On June 17th, 2021, EPO announced the winners of the European Inventor Award 2021. This year's Award ceremony, held for the first time as a digital event, was entirely open to the public, who tuned in from around the world as the winners were announced. 

In these challenging times, it is inspiring to see the creativity and dedication shown by these inventors in bringing innovative solutions to the world," said EPO President António Campinos. "Their achievements remind us that obstacles can be overcome by applying imagination, knowledge, and ingenuity. The ability to take a new idea to market also demands perseverance and a supportive environment for innovation, and the finalists and winners of the European Inventor Award 2021 are all testament to this.

Discover the Winners

exeger

Henrik Lindström and Giovanni Fili

Our favorite Piñatex did not win. But we are happy to announce that Exeger Operations AB (Sweden) has won in the category SMEs, with their invention of 

An efficient, affordable and versatile solar cell film developed by Swedish innovators Henrik Lindström and Giovanni Fili is being used to power everyday self-charging electronic devices such as bicycle lights. Lindström, a chemist and technical scientist, and Fili, an entrepreneur, combined their complementary skills to pioneer the production of this innovative printed material and successfully bring their invention to market. 

Flexible solar energy harvesting & storage solutions

Bonar, Centexbel and partners have developed a similar invention a few year ago, in the form of a wire shaped coaxial photovoltaic solar cell.

The patent application for this invention can be consulted in the Espacenet database.

Solar wire

A wire shaped coaxial photovoltaic solar cell comprising: a conductive core wire shaped support (401), a nanostructured semiconductor scaffold layer (402), one or more successive perovskite layers (403), an optionally provided hole transporting material layer (404), an outer conductor layer (405), an outer protective layer (406), characterized in that said outer conductor layer (405) comprises dispersed nanoparticles and said perovskite layers (403) are composed identically or wherein two or more of said layers have a different molecular structure and/or composition. The invention also relates to methods and apparatus for the fabrication of said wire shaped coaxial photovoltaic solar cell.