Apple bringing Tesla technology to a living room near you? - wireless electricity!

[nashville_brook]

http://www.macrumors.com/2011/07/11/apples-interest-in-witricity-wireless-charging/



Last week, the Wall Street Journal reported in passing that Apple was experimenting with "a new way of charging" the 2012 iPhone. Like our readers (MacRumors), our thoughts instantly went to some sort of wireless charging mechanism. Of course, wireless charging isn't a new technology though the current implementations of it have been somewhat limited. The original Palm Pre launched with an induction charger which allows users to charge their device when it is laid on a special charging mat. The disadvantages of such inductive chargers is the need for near physical contact in order for the power to be transferred as well as heat/power limitations.

A 2007 startup company called WiTricity, however, has been working on some significant advances in wireless electricity that has gotten the attention of much of the industry including Apple. WiTricity is based on the research from MIT's labs where scientists showed a new method for transferring larger amounts of power wirelessly over more practical distances (up to a couple of meters) than traditional induction.








The magnetic fields of two properly designed devices with closely matched resonant frequencies can couple into a single continuous magnetic field. Prof. Soljačić's team showed how to use this phenomenon to enable the transfer of power from one device to the other at high efficiency and over a distance range that is useful for real-world applications. WiTricity has already received a significant amount of industry attention. The CEO of WiTricity demoed the technology at TED in 2009. Intel has been experimenting with the technology in their labs. Toyota has even collaborated with and invested in the company to develop automotive wireless charging systems.

(snip)

Apple describes a scenario where your iMac could be the source of this resonance power to provide a virtual charging area in front of your computer. Keyboards, mice and even mobile electronic devices like the iPhone or iPad could be charged simply be being in a 1 meter proximity to your computer. In typical Apple fashion, they describe that "by doing away with clumsy and annoying cables and eliminating the need to replace batteries, an easy to use and efficient local computing environment can be provided to the user."

Here's the TED Talk by WiTricity...

http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=MgBYQh4zC2Y

[Ian David]

1. This sounds terribly inefficient and wasteful. n/t

[RC]

2. It is.

I can see its uses, but not to eliminate normal electrical wiring.

[Taverner]

10. If it's just a matter of converting one kind of wave into another, maybe not

Then again, consider I am not a scientist, nor have I ever been one

[RC]

15. I kinda am.

This is one of those devices that when you double the distance, you divide the power available by 4.

So at a given distance, say 5 feet, you have 1 unit or power available(whatever that is). If you double the distance to 10 feet, you will have .25 units of whatever power available for use.

[muriel_volestrangler]

24. It *claims* to be efficient

It is a matter of how much 'load' the object being charged puts on the magnetic field? Rather like a transformer - if the secondary winding is an open circuit, then there's no power drawn from the primary, and very little energy is lost. If, in this case, there's no 'magnetic load' (I don't know what the correct term should be) in an area, then very little power will be lost there. Perhaps.

[Viva_La_Revolution]

9. no kidding. imagine the loss rate. stupid. nt

[nashville_brook]

27. almost as wasteful as running wires from a nuclear-powered kettle to your hair dryer

[Pharaoh]

3. Could we not then

theoretically use the magnetic field of the earth in the same way to generate free electricity?

[Taverner]

7. Tesla seemed to think so

I think he had a prototype that did just that

[KittyWampus]

13. I'd say yes, and we eventually will unless we manage to knock ourselves back into

the Bronze Age.

[nashville_brook]

20. eggsactly.

[snooper2]

4. It'll cause me some cancer !

just wanted to be first :P

[nashville_brook]

26. i'm hoping it will counteract the cancer i'm getting from my wifi

[SpiralHawk]

5. Better not mess with my all-natural aura

[Cyrano]

6. Einstein was the greatest theoretical mind there ever was. Nikola Tesla may

very well have been the greatest inventor/engineer/innovator there ever was.

I won't go into detail, but for anyone who's interested, Tesla was light years ahead of Edison, both in imagination and practical reality.

What I find sad is that so few people know about Tesla, and the things he accomplished that changed the world. Had he had the funding that Edison had, who knows how much farther and faster our technology would have advanced?

[plumbob]

8. So we're about up to speed with 1893 Tesla?

Impressive.

http://www.tfcbooks.com/tesla/1893-02-24.htm

[nashville_brook]

17. actually, we're still in the gilded age of wires and robber barons

but -- there might pull out of the wired crap soon.

one can only hope.

[dmallind]

11. Tesla Towers! The Queen's Own Electric Fusiliers! Kudos to all who get the reference. nt.

[WatsonT]

12. Hurry up and do it so we have something else to blame for autism.

[KamaAina]

25. Snarf!

:rofl:

[Poll_Blind]

14. Great for vibrators and pacemakers! Cause don't want either to run out of juice and...

...be able to use either in any room in the house!

Otherwise, there are these things called wires, which route the electricity to just where you need it.

PB

[nashville_brook]

19. wires do not belong in the 21st century -- it's 19th century "tech"

[Starry Messenger]

16. Probably not for free though, which I think Tesla intended.

;) Why he was so ostracized.

[nashville_brook]

29. it could make electricity as free as your neighbor's unsecured wifi

:evilgrin:

[yella_dawg]

18. Wow!

I simply can't wait to live in a continuous high-frequency, high-intensity electromagnetic field. My electromagnetic regulated nervous system is just atwitter in anticipation.

[RC]

21. Cell phones, bad. This good?

Me thinks you may have a valid concern.

[mr clean]

22. When was the last time you put a 100 watt light bulb next to your ear?

Just kidding and :sarcasm:

[eppur_se_muova]

23. I'm sure this won't have any unintended consequences. nt

[DirkGently]

28. Let me put down my e-reader, cell-phone, & wireless router, so I can run in fear from wireless power

:D

Tesla. Cool.

This ought to freak out the people who think A/C wall warts are killing us with magnetic fields pretty entertainingly.

[sendero]

30. I would not be...

.. interested in such a system until it has been in use for a very long time because I'm pretty sure our bodies are not going to like this.