The EXIST research transfer project AutoAquaControl was launched on 1 October 2025 in our "System and Circuit Technology" workgroup headed by Prof Christoph Scheytt.
The Federal Ministry for Economic Affairs and Energy is sponsoring the project to the tune of more than €800,000 until spring 2027. The aim of the project is to develop the wireless energy-autonomous water leakage sensor system AutoAquaControl, consisting of a patented sensor, a receiver and a test and control device, to market maturity, test it and commercialise it via a spin-off. The water leakage sensor to be developed is completely maintenance-free, extremely durable (> 25 years) and can be permanently installed in inaccessible places - e.g. under shower trays or in roofs. Prof Dr Ulrich Hillleringmann, Chair of Sensor Technology at UPB until 2024 and an expert in the development and application of semiconductor sensors, is supporting the project as an idea generator and mentor.
In contrast to all commercial solutions on the market, the novel sensor, which is only approx. 7.5 cm3 in size, requires neither an external power supply nor batteries. The required operating voltage is generated by a patented long-life primary cell consisting of two metal electrodes. When these electrodes come into contact with water, a voltage is generated which leads to the transmission of an RF signal to a receiver.
As part of this project, we are currently offering two positions as a research assistant in the field of hardware development in order to jointly bring the prototypes to market maturity. Further information on the job advertisement can be found here.
