BLUE DEVICE Solar Smart Window

The enormous energy consumption for building heating and cooling is cited as a major cause of carbon emissions, and smart window technology has been attracting attention to reduce this.

However, existing electrochromic glass or PDLC smart windows require external power supply, complex wiring, and expensive special film replacement, resulting in high installation costs and cumbersome maintenance. Due to these structural limitations, there has been a problem that it is difficult to apply and spread to large-scale buildings.

In other words, wiring installation costs, indirect carbon emissions due to continuous power consumption, film lifespan, and replacement costs have been obstacles to the widespread adoption of smart windows.

Blue Device's nanoparticle solar smart window is innovative in that it is a self-generating window that does not require any external power source or wiring.

It is driven by converting indoor lighting or sunlight into electricity through a transparent solar panel and special nano liquid material embedded in the window glass, and the window itself dynamically adjusts brightness and color without separate wiring.

The modular design, which can reduce installation costs by more than 50% compared to existing technologies, lowers the initial barrier to entry, and it has such sensitive power generation capabilities that it can be charged even with indoor lighting, allowing it to operate even on cloudy days or in indoor environments.

Alsopolymer dispersed liquid crystal (PDLC)Compared to electrochromic, it uses a permanent color-changing material, so performance lasts until the end of the glass's lifespan, and indirect carbon emissions due to the absence of wiring are also eliminated.

As a result, by simultaneously performing lighting control, solar heat blocking (heat shielding), and power generation functions with a single window glass system, it provides the effect of reducing building energy consumption by 20-40% without the need for multiple devices or complex installation.

The biggest differentiating point is that this all-in-one solution solves the wiring construction and continuous power problems that were obstacles to the spread of smart windows and secures economic feasibility.

Companies and public sectors that need to improve building energy efficiency are expected to be the main customers.

For example, office building or commercial building owners/managers are likely to adopt it to reduce heating and cooling costs, and adoption may be considered in off-grid construction or eco-friendly smart city projects.

Alsowindow manufacturers or construction companies (B2B)This technology can be integrated into new buildings through collaboration with and the government'sGreen Building Policy (B2G)Demand for public building remodeling is also expected according to.

Currently, since this technology was developed by a startup based on KAIST research, a B2B model in which domestic and foreign building material companies apply it in the form of licenses or joint development is expected to be the main business method.

In a trend where environmental regulations and eco-friendly building trends are strengthening, self-generating windows that reduce carbon emissions without external power have very high market scalability.

The European Union and other countries are strengthening building energy efficiency regulations, and discussions are underway to mandate smart glass in accordance with carbon neutrality goals, so related policies can support the spread of technology.

In addition, this technology has a wide range of applications, including office, residential, and vehicle windows, and can be expanded to the entire industry.

However, it must overcome barriers such as the high initial cost of the product and building standard certification, and large-scale commercialization is possible only after verifying technical reliability (stable operation over a long period of time, weather effects, etc.).

Currently, it is in the prototype or pilot installation stage, and securing commercial production scale and adoption by the construction industry remain challenges.

As a KAIST technology spin-off, research capabilities are high, but establishing a mass production system and global distribution network may be a challenge for early-stage startups.

Nevertheless, it is evaluated as a solution with great scale-up potential in the global eco-friendly building market, depending on support from regulations and market demand and securing partnerships.

Through the CES Innovation Award, the paradigm shift of a self-generating smart window that does not require wiring has received great attention.

The judges highly praised the fact that "it solved the power supply problem, which was the biggest obstacle to the spread of smart glass," and saw great potential from a sustainability (eco-friendly) perspective.

Tech media positively reported it as an architectural energy innovation, saying, "By eliminating wiring, the complexity and cost of installation have been lowered at once."

However, there is also a cautious view that there are hurdles to overcome until commercialization, as it has been disclosed mainly through lab-level demonstrations to date and there are insufficient cases of actual building application.

In other words, although the technology was recognized through CES, there is a mixed evaluation that market verification requires accumulation of construction examples and improvement of cost structure in the future.

In summary,"The concept and technology are innovative, but additional verification is needed to establish itself in the construction market."It is summarized as the opinion that.