interesting.  Is not this exactly the sort of OTA transmission of electricity that Tesla was working on some 100 years ago?  They said he was crazy and that it could not be done!

73,
Richard KK6MRH

-----Original Message-----
From: For blind ham radio operators [mailto:[log in to unmask]] On Behalf Of Steve
Sent: Sunday, December 31, 2017 9:29 AM
To: [log in to unmask]
Subject: Wireless recharging for devices gets FCC approval

BlankA follow-up on that video I posted from Energous Corp.  Looks like another viable competitor is in the Pittsburgh area.


Wireless recharging for devices gets FCC approval Mike Snider , USA TODAY

The FCC has certified Energous' WattUp transmitter, which uses radio frequency 
energy to wirelessly recharge devices at a distance. Here, transmitter is 
mounted below the computer display, surrounded by devices that could be 
charging.
(Photo: Energous Corp.)

Your smartphone and other portable devices may soon be truly wireless. Some of 
the latest smartphones from Apple , LG,' Samsung and others already let you 
recharge without wires by placing them on a pad. But new technology in the works 
lets you charge your devices from a distance of three feet or more without any 
pad involved.

The Federal Communications Commission on Wednesday approved technology from San 
Jose, Calif. -based Energous
that uses radio frequency energy to recharge multiple devices such as 
smartphones, tablets, smart watches, headphones, speakers, keyboards and fitness 
trackers from up to three feet away. Consumers could have an Energous 
transmitter embedded into their TV, sound bar speaker or mounted elsewhere in a 
living room and any devices with built-in receivers could be automatically 
recharged.

"Untethered, wire-free charging -- such as charging a fitness band even while 
wearing it -- is exactly what consumers have been waiting for," said Energous 
CEO and president Stephen Rizzone in a statement. "We are now in a position to 
move our consumer electronics, IoT and smart home customers forward at an 
accelerated pace.  The @FCC has approved the first-ever wireless, 
"power-at-a-distance" charging technology. @Energous

WattUp could allow multiple devices to be recharged up to 3 feet away, 
regardless of manufacturer.
https://t.co/6zdj8hxO7R


Another company, Pittsburgh-headquartered Powercast , has gotten FCC approval 
for its similar technology using a transmitter that recharges devices up to 80 
feet away and plans to have products out in the third quarter of 2018. "Consumer 
electronics manufacturers can now confidently build our FCC-approved technology 
into their wireless charging ecosystems, and offer their customers convenient 
far-field charging where devices charge over the air from a power source without 
needing direct contact," said Charles Green, chief technology officer at 
Powercast, in a statement.

Expect more soon from the two companies as both plan to be exhibiting at the 
upcoming Consumer Electronics Show Jan. 9-12, 2018 in Las Vegas.

*****
Powercast to unveil FCC-approved consumer transmitter for power-over-distance 
wireless charging at CES 2018
PowerSpot is industry’s first over-the-air, far-field (up to 80 feet) RF charger 
for consumer devices to get FCC nod
Share3
December 26, 2017 18:34 ET | Source: Powercast
photo-release

PowerSpot Over-the-Air Wireless Charging Zone for Consumer Devices



The PowerSpot creates an overnight charging zone of up to 80 feet free of wires 
or charging mats.


Powercast


PITTSBURGH, Dec. 26, 2017 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Powercast Corporation, the pioneer 
of radio-frequency (RF)-based long-range power-over-distance wireless charging 
technology, announced that it will unveil at CES (booth #40268) its FCC-approved 
(Part 15, FCC ID:  YESTX91503) and ISED-approved (Canada IC:  8985A-TX91503) 
three-watt PowerSpot® transmitter which works in the far field (up to 80 feet) 
for over-the-air charging of multiple devices - no charging mats or direct line 
of sight needed. Powercast used the experience it gained powering industrial and 
commercial devices with its initial Powercaster® transmitter (FCC and ISED 
approved in 2010) to develop the new smaller, smarter and less expensive 
PowerSpot transmitter specifically for the consumer market. The PowerSpot is the 
industry’s first long-range, far-field, power-over-distance wireless recharging 
transmitter for consumer devices to gain FCC and ISED approval.


