Everything that can be digitized will be digitized. The granularity of the physical objects we want to track in different ways will become smaller and smaller. We want to be able to track every single package sent across the globe. We want to follow fresh produce from the farm to the store with constant temperature and humidity logging. We want to follow the various sub-components throughout the supply chain and manufacturing processes.
The electronics needed to get there: • can be produced with extreme scalability • are very tiny (preferably more like a stamp than traditional electronics) • can be manufactured at a very low price (thanks to the large volumes) • have a minimal environmental footprint if they ends up as landfill
There is no production method as efficient as roll-to-roll if you want to maximize scalability (there's a reason toilet paper comes on a roll). The more of the included electronic parts that are initially manufactured on a roll, the greater your economies of scale.
FHE assemblies typically consist of simple active and passive electrical components (traces, antennas, sensors, etc.) that are printed on a flexible substrate and subsequently populated with more “traditionally” produced components, such as integrated circuits (ICs) and oscillators for processing and radio functionalities, that cannot yet be printed. Thus, FHE combines the flexibility, conformity, and resource efficiency of printed electronics with the versatility and complexity of ICs.
The main obstacle has been the lack of a thin, flexible product on a roll, with a minimal environmental footprint that could power this type of electronics for years. Thanks to a new generation of solar cells, that are optimal for FHE applications then the combination of technologies really are here to enable The Internet of Trillions of Things.