Energy harvest market growing at 50% annual rate

LONDON – The market for energy harvesting devices will be worth about $19 million in 2012 and grow to about $45 million in 2013, according to market research firm Yole Developpment.

Over the period from 2011 to 2017 the market is forecast to demonstrate a 51 percent compound annual growth rate, rising in value to about $100 million in 2015 and $227 million in 2017.

Yole breaks the growth down by application and forecasts that building and industrial applications will be the major drivers of energy scavenging device market growth. Building applications are presently about 90 percent of the market with one million units sold in 2011. Yole forecasts buildings will still represent more than half the market in 2017.

Yole said that progress in reducing the power consumption of wireless sensor nodes for use in building and industrial applications would allow energy harvest devices to displace batteries.

Other emerging applications also likely adopt energy harvesters to replace batteries in wireless sensors applications include: transportation, automotive tire pressure monitoring systems, medical and environmental, Yole said.




Click on image to enlarge.
Energy harvest module market forecast by annual value and application. Source: Yole Developpement

Mechanical and thermal energy harvesters are the most dynamic technologies enabling the capture of up to tens of milliwatts. Other possibilities include small-scale solar photovoltaic and ambient radio energy harvesting.

Mechanical and thermal energy harvesting are expected to be responsible for 39 percent and 25 percent of the market, respectively. However, for those eager to join a market with such high growth Yole warns that price erosion will be significant; at about 12 percent.


Related links and articles:

www.yole.fr

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