New-Tech Europe | December 2016 | Didital Edition

LatestNews

An innovative window system earns a European patent Awindow-glazing systemdeveloped by an EPFL team uses micro- mirrors to improve the lighting and visual comfort inside buildings and could also make window blinds obsolete one day. The European Patent Office has just granted the system patent protection. layers of double-glazed windows. “The challenge was ensuring that the windows remained transparent despite the layer of micro-mirrors,” says Schüler. These windows are meant for building facades that are highly exposed to the sun. The design process took into account the need to keep costs down and enable large-scale production. Improved visual comfort

Are window blinds about to become a thing of the past? They just might, thanks to a ground-breaking window glazing system developed by a team at EPFL's Solar Energy and Building Physics Laboratory (LESO-PB). The innovation’s quality and potential have also now been recognized by the European Patent Office, which has granted it patent protection. “This patent shows that our approach is original and that our system is unique and merits patent protection,” says Andreas Schüler, a research associate at the LESO-PB. “It’s also reassuring for industry, in the event manufacturers want to use this discovery in the future.” Schüler designed the system together with PhD student Jing Gong and André Kostro, a researcher currently based in Basel. Schüler’s team fitted their windows with a layer of micro-mirrors whose thickness ranges from 0.15 to 0.2 millimeters. This allows the windows to make better use of natural light in the room and reduce both heating and cooling costs in the building. In the summer, the micro-mirrors reflect light back outward, which eliminates direct sunlight and overheating. In the winter, the micro-mirrors redirect light into the building to improve the occupants’ visual comfort. A high-precision laser is used to cut the micro-mirrors, which are then embedded in a polymer film that is placed between the

This smart-glazing system offers other advantages as well. Preliminary hypotheses developed by the LESO- PB suggest that the system could

Jing Gong, Andreas Schüler and André Kostro with a prototype of the window-glazing system. © Alain Herzog - 2016 EPFL

reduce the thermal load (both heating and cooling) by 10%-20% compared to traditional window glazing. It can improve visual comfort as well by distributing light evenly throughout the room and eliminating sharp contrasts and glare. It also brings in a higher amount of light: up to 150% more light reaches the back of the room and up to three times as much hits the ceiling. Finally, the system was designed to last longer than traditional slatted venetian blinds. But will people get used to this new system? The answer will come from the NEST in Dübendorf (Zurich Canton), a futuristic house where the LESO-PB’s innovation will soon be put to the test. This project was developed with the support of the Swiss Federal Office of Energy (SFOE). Reference: Jing Gong, André Kostro, Ali Motamed, Andreas Schüler, Potential advantages of multifunctional complex fenestration system with embedded micro-mirrors in daylighting, Solar Energy, 10 October 2016.

A European Defence Action Plan and “Clean Energy for All Europeans”

The European Defence Action Plan adopted by the Commission today is about creating the conditions for more defence cooperation to maximise the output and the efficiency of defence spending, and about fostering a strong, competitive and innovative defence industrial base. Member States will remain in the driving

The Commission proposes a European Defence Fund as part of today’s Defence Action Plan. The purpose of the “Clean Energy for All Europeans” package is to put energy efficiency first, achieve global leadership in renewable energies and provide a fair deal for consumers.

14 l New-Tech Magazine Europe