Design Considerations for RF Energy Harvesting Devices

Harry Ostaffe
Director, Marketing & Business Development

www.powercastco.com
2010 Powercast Corporation

Overview
RF energy is generally very low
Direct-power at close range to a transmitter Energy accumulation for longer range

Simple battery-recharge possible System level approach needed for optimal implementation
www.powercastco.com
2010 Powercast Corporation

Key System Elements

Harvester Antenna Power Receiving Antenna Storage MCU RF-DC Sensors Radio Comm. Protocol
www.powercastco.com
2010 Powercast Corporation

Communication Antenna

Energy Storage

MCU

Radio

Sensors

System Parameters
Operation
continuous vs. intermittent

RF power source
distance, power, frequency

Receiving antenna
size, performance (gain)

Operating voltage Energy Storage Sensors (active, passive)

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2010 Powercast Corporation

Key RF Harvesting Characteristics

Peak Efficiency Efficiency Range Frequency Range Sensitivity Output Voltage Performance Consistency Implementation Scalability
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2010 Powercast Corporation

What makes an RF harvester efficient?

RF Matching
Harvester is non-linear

Proper loading (DC match)

Generally requires a specific discrete or emulated resistance

Correct frequency Deviation results in significantly reduced efficiency

www.powercastco.com
2010 Powercast Corporation

RF Matching Techniques
Rectenna (Rectifying Antenna)
No matching network, No matching loss (assuming lossless antenna dielectric) Difficult to measure diode complex impedance Requires specialized antenna design

Standard Impedance (Powercast)

Matched to 50, Negligible matching loss No special RF equipment required Works with standard antennas
www.powercastco.com
2010 Powercast Corporation

DC Matching Techniques
Maximum Power Point Tracking (MPPT)
Used in many other harvesting technologies Requires monitoring of the DC operating point Requires a voltage converter Uses power (some designs require battery)

Powercast technology
Automatically adjusts to AC and DC operating point No voltage converter required for harvesting Uses no power
www.powercastco.com
2010 Powercast Corporation

DC Matching Technique - MPPT

Example RF Harvester Efficiency

Challenge Narrow operating band for each load Solution: Max. Power Point Tracking Used by other harvesting technologies Active monitoring of the operating point Drawback Available RF energy is already low Active MPPT consumes power

www.powercastco.com
2010 Powercast Corporation

DC Matching Technique - Powercast

P1110 Powerharvester Receiver 915 MHz, 3V Load
75 70 65 60 55 50

Efficiency (%)

45 40 35 30 25 20 15 10 5 0 -10 -9 -8 -7 -6 -5 -4 -3 -2 -1 0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20

Wide operating range Automatically maximizes efficiency Uses no power

Input Power (dBm)

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2010 Powercast Corporation

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Simplifying RF Design

Data Custom Design Drop-In Modules Power

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2010 Powercast Corporation

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Battery-Free Sensor Module

Designed for Low-Power RF Harvesting
RF Powerharvester

Module Components & Features

Powercast P2110 Powerharvester Receiver MCU: Microchip PIC24 XLP Radio module: Microchip MRF24 (802.15.4) System power: 3.3V Capacitor: 50mF (as low as 3300uF) Discrete sensors: Temp, Humidity, Light Wireless protocol: MiWi P2P
Capacitor Sensors
Temp/Humidity/Light www.powercastco.com
2010 Powercast Corporation

Radio module

Microcontroller

12

System Operation
Accumulate energy in capacitor Power MCU upon reaching charge threshold Power and read sensors Measure RSSI Format data packet Transmit data packet (broadcast-only) Turn off power (go dormant)

Components only powered when needed

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2010 Powercast Corporation

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Sensor Module System Voltage

RESET Regulated Output Voltage 3.3V
VMAX

RESET
VMIN

Capacitor Voltage

0V Vmax Vmin
GND

Capacitor Voltage Vmax = 1.25V Vmin = 1.05V

Power Output

Sensor Inactive
Zero Stand-By Power

Sensor Active

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2010 Powercast Corporation

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P2110 Powerharvester Receiver

Pin Configuration
NC GND RFIN GND DSET INT RESET
1 14

NC DOUT VOUT GND VSET NC

60 55 50 45 40

13

12

11

P2110
XXXXXX
Functional Block Diagram

10

Efficiency (%)

35 30 25 20 15

VCAP

915MHz
10 5 0 -12 -11 -10 -9 -8 -7 -6 -5 -4 -3 -2 -1 0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11

868MHz 950MHz

Input Power (dBm)

Measured at 1.2V charge on capacitor

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2010 Powercast Corporation

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Receiving Antenna
2

915 MHz center frequency Directional Pattern

(122 horizontal, 68 vertical)
7

Gain = 6.1 dBi FR4 material

Antenna included with Powercast evaluation boards Front Side

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2010 Powercast Corporation

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Powercaster Transmitter
6.25 width

915 MHz center freq.

6.75 height

DSSS modulation 4 Watts EIRP

1.63 depth

Directional Antenna

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2010 Powercast Corporation

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Complete Demo System

2.4 GHz MRF24J40MA 915 MHz nanoWatt XLP 16-bit

Power Transmitter

Sensor Modules

Data Receiver

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2010 Powercast Corporation

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Battery-Free Sensor Module Performance

4W EIRP Power Transmitter Patch RX Antenna G = 6.1dBi
120

100

Time between Packets (s)

80

60

40

20

0 0 5 10 15 20 25 30 35 40 45

Distance (ft)

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2010 Powercast Corporation

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Conclusion
Optimal performance results from system design that focuses on minimizing power Every component must be selected based on power consumption Wireless protocol must also be implemented to minimize power consumption Reduction in power consumption and operating voltages will increase range expand applications.
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2010 Powercast Corporation

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Questions

Harry Ostaffe +1 412-923-4774 harry.ostaffe@powercastco.com

www.powercastco.com
2010 Powercast Corporation

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