Nowi partners with Opticon to power energy-autonomous shopping labels

Less than a month after announcing its new partnership for eco-friendly remote controls, Nowi is now headed to your local grocery store. The Delft-based power management IC expert is teaming up with the Dutch scanning and display specialist Opticon to bring sustainable electronic shelf labels into the sector and enable retailers to update displays remotely and display additional information on individual products on the shelves.

The partnership will combine Nowi’s energy harvesting power management integrated chip (PMIC), the NH2, with photovoltaic cells on an Opticon-manufactured electronic shelf label. By optimizing and utilizing the NH2, the ESLs will be able to extract the low power from the indoor lights of the supermarket and boost its own power – making the solution energy autonomous while also reducing the cost of replacement batteries, the time spent to change them and the overall lifespan of the label.

“In an increasingly connected world, retail is being transformed to a smarter, more user-focused, personnel-friendly and sustainable environment,” explains Nowi CEO Simon van der Jagt. “Electronic shelf labels are now becoming the norm and enabling perpetual power will definitely provide for a better customer in-store experience and an improved profitability for stores.”