Explore these links to catch up on evolving stories:
A Solar Power Station In Space? Here’s How It Would Work – And The Benefits It Could Bring
“The UK government is reportedly considering a £16 billion proposal to build a solar power station in space.”
Energy Harvesting Controllers Cold-Start on 300mV
“E-Peas has unveiled boost and buck energy harvesting controllers that can start up on a few hundred millivolts and provide regulated outputs as well as energy storage mediation.”
Korean researchers develop new ultrasonic wireless charging technique that could power medical implants
“Medical implants sometimes have to be taken out of the body to be recharged, but with this approach, that problem could be solved. Wireless charging has become increasingly popular in recent years, especially for devices like smartphones — not having to deal with the hassle of cables is a much-appreciated improvement for millions of users. But wireless charging comes with its own set of problems.”
Here is Joe Biden’s Plan to Build a 21st-Century Power Grid
“The US power grid is not ready for the future. For starters, there is no national grid. Instead, the western, eastern and Texas grids operate largely independent of one another. The system is diffuse, often absent or lacking where it is needed most, and showing its age. The US Department of Energy (DOE) says 70% of the US’s transmission lines and power transformers are more than 25 years old.”
Harvesting Energy at Night: Solar Cell Keeps Working Long After Sun Sets
“Harvesting energy from the temperature difference between photovoltaic cell, surrounding air leads to a viable, renewable source of electricity at night. About 750 million people in the world do not have access to electricity at night. Solar cells provide power during the day, but saving energy for later use requires substantial battery storage.”
Laser Communications Will Transform How Government And Industry Use Space
“Space is definitely the high ground when it comes to many military, scientific and economic activities. As the world becomes more information-intensive, the ability to move data rapidly, reliably, and cheaply will be of enormous advantage.”
Energy-Harvesting Wearable Device Made from Recycled Waste
“Wearable devices could soon be entirely made of recycled waste materials — and powered by human movement, thanks to a new energy-harvesting device developed at the University of Surrey.”
MICROCHIP Releases a 300W Industrial-Grade Wireless Charging Solution That Supports FOD and NFC Detection
“Wireless charging is no stranger to everyone. Especially with the entry of leading mobile phone brands such as Apple, Samsung, Xiaomi, Huawei, OPPO, vivo into the wireless market, many new mobile phones have included the wireless charging function. However, in addition to the consumer power supply field, wireless charging power also has great development potential in other areas: medical health, household appliances, robots, AVG, drones, electric vehicles, etc., for instance.”
Energy Harvesting Finds New Source: RF Waves
“Energy harvesting is getting a lot of attention as new methods are sought to harness electricity. One technology involves an increasingly familiar source: radiofrequency waves.”
Programmable Airwaves Promise Better Wireless Networks
“When there is a wireless dead spot in a home, office, or mall, the most common solution is replacing or moving the antenna at the base station/ access point, the phone, or the network. Another approach is adding a repeater or a mesh network, which can extend the range, but these require a constant source of power and could even slow-down communications.”
Revolutionizing Satellite Power Using Laser Beaming
“The University of Surrey and Space Power are tackling the problem of powering satellites in Low Earth Orbit (LEO) during their eclipse period when they cannot see the sun. By collaborating on a space infrastructure project, the joint team will develop new technology which uses lasers to beam solar power from satellites under solar illumination to small satellites orbiting closer to Earth during eclipse. The wireless, laser-based power beaming prototype will be the first developed outside of governmental organizations and is aiming for commercialisation by 2025.”
New Power Transfer Technology Provides Unprecedented Freedom for Wireless Charging
“A new power transfer technology makes it possible to conveniently charge devices without using any wires or plugs. Warehouse robots, kitchen appliances, and even phones or laptops can receive power anywhere over the charging area, and because the power transfer continues even while the device is in motion, this technology could one day power electric vehicles while they’re on the go.”
Docked vs Dockless – How Wireless Charging Will Accelerate Micromobility Adoption
“Elad Dubzinski, CEO of Powermat, looks at pros and cons of shared micromobility models and how wireless power technology has advanced to solve the prevailing challenges that micromobility providers face in terms of maintenance, operational costs, and customer satisfaction and how it can help accelerate widespread deployment and adoption of micromobility solutions.”
IoT Product Roundup: Ericsson, BrainChip, Next Big Thing and More
“From Ericsson’s new deep mine mapping integration to AIoT development boards from BrainChip, Aimedis’s health care metaverse for medical collaboration and everything in between, here’s the latest product introductions in the Internet of Things ecosystem.”
Next Up: Wireless Charging for Your Car
“In a few years, cars going down a road in a historic section of Detroit will theoretically be able to charge their batteries as they drive. That’s the goal of an Israeli company that is finalizing an agreement with the state of Michigan’s Department of Transportation to build the roughly one mile long experimental roadway.”
Charger Modules Facilitate Wireless Charging in Thin and Compact Devices
“ROHM Semiconductor announced they have developed compact wireless charger modules with an integrated antenna board: the BP3621 (transmitter) and the BP3622 (receiver). These new modules allow designers to add wireless power supply functionality to smaller devices such as smart tags/cards or PC peripherals.”
Gigahertz Phased-Array Antenna Fabricated as Large-Area Sheet
“Phased-array antennas are taking on increasing roles in MIMO systems such as 5G, as they can provide needed dynamic, all-electronic antenna steering and directivity. However, they have an attribute that complicates their physical and electrical fabrication—they’re composed of multiple identical, discrete antennas elements with form factors that aren’t amenable to mass-production techniques.”
