8 April 2019
Frontier IP Group Plc
("Frontier IP" or the "Group")
Portfolio news - Bosch UK to work with Pulsiv Solar to optimise energy efficient solar power technology
Frontier IP, a specialist in commercialising university intellectual property, today announces that Robert Bosch Limited ("Bosch UK") has entered into an agreement to work with portfolio company Pulsiv Solar ("Pulsiv" or the "Company") to optimise the design of the Company's energy-efficient solar micro-inverter prototype. Frontier IP holds an 18.9 per cent stake in Pulsiv.
When the prototype moves into full-scale production University of Plymouth spin-out Pulsiv will be able to market the devices as "Engineered by Bosch." Bosch UK is a subsidiary of Robert Bosch GmbH ("Bosch"), a leading global supplier of technology and services that employs roughly 410,000 associates worldwide.
Solar micro-inverters are plug-in devices that convert direct current (DC) electricity generated by photovoltaic cells to alternating current (AC) used in electrical grids. In laboratory conditions, Pulsiv has demonstrated its technology is significantly more energy efficient than existing micro-inverters.
For the commercial product, the Company is targeting an improvement on energy delivered to the grid of at least 5 per cent over current market leaders. Its micro-inverters can be used in new installations or retrofitted to existing solar panels.
The work with Bosch UK will be funded by the Company as part of a £288,732 project backed by a £129,929 grant from Innovate UK, the UK's innovation agency.
Other applications being explored for the technology include improving the energy efficiency of power converters used in a huge range of consumer devices, such as televisions, mobile phones and laptops.
Pulsiv was incorporated to develop and commercialise the work of Dr Zaki Ahmed, Associate Professor in Information Technology at the School of Computing, Electronics and Mathematics at the University.
Mahesh Chikodi, UK country head of Robert Bosch Engineering and Business Solutions, said:
"Bosch is currently engaged with Pulsiv Solar for industrialisation of their solution which increases the power output from solar panels. Pulsiv has technology which increases the output of solar panels by up to 30 per cent and Bosch with its leading engineering expertise on software and sensors will aim to accelerate the product development and testing."
Pulsiv Solar technical director Dr Zaki Ahmed said: "We are very excited to have Bosch's collaboration and support on the industrialisation of our micro-inverter, and potentially other products. This collaboration means I expect Pulsiv will be able to deliver an average improvement of more than 5 per cent in the energy exported to the electrical grid. We have been assured by a global leader in the renewables space that this improvement could be disruptive to the industry."
Frontier IP chief executive officer Neil Crabb said: "We are very pleased with the progress Pulsiv Solar is making. This agreement with Bosch supports validation of the Company's patented photovoltaic inverter technology and we are looking forward to developments across other applications in the future."
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ABout frontier IP
Frontier IP unites science and commerce by identifying strong intellectual property and accelerating its development through a range of commercialisation services. A critical part of the Group's work is involving relevant industry partners at an early stage of development to ensure technology meets real world demands and needs.
The Group looks to build and grow a portfolio of equity stakes and licence income by taking an active involvement in spin-out companies, including support for fund raising and collaboration with relevant industry partners at an early stage of development.
Frontier IP is the commercialisation partner for the University of Plymouth.
ABOUT THE UNIVERSITY OF PLYMOUTH
The University of Plymouth is renowned for high quality, internationally-leading education, research and innovation.
With a mission to Advance Knowledge and Transform Lives, Plymouth is a *top 50 research university with clusters of world class research across a wide range of disciplines including marine science and engineering, medicine, robotics and psychology. A twice winner of the Queen's Anniversary Prize for Higher Education, the University of Plymouth continues to grow in stature and reputation.
It has a strong track record for teaching and learning excellence and has one of the highest numbers of National Teaching Fellows of any UK university. With 21,000 students, and a further 17,000 studying for a Plymouth degree at partner institutions in the UK and around the world, and over 100,000 alumni pursuing their chosen careers globally, it has a growing global presence.
http://www.plymouth.ac.uk
* Research Fortnight Research Power League Table 2014.
About Bosch:
The Bosch Group is a leading global supplier of technology and services. It employs roughly 410,000 associates worldwide. According to preliminary figures, the company generated sales from operations of 77.9 billion euros in 2018. Its operations are divided into four business sectors: Mobility Solutions, Industrial Technology, Consumer Goods, and Energy and Building Technology. As a leading IoT company, Bosch offers innovative solutions for smart homes, smart cities, connected mobility, and connected manufacturing. It uses its expertise in sensor technology, software, and services, as well as its own IoT cloud, to offer its customers connected, cross-domain solutions from a single source.
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