This article experimentally explores the use of ferrite cores to miniaturize the receivers used for inductive wireless power transmission. A variety of receivers were designed and fabricated using cylindrical ferrite cores, ranging in total size from 47 to 687 mm3. The receivers were tested with a commercially available transmitter operating under the Rezence (Air Fuel Alliance) standard at 6.78 MHz. Experiments measured performance of the receivers in terms of their maximum power draw and efficiency as functions of the receiver load and transmission distance. Experimental results showed that ferrite-core receivers could draw multiple watts of power with end-to-end efficiencies in excess of 50%. While the efficiencies are less than a commercially planar coil receiver, the ferrite-core receivers offer a >50% reduction in mass and >90% reduction in footprint. As a result, the receiver power densities reach up to 17.6 W/cm3, which is a 25× improvement over previously reported work. This effort confirms the viability of ferrite-core receivers for size- and weight-constrained applications.
We report the design, fabrication, and characterization of a prototype that meets the form, fit, and function of a household 1.5 V AA battery, but which can be wirelessly recharged without removal from the host device. The prototype system comprises a low-frequency electrodynamic wireless power transmission (EWPT) receiver, a lithium polymer energy storage cell, and a power management circuit (PMC), all contained within a 3D-printed package. The EWPT receiver and overall system are experimentally characterized using a 238 Hz sinusoidal magnetic charging field and either a 1000 µF electrolytic capacitor or a lithium polymer (LiPo) cell as the storage cell. The system demonstrates a minimal operating field as low as 50 µTrms (similar in magnitude to Earth’s magnetic field). At this minimum charging field, the prototype transfers a maximum dc current of 50 µA to the capacitor, corresponding to a power delivery of 118 µW. The power effectiveness of the power management system is approximately 49%; with power effectiveness defined as the ratio between actual output power and the maximum possible power the EWPT receiver can transfer to a pure resistive load at a given field strength.
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