The Tech University of Korea Business Incubator Center (hereinafter TU Korea BI) announced on the 18th that its resident company, Inno-te-co, was finally selected for the '2022 Startup Growth Technology Development Project - Strategic Startup Task' supported by the Ministry of SMEs and Startups (MSS).

Inno-te-co is a company developing a 'thermal conductivity-type gas sensor device for strategic import substitution and a battery leak detection module for hydrogen fuel cells.' Through this selection for the Startup Growth Technology Development Project - Strategic Startup Task, the company will receive approximately 300 million KRW in R&D funding over two years.

The Startup Growth Technology Development Project is an enterprise-led program that provides R&D funds to startups that have been in business for 7 years or less with annual sales of less than 2 billion KRW. It aims to enhance the growth of tech startups with excellent innovation capabilities and to expand high-level technology entrepreneurship.

To supplement the current disadvantages of hydrogen sensors—specifically the difficulty in measuring low concentrations below several hundred ppm and high gas concentrations above 4%, which is the lower explosive limit—Inno-te-co is developing a thermal conductivity gas sensor that utilizes the thermal conductivity characteristics of gases present in the surrounding environment.

The thermal conductivity gas sensor operates by measuring the change in heat loss of the sensing element in the presence of gas. By incorporating platinum patterning capable of measuring temperature within the MEMS element itself, it reflects characteristic changes according to temperature variations, allowing it to detect low concentrations of several ppm as well as high concentrations of hydrogen over 90%.

Kim In-ho, CEO of Inno-te-co, said, "Through this project selection, we are able to spur technological development once again. Currently, most sensors are imported from overseas, but the day when they will be replaced by the sensors we developed is not far away." He added, "I would like to express my gratitude to the employees who are working hard together and the Business Incubator Center for their great help."

Following this, Kim Seong-tae, Director of TU Korea BI, stated, "I am very pleased with the recent news of our resident companies being selected for projects." He continued, "I look forward to seeing Inno-te-co take another step forward in its growth through this project, and we will continue to take the lead in being a reliable center that provides great support to our resident companies."

Source: IT Biz (https://www.it-b.co.kr)