Thinfilm develops smart sensor label

Thinfilm based out of Oslo, Norway, has developed a method of using specialised inks to print smart electronics onto labels, the first of which is a temperature sensing label for monitoring the temperature of perishable goods.

The labels are thin and flexible, contain the sensors, batteries, display and memory, connected by printable ink. This also means they can be both manufactured on continuous roller production lines and then placed on goods using roller systems to remove the labels and place them.

It is expected that the market for thermo sensor labels will be over $3.2 billion USD by 2020.

The technology uses full addressing logic for multi-bit read-write of printed memory, memory write based on detection of temperature thresholds and low-voltage display driver based on complementary organic logic. The memory should remain readable for at least 10 years.

Products based on the combination of these technologies is expected to be market ready by the end of 2014.

Printable electronics can significantly reduce costs and will permeate many areas that currently use discrete electronic systems that are more expensive and not suitable for rolling production.

There are also many other uses that can be used for the Internet of Things.

LinkedIn Intro, one mailbox to rule them all

Last week LinkedIn introduced a new iOS app called Intro. It seems a really good idea by scanning your email and showing how the person sending the email is connected to you, their LinkedIn details etc.

Unfortunately it does this by modifying the iOS mail connection profiles and pointing them all at a LinkedIn's IMAP proxy, thus intercepting ALL your email. This means that LinkedIn suddenly have access to all your email accounts and also every email that your iOS device has access too and of course they'd never do anything sinister with all this data (forget the NSA and GCHQ tapping emails, this is LinkedIn doing it with your permission).

Of course LinkedIn strenuously deny that they're doing anything dubious and their IMAP proxy is heavily secured (including connections to and from it using SSL/TLS), however it must suddenly be a great target for hackers as within the proxy itself all emails will be at some point held in clear-text.

Various mail providers are already looking at blocking LinkedIn's IP blocks to their mail services (listed below).

199.101.161.0/24

199.101.162.0/24

199.101.163.0/24

216.52.242.0/24

69.28.147.0/24

8.22.120.0/24

2620:0109:C00D::/48

2620:109:C00D::/48

And for the geeks, their AS number is AS20049.

Nice try, just be scared.

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Video: Tom Steyer Keynote Clean Tech Open

Photo Credit: Tom Steyer by Mary Vincent

Tom Steyer, a successful asset manager, entrepreneur, and co-founder of thenextgeneration.org, shared some powerful messages during his Clean Tech Open Western Region Awards Keynote today, and the video is below.

Cleantech Group Releases Latest Global Cleantech 100 List and Report

Cleantech Group has released the fifth annual Global Cleantech 100 list and report.

Highlights include:

Company of the Year was awarded in each of three regions to the highest-ranked company from that region:

•  North America: Nest, designer of a networked “learning” thermostat for the home
• Europe & Israel: Organica Water, provider of Fixed-Bed Biofilm Activated Sludge (FBAS) wastewater treatment plants in urban and residential population centers
• Asia Pacific: Hydrexia, developer of solid hydrogen storage systems based on magnesium alloys

Other categories:

• Rising Star of the Year, given to the highest-ranked new entrant on this year’s list: Ambri, developer of an all-liquid metal battery technology for grid-scale energy.
• Continued Excellence, given to the highest-ranked of companies that have made it onto the Global Cleantech 100 list for at least the last three consecutive years: LanzaTech, developer of a process that increases industrial energy efficiency by capturing waste gases (CO, CO2) and converting them to fuels and chemicals.
• Early Stage Company of the Year, given to the highest-ranked product development stage company: Alphabet Energy, developer of low-cost thermoelectric technology for waste heat recovery.

