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WiTricity – The Dawn of Wireless Power
Within grasp: A world without (charging) wires
by Jane Porter
Cars, medical devices, industrial machines, and oh yes, your phone—the tech industry is hard at work developing ways to cut the cord. Standing in its way: physics and a nasty war over standards.
Last June, Toyota revealed plans to release a plug-in electric Prius in 2016 that needed no plug at all to recharge, thanks to wireless technology from a U.S. company called WiTricity. The next day, Intel INTC 0.80% announced plans to release a completely wire-free personal computer by 2016—no power cord or monitor cable necessary. Nine days later, Starbucks SBUX 0.26% announced that it would begin installing Duracell Powermat wireless charging pads in tables and counters in its stores across the United States.
It’s not just the month of June that was charged with wireless power headlines. Wireless charging technology is poised to break through in the next few years, dramatically changing our relationship with our mobile, but still power-tethered, electronic devices. Thoratec, a healthcare company, is working with WiTricity on a wireless way to charge heart pumps and other medical equipment. Lockheed Martin, the aerospace and defense giant, is working on a laser-based system to recharge drones in mid-flight. The list goes on.
Source: http://philosophers-stone.co.uk/wordpress/2014/08/witricity-the-dawn-of-wireless-power/