How Powercast’s patented remote wireless charging technology works:
Creating a coverage area like Wi-Fi, a Powercast transmitter automatically 
charges enabled devices when within range. The transmitter uses the 915-MHz ISM 
band to send RF energy to a tiny Powercast receiver chip embedded in a device, 
which converts it to direct current (DC) to directly power or recharge that 
device’s batteries.

Powercast will begin production of its standalone PowerSpot charger now that it 
is FCC approved and is also offering a PowerSpot subassembly that consumer goods 
manufacturers can integrate into their own products.  Consider lamps, 
appliances, set-top boxes, gaming systems, computer monitors, furniture or 
vehicle dashboards that become “PowerSpots” able to charge multiple enabled 
devices around them. Powercast is in discussions with several manufacturers, and 
has inked deals with two household names, since releasing a wireless power 
development kit in early 2017 containing the PowerSpot subassembly.

“Consumer electronics manufacturers can now confidently build our FCC-approved 
technology into their wireless charging ecosystems, and offer their customers 
convenient far-field charging where devices charge over the air from a power 
source without needing direct contact, like inductive charging requires, or near 
direct contact, like magnetic resonance requires,” said Powercast’s COO/CTO 
Charles Greene, Ph.D.

The company’s vision is to enable long-range, true wireless charging where 
consumers simply place all Powercast-enabled devices for charging within range 
of a PowerSpot in their home or a public place.

“Others might be talking RF power possibilities, but we have consistently 
delivered far-field wireless power solutions that work, safely and responsibly, 
under FCC and other global standards providing power up to 80 feet,” said 
Greene. “Our robust technology has capabilities beyond today’s permitted 
standards, so our product releases will evolve as regulations do.”

The PowerSpot creates an overnight charging zone of up to 80 feet free of wires 
or charging mats:
Enabled devices charge when in range, but don’t need direct line of sight to the 
PowerSpot. Powercast expects up to 30 devices left in the zone on a countertop 
or desktop overnight can charge by morning, sharing the transmitter’s three-watt 
(EIRP) power output. Charging rates will vary with distance, type and power 
consumption of a device. Power-hungry, heavily used devices like game 
controllers, smart watches, fitness bands, hearing aids, ear buds, or headphones 
charge best up to two feet away; keyboards and mice up to six feet away; TV 
remotes and smart cards up to 10 feet away; and low-power devices like home 
automation sensors (window breakage, temperature) up to 80 feet away. An 
illuminated LED indicates devices are charging and it turns off when they’re 
done. Audible alerts indicate when devices move in and out of the charge zone.

The PowerSpot transmitter uses Direct Sequence Spread Spectrum (DSSS) modulation 
for power and Amplitude Shift Keying (ASK) modulation for data, and includes an 
integrated 6dBi directional antenna with a 70-degree beam pattern.

“We know consumers also want to charge mobile phones, so at CES, we will 
showcase a technology demonstration, developed with a partner, of a PowerSpot 
transmitter that adds the Qi inductive wireless charging standard adopted by 
many mobile phones,” said Greene. “This combination would provide a 
best-of-both-worlds solution, operating within the FCC regulations that exist 
today, including RF over-the-air charging for multiple PowerSpot-enabled devices 
placed near the transmitter, and Qi proximity charging for power-hungry 
Qi-enabled mobile phones placed directly on the Qi charger on top of the 
PowerSpot transmitter.”

At CES:
Powercast will demonstrate prototypes of its PowerSpot, 7.3" long x 2.1" tall x 
1.4" wide, as well as wirelessly-powered game controllers, headphones, smart 
watches, earbuds, smart clothing, illuminated retail packaging, and 
reconfigurable retail price tags.

PowerSpot production units are expected in Q3 2018 for about $100 from 
distributors Arrow Electronics and Mouser Electronics. Once PowerSpot reaches 
mass production, Powercast projects a $50 ASP from major electronics stores or 
from consumer electronics manufacturers offering it as a charging option.

