News

KDDI to Build Fuel Cell Handsets with Hitachi, Toshiba

July 11, 2004 by Jeff Shepard

KDDI Corp. (Tokyo, Japan) announced an agreement with Toshiba Corp. (Japan) and Hitachi Ltd. to cooperate on research into the next generation of batteries for mobile communications devices such as mobile telephone handsets. The objective of the research is to develop a compact fuel cell battery that can be used in mobile phones by the end of 2005.

The fuel cell battery technology being researched is appropriate for mobile phones in that it has high energy density and can be recharged simply by adding fuel. Research will cover such areas as miniaturization, ease of use and all technical considerations required for incorporating the batteries into mobile phones. Plans are to complete an external, battery-charger-type model within 2004, and complete a mobile phone built-in model by the end of the 2005 fiscal year. The three companies are currently participating in national and international standardization and de-regulation efforts related to fuel cell technology.