OPV Sensors IoT Without Batteries: Organic Photovoltaics Reduce Costs and Improve Environmental Compatibility

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The battery costs of wireless sensors can significantly increase the overall operating costs of IoT installations. A battery-free IoT, based on organic photovoltaic modules, therefore offers significant advantages for companies.

Roelof Koopmans is Vice President of Business Development at Dracula Technologies.

Save energy and protect the environment—that is one of the key advantages of connected buildings. In logistics, production, and retail, companies are increasingly reliant on data captured and continuously transmitted by sensors. These sensors are mostly powered by high-quality batteries. This not only incurs high costs for procurement and, depending on the installation location, also for maintenance and replacement. The environmental impact is also a consequence. Furthermore, if a battery fails, it can lead to data gaps that disrupt processes and cause additional costs.

A promising alternative is organic photovoltaics, or OPV for short. This technology makes it possible to operate sensors efficiently and sustainably using energy from very low ambient light indoors, independent of conventional batteries.

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OPV Sensors: Harvesting Energy from Ambient Light

The OPV sensors are based on photovoltaic technology. Instead of using sunlight outdoors, they process their ambient light, primarily artificial lighting indoors, and convert it into energy. This process enables the autonomous operation of devices that do not rely on conventional batteries or cable connections.

Thanks to continuous development, OPV modules are now thin, flexible, and versatile. They work reliably even under low light conditions of up to 10 lux, as often found in warehouses, retail stores, offices, or other indoor areas. Sensors can thus be operated independently in low-light environments for the long term, as OPV modules efficiently harness energy.

Strong Growth Expected

The market for alternative energy generation is in a dynamic growth phase. According to P&S Market Research, the global market for alternative energy generation is expected to reach a volume of 1.2 billion US dollars by 2030. A significant portion of this—810 million US dollars—will be accounted for by photovoltaic technologies.

This rapid growth is also driven by the increasing demand for sustainable, battery-free solutions like OPV technology: The industry urgently needs cost-effective and environmentally friendly solutions for energy supply in large IoT installations.

IoT Without Batteries Reduces TCO By 30 Percent

The OPV technology has the potential to solve many challenges posed by battery-powered devices in the IoT. First and foremost are the high costs associated with using conventional batteries. Their share of the total cost of ownership, abbreviated TCO, of the installation is about 30 percent.

The hidden costs associated with batteries—such as labor-intensive replacement, downtime, and disposal—can quickly add up and make large-scale IoT implementations uneconomical. Transport companies, for example, must incur significant costs for replacing batteries in their sensors. Each replacement can cost between 11 and 110 US dollars depending on the application, when accounting for the labor involved. In some setups, accessing the batteries and thus their replacement is difficult, further driving up the costs. If sensors need to be replaced multiple times over their lifecycle, the operating costs quickly accumulate into a significant burden.

OPV offers high operational efficiency by using ambient light as an energy source, eliminating the costs of batteries. This leads to maintenance-free IoT systems, makes the concept of "Connect and Forget" a reality, and ultimately enables a reduction in TCO by 30 percent or even more, depending on how high the battery maintenance costs are.

Reducing overall costs is the primary reason for many companies in adopting IoT solutions. However, regulatory pressure, particularly in the EU, also compels companies to adopt batteryless IoT solutions. New regulations focusing on sustainability and ESG goals (Environmental, Social, and Governance) are prompting more and more companies to include batteryless IoT sensors in their requirements. This shift not only helps companies significantly reduce costs and meet compliance requirements but also become considerably more sustainable. Moreover, an increasing number of companies rely on a reliable flow of sensor data and their cloud applications used for internal processes. A sensor failure due to empty batteries is therefore not a desirable scenario.

Environmentally Friendly And Flexible

Dracula Technologies has developed the Layer technology for powering IoT devices, enabling the production of ultra-thin, flexible, and scalable modules. They can be adapted to various environments and requirements, ensuring a continuous and reliable power supply even in unfavorable lighting conditions of less than 100 lux. For reference, the recommended illumination level in office spaces is 500 lux.

The Layer modules are not only designed for efficiency. They are made from organic materials, ensuring an environmentally friendly composition. This aligns with global efforts to minimize the use of non-renewable resources and reduce electronic waste. Inkjet printing technology is used in the production of the modules, which simplifies rapid IoT implementation and guarantees a lifespan of at least ten years. Furthermore, the modules are capable of adequately powering devices with key IoT communication protocols such as BLE, Zigbee, LoRaWAN, and Wi-Fi. This allows for seamless integration into a variety of systems and enhanced usability in different applications.

The latest OPV modules from Dracula Technologies also offer another innovation: the integrated energy storage solution Layer Vault. This storage layer is printed on the back of the energy-harvesting modules. This allows the modules not only to use ambient light but also to store excess energy in the same thin-film product. Thanks to this seamless integration of energy harvesting and storage, the electronic design becomes significantly more compact, as no bulky storage element is required, as would be the case with smart labels, for example.

In practice, the use of Layer has already proven successful: A globally operating IT service provider has implemented a large-scale deployment of OPV technology in smart buildings. Previously, the company had installed 50,000 battery-powered building sensors used to monitor room occupancy and temperature in over 50 offices. Maintenance and replacement of the batteries incurred significant labor costs. By switching to the OPV-powered sensors, the TCO (Total Cost of Ownership) was reduced by nearly a third, while the company significantly improved its environmental footprint.

With Light into the Future

The introduction of organic photovoltaic technology represents a paradigm shift in powering IoT systems. From reducing overall operating costs to promoting ecological sustainability, OPVs offer a practical, long-term solution for power generation in IoT. With the increasing adoption of IoT systems in the industry, the flexibility, scalability, and environmental friendliness of OPV technologies will play a crucial role in shaping the future of energy-efficient, autonomous IoT networks.

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