Awards were also given in three investor categories:

• Corporate Investor of the Year, given to the corporate investor with the largest percentage of its cleantech venture portfolio in the 2013 Global Cleantech 100 (with a minimum of three on the list, and a minimum of eight qualifying portfolio companies overall): GM Ventures
• Financial Investor of the Year, given to the financial investor with the largest percentage of its cleantech venture portfolio in the 2013 Global Cleantech 100 (with a minimum of four on the list, and a minimum of 10 qualifying portfolio companies overall): VantagePoint Capital Partners
• Graduate of the Year, given to the company the most impressive exit (as rated, by the financial investors in the expert panel) of a Global Cleantech 100 alumnus company (i.e. that has at one time been on the Global Cleantech 100 list). The exit must have happened in the 12 months prior to the cut-off date (in 2013 that meant pre-July 31): SolarCity

2013 Global Cleantech 100 Quick Facts:

• 18 countries are represented in the 2013 list. The United States is the most highly represented country with 56 companies.
• Energy Efficiency remains the hottest and growing sector within cleantech, with 27 companies on the list, up from 22 in 2012 and 19 in 2011.
• Solar’s representation in the 100 falls again, down from 20 companies in 2011, nine companies in 2012 to six companies in 2013. Those that remain on the list are primarily solar financing companies.
• Corporations continue to be ever more active in global cleantech innovation as investors, partners, licensees, customers, and acquirers of Global Cleantech 100 companies. GE is the most active overall partner with 2013 Global Cleantech 100 companies, followed by Waste Management, Siemens, Google, and IBM.
• Over 400 investing entities, from 26 different countries, have a shareholding in the 100 companies. Kleiner Perkins Caufield Byers is the most prolific shareholder of 2013 Global Cleantech 100 companies. It has invested in 19 companies in the list, unchanged from 2012. 

Palo Alto Requires New Homes Be Pre-Wired for Electric Vehicles

Here's a great example where forward-thinking government and citizens work together for the betterment of the community and the planet.

Palo Alto City Council adopted a proposal that requires new homes be pre-wired for electric vehicles, specifically 240 Volt 2 Level Charging Stations. The City also streamlined the permitting process of installing a charger.

Vice Mayor Nancy Shepherd says the initiative was inspired by resident Sven Thesen, an Evergreen Park resident, who installed a curbside charger outside his home for public use per this San Jose Mercury News article.

Do you want your city to adopt a similar program? Here's Palo Alto's Guideline and keep me posted if you decide to approach your city and your city adopts similar requirements.

If you're interested in reading more about electric vehicles, here are my past car reviews:
- Chevy Volt
- Plugin Prius Hybrid
- Nissan Leaf
- BMW ActiveE 

as well as California Governor Jerry Brown's 2012 Announcement to fund electric charging stations across California.

 Palo Alto’s city council adopted a proposal that requires new homes be pre-wired for electric vehicles – new homes must include the installation of 240-Volt Level 2 charging stations.
Read more at http://cleantechnica.com/2013/10/02/palo-alto-requiring-new-homes-ready-electric-cars/#MRMCjrlvmgrYd8tk.99

 Palo Alto’s city council adopted a proposal that requires new homes be pre-wired for electric vehicles – new homes must include the installation of 240-Volt Level 2 charging stations.
Read more at http://cleantechnica.com/2013/10/02/palo-alto-requiring-new-homes-ready-electric-cars/#MRMCjrlvmgrYd8tk.99

Streamlining the permitting process of installing a charger in an existing home was another move Palo Alto’s city council approved to develop more interest in electric vehicles and increase their use.
The vote for the package of electric-car policies was a clear 9-0. It is easy to see a unanimous vote for such an EV-supportive requirement in progressive areas such as Silicon Valley. Hopefully it won’t take long for others to follow on with such a move.
The San Jose Mercury News reports that Vice Mayor Nancy Shepherd added that the memo was spurred by a recent phone call from Sven Thesen, an Evergreen Park resident who has installed a curbside charger in front of his home for public use. “The thing that caught me is how simple and easy and fairly inexpensive it is to rough-in the wiring,” Shepherd said.

Read more at http://cleantechnica.com/2013/10/02/palo-alto-requiring-new-homes-ready-electric-cars/#MRMCjrlvmgrYd8tk.99