Ilika plc (LON:IKA), the advanced solid-state battery technology and materials innovation company, announced today that it has shipped samples of its Stereax® P180 batteries to a Tier 1 automotive supplier for hostile environment testing.
Stereax® P180 batteries are solid state microbatteries designed to survive elevated temperatures of up to 150 degC. They are of interest to the automotive industry because of the industry’s need to develop lightweight power solutions for sensors. The number of electronic sensors installed in vehicles has increased significantly in recent years, with the average passenger vehicle now equipped with 100 devices measuring things including temperature, humidity (for actuating windscreen wipers), proximity (for parking and overtaking) and light intensity (for switching on headlights). As the industry moves towards increased levels of automation, the weight of cabling associated with sensors is also increasing, creating the need for lightweight solutions such as wireless sensors. Stereax® batteries can contribute to reduced weight solutions through their combination with energy harvesters, thereby removing the requirement for cabling or battery replacement.
Ilika plc has been working with automotive OEM’s and Tier 1 suppliers to develop these solutions and has now dispatched cells for hostile environment evaluation.