Development history of wireless charging technology
Recently, a friend complained to me that the mainstream power banks recommended on Taobao have become wireless power banks. Although there are exaggerated ingredients, it is an indisputable fact that wireless charging is becoming more and more mainstream.
Many friends are confused about wireless charging, as if it is a technology that appeared out of thin air. In fact, before the large-scale application of any technology, it is unknown to most people. The first person to think that wireless power supply can be achieved is Nikola Tesla, a scientist known as the “father of alternating current”, who once made a Tesla coil to complete the feat of lighting a light bulb.
But it was an era when alternating current was severely discriminated against. Edison, his competitor “inventor”, once used alternating current to kill an elephant to announce the danger of alternating current. And due to various reasons such as funding, Tesla’s research did not continue to be profound, and instead pursued breakthroughs in other technologies. Subsequently, the technology began a long evolutionary process in the hands of other scientists.
In 1978, American George Bogle set a precedent for wireless charging of electric vehicles.
In 1994, Japan’s Murata Manufacturing Company announced the realization of “magnetic coupling resonance”.
In 2006, the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) successfully realized a 2-meter transmission test.
In January 2009, WiPower developed the magnetic resonance standard “A4WP”, which supports power transmission up to 50W.
In 2010, the Wireless Power Consortium (WPC) developed the magnetic induction standard “Qi”. A standard for mobile terminals of 5W or smaller has been developed.
In 2012, the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE) released the PMA magnetic induction standard based on the IEEE Standards Association (IEEE-SA) to form the Power Matters Alliance (PMA).
In 2015, PMA merged with the A4WP wireless charging organization to become the AirFuel Alliance (AFA) to promote a unified wireless charging standard.
At present, there are only two major standards for wireless charging, namely the Qi standard of WPC and the A4WP and PMA standards of AFA. However, these two standards are divided into two camps according to different principles. The principle of WPC and PMA is magnetic induction technology, while the principle of A4WP is magnetic resonance technology. And because each company’s main business is different, as well as the characteristics of the two types of standards, global manufacturers also belong to the two camps of WPC and AFA. WPC council members include: Nokia, MediaTek, Philips, Haier, Texas Instruments, etc.; AFA council members include: Intel, Qualcomm, Broadcom, Dell, etc. AFA can meet most of the different needs in reality by virtue of the higher power A4WP standard and the lower power PMA standard, and is about to defeat the Qi standard. But in 2016, Intel announced its withdrawal from the AFA, making the battle for standards even more confusing.
Wireless charging technology is currently the closest to our lives is the mobile phone that supports wireless charging. Common mainstream models on the market include: iPhone8, iPhone X and above, Samsung S6, S7, S8, S9, S10, Huawei P30 Pro, P20 Porsche Design , Mate RS, Xiaomi MIX 2S, etc. In addition to family life, mainstream application scenarios such as McDonald’s and Starbucks also have great potential for development.
In addition to wireless charging phones, Apple once launched AirPower, a charging pad that supports wireless charging of iPhones, Apple Watches, and AirPods. However, at the Apple conference at the end of March 2019, Apple officially announced the cancellation of AirPower. Of course, in addition to Apple, other manufacturers such as Samsung also produce wireless charging pads, but there are also situations where the price is high and the use is not ideal.
At present, the price is not high, and the technology is relatively mature is the wireless power bank. Wireless charging is the trend of future technology. In other words, if there are no bright spots, how to increase the sales and price of mobile phones? If economic conditions permit, and you have a mobile phone that supports wireless charging at hand, you can try wireless charging treasures. The sense of technology is full, and the attraction to the surrounding friends must be not small.