Swarm Power & the Power-Blox 200 series

Power-Blox develops, produces and distributes intelligent swarm electrification solutions. It has developed a technology (Swarm Power) which allows the setup of a swarm-grid with a decentralized architecture and no centralized control. The system is self-learning and self-regulating; it regulates power production, storage and distribution in the grid intelligently and autonomously.

The Power-Blox 200 series is a modular energy system producing AC power from 200W up to the multiple Kilowatt range which serves as a “portable socket” to off-grid energy demands. It is plug & power and requires no configuration, specific know-how or maintenance. It consists of intelligent energy cubes with an integrated battery (available as lead or Lithium Ion version). Moreover, it allows to easily scale energy and combine different energy sources and battery systems, without the need for configuration. Our technology can deliver the first quickly deployable system for medium scale off-grid applications.

Benefits at a glance:
• Frugal Engineering "Plug & Power"
• Modularity and mobility ("Portable socket")
• The technology is self-learning and self-configuring
• No engineering, configuration or maintenance is required
• Allows scalable growth based on increasing energy requirements, without the need of modifying/replacing existing installations (like “Lego”)
• Outstanding flexibility
• Hot plug functionality for energy sources, battery systems and consumers.
• The decentralized approach of swarm grids has many advantages over smart grids: it improves the stability and reliability of the grid; it massively reduces vulnerability, for instance against cyber threats, as it eliminates the need for a data layer. Moreover, if a component fails, it is automatically isolated while the grid continues to run. If the grid fails due to an unknown fault, the units continue to function as autonomous power suppliers.

We believe swarm grids represent the next technology leap after smart grids. They use a fully decentralized architecture to manage fluctuating current, while smart grids need a centralized architecture to steer power generation and storage. In a swarm grid, every component of the grid learns how to adapt to the current state of the grid by observing the grid parameters and adapting its behaviour with the use of artificial intelligence.

Our technology can be implemented into any kind of device that is part of a swarm based grid, including energy sources, battery systems, power meters and other grid components.

Our technology has the potential to change how off-grids are operated and the way conventional power grids work. As the amount of renewable energy increases, the design of public grids fails to tap the full potential of renewable energy. Our approach addresses the challenges of public grids: on one hand, it removes the need for a centralized control; On the other hand, it provides power storage capabilities inside the grid, as well as in the last mile. Our technology can become the basis for the development of a universal energy interface, which will allow to interconnect any energy sources (sun, wind, water, biomass, generator, grid, etc.) and battery technologies without any need for configuration.