The eZ430-RF2500-SEH is a complete Solar Energy Harvesting development kit to help create a perpetually powered wireless sensor network based on the ultra-low-power MSP430 microcontroller.
The Solar Energy Harvester module includes a high-efficiency solar (2.25x2.25”) panel optimized for operating indoors under low-intensity fluorescent lights, which provide enough power to run a wireless sensor application with no additional batteries. Inputs are also available for external energy harvesters such as thermal, piezoelectric, or another solar panel.
The system also manages and stores additional energy in a pair of thin-film rechargeable EnerChips from Cymbet which are capable of delivering enough power for 400+ transmissions. The EnerChips act as an energy buffer that stores the energy while the application is sleeping and has light available to harvest. The batteries are environmentally friendly and can be recharged thousands of times. They also have a very low self discharge, which is vital for a no-power, energy harvesting system.
The eZ430-RF2500 is used to run the energy harvesting application. It is a complete USB-based MSP430 wireless development tool and provides all the hardware and software necessary to use the MSP430F2274 microcontroller and CC2500 2.4-GHz wireless transceiver. It includes a USB debugging interface that allows for real-time, in-system debugging and programming for the MSP430, and it is also the interface to transfer data to a PC from your wireless system.
The integrated temperature and RF signal strength indicators can be used to monitor the environment, and many external sensors can be used to collect additional data. User's Guide
The eZ430-RF2500-SEH Sensor Monitor is a complete open source application that includes an example energy-aware project to test your hardware and may be used as a framework for your energy harvesting project. Firmware is provided for the MSP430 as well as a PC demo application to display the data samples from your wireless network.
