Because "Disruption Zone" exhibitors potentially represent the "next big leap forward in the embedded market," they will receive exclusive exposure at an invitation-only session during the event, attended by key OEMs, venture capitalists, trade media and industry analysts. In addition, the exhibitors will have a special location on the ESC show floor where engineers and programmers can see for themselves how the new technologies measure up to their promise.

One of the judges of the "Disruption Zone" selection process was David Blaza, publisher of Embedded Systems Design magazine. According to Blaza, the focus on UltraCell was "actually a no-brainer, as power is such a major issue in the embedded market today." The publisher noted that the conference looks for significant breakthroughs in embedded design that have the potential to produce ten times improvement in time or money.

UltraCell's methanol micro fuel cell system provides "Portable power anytime, anywhere"(TM). The UltraCell XX25(TM), a 25-watt system recently delivered to the military for field testing, will be able to run a ruggedized laptop computer for up to three working days on a single fuel cell cartridge. The XX25, and its commercial version, the UC25(TM), will also run other portable electronic equipment operating on simple and inexpensive methanol cartridges. In addition, the systems can be configured with large volumes of fuel for weeks of runtime in stationary applications such as remote video monitoring. Because its lightweight cartridges are hot-swappable, the UltraCell systems can run indefinitely without any need for electrical recharging, as long as fuel is available.

UltraCell's patented reformed methanol fuel cell (RMFC) system generates fuel-cell-ready hydrogen from a highly concentrated methanol solution. The new portable power system thus has the power density of a hydrogen fuel cell but uses the readily available, low cost methanol fuel in a convenient, compact package.

About UltraCell

Founded in 2002, UltraCell develops and manufactures complete micro fuel cell systems for portable devices. The company has developed new technologies and intellectual property in the field of methanol-based fuel cells. The company has an exclusive license with Lawrence Livermore National Laboratories for micro fuel cell technology. For more information, please contact: UltraCell Corporation, 399 Lindbergh Ave, Livermore, CA. 94551; Tel.: (925) 455-9400; Fax: (925) 455-7750; or visit: http://www.ultracellpower.com.