More information including a Q&A: http://www.powercastco.com/powerspot/

About Powercast
Powercast, established in 2003, is the leading provider of RF-based wireless 
power technologies that provide power-over-distance, eliminate or reduce the 
need for batteries, and power or charge devices without wires and connectors. 
Powercast’s IP portfolio includes 45 patents worldwide (21 in the US) and 30 
patents pending. www.powercastco.com.

Note: Visuals are available: http://www.powercastco.com/visuals/

A photo accompanying this announcement is available at 
http://www.globenewswire.com/NewsRoom/AttachmentNg/49146158-7564-471a-be20-8b4ec322ba94


*****
PowerCast F.A.Q.:

QA-Powercast-PowerSpot-Power-over-Distance-Wireless-Charging-Transmitter.pdf
Open parent document
Q&A - Powercast PowerSpot Power-Over-Distance Wireless Charging Transmitter for 
Consumer Devices
list of 1 items
1. Can you describe a far-field RF wireless power transmitter vs a near-field or 
mid-field one?
list end
There are two field regions: the near-field and the far-field. The exact 
boundary is debated by various types of engineers (antenna, EMC, etc.). 
Powercast
defines the boundary as a distance of 2D2/λ where D is the largest dimension of 
the transmitting or receiving antenna and λ is the free space wavelength.
The near-field can be divided into two sub-regions: the reactive near-field and 
the radiating near-field (sometimes called the transition region). The
term Mid-Field is a marketing term and likely refers to one of the near-field 
regions. Powercast transmitters are far-field transmitters but also operate
in the near-field as well so exact definitions are not that important.
list of 1 items
2. Can you expand on the FCC’s current regulations?
list end
Part 15.247 limits both the transmitter’s output power and antenna gain. In 
general, transmitters operating in the 915 MHz frequency band, like a PowerSpot
transmitter, along with 2.45GHz and 5.8GHz transmitters, may output up to a watt 
of power to the antenna(under certain conditions). Typically, this requires
the use of an antenna with a gain of 4 (6dBi) or less. This limits the output 
power to 4W EIRP (output power times antenna gain). Powercast’s general purpose
TX91501 Powercaster® Transmitter and TX91503 PowerSpot® Transmitter are 
certified under Part 15.247.
Part 18, Industrial, Scientific, and Medical equipment, is another section of 
the US Federal Code of Regulations that regulates non-telecommunication devices.
Typical ISM applications are the production of physical, biological, or chemical 
effects such as heating, ionization of gases, mechanical vibrations, hair
removal and acceleration of charged particles. A general requirement of Part 18 
is that the transmitter generates and uses locally the RF energy. Powercast
has obtained approval under Part 18 but under a product specific approval.
list of 1 items
3. Can you tell us more about the two household consumer companies you’ve inked 
deals with to integrate your technology into their wireless charging ecosystems?

list end
Unfortunately, we have confidentially agreements with the majority of our 
customers. The referenced customers are household consumer names and we are 
actively
working with them and others to integrate our technology and chips into their 
devices. As you would expect, product announcements will not occur publically
until the product is ready to be sold on the market which we are expecting later 
in 2018 or early 2019.
list of 1 items
4. Are their plans to expand the PowerSpot transmitter into other regions?
list end
Yes, the PowerSpot transmitter is currently approved in the US and Canada. We 
are actively working on two other designs of the PowerSpot transmitter to
support Europe and Asia.
list of 1 items
5. You mention that Powercast’s technology has capabilities beyond today’s 
permitted standards. What might Powercast have up its sleeve?
list end
Powercast continues to provide our customers viable, practical solutions that 
meet governmental regulations. Our technology has been used for military
applications where a moving receiver required over 5W of continuous output power 
and a recharging range of over 20 feet. That system was deployed in 2006.
However, current regulations do not allow that level of transmission power or 
the high-gain beam steering antenna that was used. See FAQ #2. Powercast
will continue to align its product roadmap with current and planned regulations.
list of 1 items
6. Where are your transmitter’s FCC approval details?
list end
You can obtain our FCC details by searching our FCC ID, YESTX91503,
here.
You can obtain our ISED details by searching our IC ID, 8985A-TX91503,
here.

Sorry, the links didn't carry forward...
Steve, K8SP