Critical System Architecture of a 22-kW Microwave-Powered Unmanned Aerial Vehicle
“In a recent study published in the journal Energies, researchers from Canada developed a 35 GHz microwave frequency-based, low-cost and compact wireless power transmission system for a 22-kW unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV).”
Atmosic Brings Wireless Energy Harvesting for IoT Devices Directly Onto the SoC
“One major challenge of Internet of Things (IoT) devices is power. Hoping to traverse this challenge, Atmosic has created energy harvesting solutions integrated directly into the system-on-a-chip (SoC).”
2021 Wireless Power Transmission, AI Processors, Quantum Computing, and Displays Industry Growth Opportunities – ResearchAndMarkets.com
“This report includes innovations related to wireless charging, artificial intelligence (AI) processors, quantum computing, and displays. Some of the key innovations profiled include wireless charging for low and high power electronic devices, AI processors for data centers and Internet of Things (IoT) devices, light engines for augmented reality (AR) displays, quantum dot displays for flexible electronics, and IP cores for quantum computing.”
‘Fitbit for the Face’ can Turn any Face Mask into Smart Monitoring Device
“Northwestern University engineers have developed a new smart sensor platform for face masks that they are calling a ‘Fitbit for the face.’ Dubbed ‘FaceBit,’ the lightweight, quarter-sized sensor uses a tiny magnet to attach to any N95, cloth or surgical face mask.”
Wireless Power Transfer System With Enhanced Efficiency by Using Frequency Reconfigurable Metamaterial
“The wireless power transfer (WPT) system has been widely used in various fields such as household appliances, electric vehicle charging and sensor applications. A frequency reconfigurable magnetic resonant coupling wireless power transfer (MRCWPT) system with dynamically enhanced efficiency by using the frequency reconfigurable metamaterial is proposed in this paper.”
Intelligible Wireless Power Charging and Data Transfer for Electric Automobiles
“Focusing on reducing emissions and improving fuel economy, automotive manufactories are developing Electric Vehicles (EV) to replace fuel and diesel vehicles starting in 2030~2040. The green power supply EVs to make a maximum environmental benefit, zero-emission, and lower pollution. However, changing climate occurs intermittently which results in spinning reserve of electric power. Fortunately, a stable electric storage system (ESS) may compensate for this problem.”
US Air Force Taps Solar Energy, Wireless Transmission For Battlefield Deployment
“The US Air Force is determined to sail into a carbon negative future with a big dose of solar energy, regardless of West Virginia US Senator Joe Manchin’s opposition to climate action.”
Worldwide Wireless Power Transmission Industry to 2024 – Featuring Qualcomm, Samsung Electronics and Nucurrent Among Others
“The future of the wireless power transmission market looks promising with opportunities in the smartphone, notebook, tablet, wearable electronic, and electric vehicle charging applications. The global wireless power transmission market is expected to grow with a CAGR of 23% from 2019 to 2024. The major drivers for this market are increasing consumer preference for wireless connectivity, growth in electric vehicles, and increasing need for effective charging systems.”
Samsung’s New TV Remote Uses Radio Waves From Your Router to Stay Charged
“CES is always a moment when companies reiterate their dedication to environmental causes and trumpet their latest, more efficient products and packaging. After introducing a solar-powered Eco Remote for its 2021 TVs, Samsung is back again with a new version that comes with a pretty fascinating trick.”
Distance Wireless Charging Made a Minor Comeback at CES 2022
“Imagine if the smartphone in your pocket, gamepad in your hand, or watch on your wrist could charge wirelessly. No cables, no wireless charging pads. Just wireless power beamed through the air by a router, much like Wi-Fi. The potential benefits for medical devices, sensors, cameras, and a host of other battery-powered gadgets are easy to grasp. Wires and cables are awkward, and batteries are expensive to produce and difficult to recycle.”
Cleveland Clinic Implants First Wireless Pacemaker Defibrillator System
“Cleveland Clinic has implanted the first leadless pacemaker defibrillator system in the world.
Dr. Daniel Cantillon is a research director at the Heart, Vascular and Thoracic Institute and the principal investigator for the study on the new device. He says this technology could impact 6 million people in the United States alone.”
Researchers Create New Security Method For Wireless Transmission
“Most security measures in communication systems focus on encryption, but researchers have recently developed a new security feature that makes signals appear as noise. Why is encryption so important, what did the researchers develop, and could it be implemented in future systems?”
Hybrid Platforms: Bringing Electrified Efficiency to Land, Sea and Air
“Across all domains and platforms, energy innovation is needed now as new technologies demand ever more power, legacy solutions result in wasted resources and avoidable vulnerabilities, and the push towards Net Zero gains momentum.”
What Will Industries Do With The Power Of Private Wireless Networks?
“This is the final installment in a three-article series by business leaders at Nokia on the latest evolutions of Industry 4.0, what’s changed with uptake of smart, connected technologies, and how companies can use today’s advanced communications tools to fuel post-pandemic recovery and growth.”
AWS Targets the Energy Industry With Launch of the AWS Energy Competency Program
“Amazon today announced a new program that will formally identify AWS Partners who develop specialized solutions aimed at the energy industry. The new AWS Energy Competency Program, as it’s called, will identify these specialized partners who have already demonstrated the technical expertise and customer success that can help energy producers around the world build and implement AWS-powered solutions using the latest technology, while also navigating the transition to a more sustainable energy future.”