack that can produce over a milliamp of electrical current, directly from moisture in the air (humidity).
SOR described the one milliamp targets as “the most significant demonstration of the technology’s potential to date”.
“Achieving milliamp range is recognised as a significant achievement in battery technology development as it dramatically expands the range of devices a battery can potentially power,” the company said.
SOR provided direct timelines for the achievement of both milestones. It will aim to achieve wireless connectivity capability before the end of the June quarter, with the one-milliamp power function scheduled for completion before the end of Q3.
Commenting on the development update, Strategic Elements CEO Charles Murphy said the research team is aiming high in the wake of the project’s strong momentum.
“Bringing forward the milliamp demonstration milestone is a highly ambitious goal that will establish the Battery Ink as a leading printable battery technology, if it can be achieved,” Murphy said.
“Just as important in the near term is developing an ink that is able to be screen printed as this would open new avenues to potentially scaling the technology rapidly and significantly.”
World class team
SOR’s ambition is matched by the strength of its personnel, with a leading research team at the UNSW School of Materials Science and Engineering – the Number 1 ranked tertiary school in Australia for material sciences.
The current market opportunity for the initial market opportunity in wearable electronics is a by-product of SOR’s existing intellectual property for its Nanocube Memory Ink technology, which in turn leveraged more than 10 years of research by the UNSW team in electronic inks, energy harvesting and storage.
The group has attracted more than $20m in funding since inception and has existing R&D partnerships with companies such as Boral, Hitachi Chemical, and One Steel.
Along with its new research plans, SOR is also working towards its existing goal to develop a battery ink prototype that can be screen-printed onto different fabrics.
Effective screen-printing is a key step in producing the end-product at an industrial scale, and SOR remains on track to complete that goal by the end of the June quarter.
Combined with the recent breakthrough in reducing cell size, the company said completion of the screen-printing step will open up even more exciting development pathways in the months ahead.
“If a screen printable Battery Ink is successfully produced, the company will proceed to investigate pathways to generating a significantly larger amount of power output than has been contemplated to date,” SOR said.
This article was developed in collaboration with Strategic Elements, a Stockhead advertiser at the time of publishing.
This article does not constitute financial product advice. You should consider obtaining independent advice before making any financial decisions.