Yesterday (December 18, 2025) marked the closing session of the IEEE CAS Seasonal School for IoT Devices with an engaging Industry–Academia Forum titled “From Lab to Market: Commercialising Energy Harvesting Technologies for IoT Devices.”
Held at the Banquet Hall, Kulliyyah of Engineering, IIUM, the forum brought together researchers, industry practitioners, and intellectual property experts to discuss a timely and practical question:
Is energy harvesting for IoT reaching maturity, or is it still searching for its true breakthrough?
A Forum Bridging Research and Reality
Moderated by Dr. Nur Liyana Azmi from the Department of Mechatronics Engineering, IIUM, the session was structured to encourage open dialogue rather than formal presentations. The theme, “Energy Harvesting: Obsolete or Evolving? Where Do We Go Next?”, framed the discussion around real deployment challenges rather than just technical promise.
The panel featured three distinct but complementary perspectives:
- Dr. Mazlan Abbas, CEO of FAVORIOT Sdn. Bhd., representing the industry and platform deployment viewpoint
- Prof. Dr. Anis Nurashikin Nordin, Professor in BioMEMS at IIUM, shares insights from cutting-edge research
- En. Mohd Amirulhaizad bin Ab Wahab, Patent Examiner from the Intellectual Property Corporation of Malaysia (MyIPO), addressing intellectual property and commercial readiness
Key Discussions and Insights
The forum unfolded across three focused rounds.
1. Opportunities and Challenges
The opening discussion highlighted that energy harvesting is gaining attention as a solution for long-term IoT deployments, especially in environments where battery replacement is costly or impractical. From the industry side, Dr. Mazlan stressed that success depends less on novelty and more on reliability, predictability, and integration with existing IoT platforms.
From the research perspective, Prof. Anis shared progress in MEMS-based energy harvesters and biosensor-driven approaches, while also acknowledging the gap between laboratory performance and field conditions.
The IP discussion reinforced an important message: thinking about protection too late often limits commercial options. Early awareness of intellectual property can shape better collaboration outcomes.
2. From Research to Real-World Impact
This segment focused on why many promising technologies struggle after the prototype stage. Industry feedback highlighted the need for technologies that align with deployment constraints, cost structures, and maintenance realities.
Research challenges discussed included scaling, packaging, durability, and repeatability outside controlled lab environments. The IP perspective added that unclear ownership, weak patent strategy, and misaligned expectations are common barriers when transitioning from university research to industry collaboration.
3. The Future of Self-Powered IoT
The final round looked ahead. Panellists agreed that energy harvesting will play a role in future IoT systems, though not as a universal solution. Hybrid power models, better system-level design, and closer collaboration across disciplines were identified as practical paths forward.
Emerging research areas in MEMS, biosensors, and ultra-low-power systems were highlighted as promising, provided they are developed with deployment context in mind. Early engagement between researchers, industry partners, and IP agencies was repeatedly emphasised as a success factor.
A Clear Takeaway
The session concluded with a closing reflection from each panellist on what truly enables the successful commercialisation of energy harvesting technologies.
The common thread was clear.
Technical excellence alone is not enough. Progress depends on alignment between research goals, market needs, and intellectual property strategy, supported by early and honest collaboration.
As the final event of the IEEE CAS Seasonal School for IoT Devices, the forum achieved its purpose. It challenged assumptions, grounded expectations, and offered participants a clearer view of what it takes to move energy harvesting from promising research to real-world IoT impact.
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