USA: New 'Power Over Wi-Fi' System Allows Users to Charge Devices Remotely

Bron: sputniknews.com/science/20150608/1023073447.html
8 juni 2015

New technology developed by researchers at the University of Washington allows low-power devices to be charged over a Wi-Fi network, at home or on the move.

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A new Wi-Fi system is able to power electronic devices remotely using ordinary routers, allowing low-power objects to be charged wirelessly at distances of up to 28 feet 8.5 meters, according to researchers at the University of Washington.

The system, called 'power over Wi-Fi' or PoWiFi for short, works by modifying the router to continuously transmit radio frequency RF signals, by injecting extra power traffic onto a number of the router's Wi-Fi channels.

A ''harvester'' placed at distances of 17 to 28 feet 5.18 to 8.5 meters is able to convert the RF signals into DC power. After being converted by a rectifier, the power is fed into a DC-DC converter which increases the voltage to match the requirement of the electronic device.

The team, based at the Sensor Systems Lab at the University of Washington in Seattle, used the technology to power a temperature sensor at a distance of up to 28 feet 8.5 meters, and a low-power camera at up to 23 feet 7 meters.

In addition, they were able to make the immediate vicinity of the router into a wireless charging hotspot; a Jawbone UP 24 fitness tracking device, when placed 5-7 cm away from the router, was 41 percent charged within 2.5 hours.

The scientists say they hope the technology will provide a boost to the 'Internet-Of-Things' concept, in which small computing sensors and mobile devices are installed in everyday objects. This advanced connectivity, in which machines exchange data with each other, requires more numerous and convenient sources of power.

''A key issue is how to power these devices as they become smaller and more numerous; plugging them in to provide power is inconvenient and is difficult at large scale,'' write the researchers in their paper, called 'Powering the Next Billion Devices with Wi-Fi.'



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