Tekcapital PLC acquires licensing rights for two energy harvesting technologies

Technology and intellectual property services company Tekcapital PLC today said it had acquired the licensing rights for two technologies designed to commercialise energy harvesting from human movement to power mobile technology.

Tekcapital acquired the worldwide rights, for an undisclosed fee, to the piezoelectric electro-mechanical device developed by the University of Michigan.

The device could be incorporated into footwear, apparel, sporting goods and recreational equipment for harvesting the energy generated by people through vibrations.

The company had also acquired the rights to a battery charger circuit from the Georgia Tech Research Corp.

The circuit converted energy harvested from devices like the one it had acquired from the University of Michigan into direct current. There was no disclosure of the financial details.

"We are excited to have acquired the exclusive licenses to these complementary technologies for generating power from human motion, in line with our corporate strategy of acquiring the licensing rights to compelling, early stage technologies and partnering with global OEM companies for commercialisation," said executive chairman Clifford Gross.

According to research conducted in the field, the industry was both innovative and lucrative. A recent industry analyst report projected the total market for wearable computing devices at about $35 billion by 2020.

With a record $96 billion-worth of smartphones sold globally in the first quarter of the year, innovative battery boosting technology would continue to be in demand, according to commentators.

In May, the provider of technology and intellectual property services raised £2.15 million with the issue of 11 million shares for expansion of the company's sales force as also to fund acquisitions of intellectual property rights.