PowerSphyr discusses the future of wireless energy with EE Times Europe.
Wireless Power Transfer
PowerSphyr, headquartered in Danville, California, aims to revolutionize power delivery to electronic devices via its intelligent wireless power technology. To support a wide base of applications, it offers solutions based on four approaches:
Magnetic resonance offers high-power delivery and a high degree of spatial freedom. With excellent thermal-management properties, it is safe for nearby metals and supports multiple devices simultaneously.
Inductive charging based on the Wireless Power Consortium’s Qi standard is the simplest and lowest-cost solution, but it offers limited spatial freedom, power delivery, and thermal management (metals become very hot). Moreover, this solution requires a precise alignment between transmitter and receiver.
Capacitive technology is suitable for industrial applications that require very high power.
RF energy harvesting is a great solution for sensors and IoT applications. It has excellent spatial freedom (up to 40 feet), can be used to harvest existing frequencies, and supports FCC regulatory limits.
The wireless power transmission and receiving solutions in PowerSphyr’s SkyCurrent family enable fast, easy-to-use, and secure wireless charging across a wide range of products and modules. Each product includes a fully developed reference design. Key markets for SkyCurrent products include automotive, consumer, and industrial applications.
PowerSphyr says its designs wireless power products and modules for the automotive industry eliminate the need for cables or precise coil alignment, enabling fast, easy-to-use, and secure charging ecosystems with elegant industrial design and flexible form factors. Figure 2 shows an automotive application that includes wirelessly powered sensors for control and monitoring of systems such as lights, airbags, temperature control, and doors and wireless charging for occupants’ devices, supporting magnetic resonant, Qi, and RF solutions.
“One of our goals is to reduce complexity by rethinking how the automotive cockpit is powered — wirelessly. This means removing connectors and replacing traditional methods with future-proof wireless solutions,” said Will Wright, CEO of PowerSphyr.
“Many companies have focused on wireless power to charge mobile devices in the cabin, but there is a substantial opportunity to streamline manufacturing, improve safety and reliability, and reduce cost inside vehicles with PowerSphyr’s new generation of wireless power technology,” he added. “Vehicles today contain over 200 connectors that provide power and communication to critical features and systems. As the electrification of vehicles continues to progress, we will see vehicles become more feature-rich and increasingly dependent on software. A new approach to connectivity will become essential. We also are seeing a massive increase in the amount of copper within vehicles. While most is related to batteries and propulsion, it is also used to direct energy throughout the vehicle.”
Figure 2: Automotive application including wireless powered devices.
Instead of using wireless power to charge a phone or tablet, said Wright, “we are developing wireless solutions to reduce the complexity of wire harnesses and connectors,” he added. “Whether it is powering seat motors, heated seats, or side mirrors and speakers, a wireless approach solves many challenges the industry has faced for years.
“PowerSphyr offers solutions from low power to 450 W, and we are working every year to push our technology further for our customers in the automotive and industrial space. Our primary technology is a proprietary form of magnetic resonance that delivers power at 6.78 or 13.56 MHz, depending on the application. I cannot stress enough the importance of electromagnetics design. Our new solutions provide both power and communication seamlessly.”
Figure 3: Phones charging on the SkyCurrent III device (Image: PowerSphyr)
or the industrial sector, PowerSphyr says it seamlessly supports the three primary standards for wireless charging (magnetic resonant, magnetic inductive and AirFuel RF), to meet the middle- to high-power requirements of industrial tools and machinery. And for the consumer sector, PowerSphyr’s SkyCurrent III (shown in Figure 3), the ultimate wireless charging platform delivers a dual-mode wireless charging pad and a suite of “fast charging” battery cases.
Maurizio Di Paolo Emilio
Maurizio has worked in the research field of gravitational waves and in space research projects as a design engineer. He wonders at times if someone up there has been sending us messages that we haven’t received or been able to decrypt. Maurizio is an electronic engineer and holds a Ph.D. in Physics. Maurizio enjoys writing and telling stories about technology and electronics. His main interests are Power, Automotive, IoT, Digital. Maurizio is currently editor-in-chief of Power Electronics News and European Correspondent of EE Times. He also oversees discussions on EEWeb.com. He has written various technical and scientific articles, and a couple of books for Springer on Energy Harvesting and Data Acquisition and Control System.