Disney Researchers Make Wireless Power Transfer a Reality

By: | March 17th, 2017

Image courtesy DISNEY RESEARCh

In a big breakthrough, researchers at Disney have developed a new method that allows users to charge electronic devices without using any electrical cords or charging cradles, making wireless power transfer a reality.

Alanson Sample, Associate Lab Director and Principal Research Scientist at Disney Research, said, “This new innovative method will make it possible for electrical power to become as ubiquitous as Wi-Fi. This, in turn, could enable new applications for robots and other small mobile devices by eliminating the need to replace batteries and wires for charging.”

In fact, Disney researchers were able to deliver about 1,900 watts of electricity with an efficiency of 40-95%.

Researchers came up with “quasistatic cavity resonance (QSCR),” where magnetic fields are generated to deliver power to cell phones, fans, and lights at the same time.

This wireless power transfer was created by building a 16-by-16-foot room that was lined with aluminum panels. In the center was a copper tube having capacitors that run vertically from floor to ceiling, with an electric current running through it. Basically, they created an electromagnetic field without the electricity.

Though this achievement is just like a dream coming true, in this case, wireless power transfer is created using a specialized room which is actually not the most practical design for every home right now. But it definitely is a great step, and with further advancements, hopefully it will become more convenient and more practical.

Nidhi Goyal

Nidhi is a gold medalist Post Graduate in Atmospheric and Oceanic Sciences.

More articles from Industry Tap...