Ilika plc (LON:IKA) Chief Financial Officer Steve Boydell caught up with DirectorsTalk for an exclusive interview to discuss the launch of Stereax P180
Q1: Ilika, today, has announced the launch of the Stereax P180 solid state battery, what’s the target application for this battery?
A1: The size and performance of the Stereax P180 make it ideal for powering autonomous sensor devices in hostile environments so coupled with an energy harvester such as a photovoltaic panel, these batteries provide a ‘fit and forget’ solution enabling sensors to monitor operating environment conditions.
Q2: Could you give us some examples of hostile environments?
A2: Yes, Ilika’s Stereax P180 is targeted to address the needs of what’s known as the ‘industrial internet of things’ (IIoT) plus we include automotive, infrastructure and aerospace environments.
Q3: So, what are the principal features of those hostile environments?
A3: Typically, these environments include vibration and extended temperature range. The P180 operates, and can be stored, at a wider range of temperatures than other solid state and indeed conventional lithium batteries. It’s designed for temperatures ranging between -42 to 150 degrees centigrade, at the higher temperatures the P180 can power sensors situated near hot machinery or engines or exhausts in cars whereas the lower temperatures they can be deployed to monitor infrastructure such as pipelines and bridges.
Q4: Is the industrial internet of things a large market?
A4: There’s a lot of data from various analysts suggesting that the industrial internet of things is becoming larger than the consumer internet of things. Berg Insight predict that there’ll be more than 40 million connected devices in industrial IoT by 2020 and Accenture predict that industrial IoT will give a boost to the global economy of about $15 trillion by 2030.
