Wireless Charging Patents

Wireless charging patents cover inductive and resonant coil design and geometry; ferrite shielding and electromagnetic compatibility; foreign object detection FOD circuits and algorithms; charging control and communication protocols; EV ground assembly GA and vehicle assembly VA design; and far-field radio frequency RF energy harvesting — with IP held by MIT spin-off WiTricity, automotive suppliers, consumer electronics companies, and standard-setting organizations: MAJOR WIRELESS CHARGING PATENT HOLDERS: WITRICITY: 1,000+; specific magnetic resonance WPT (specific specific MIT CMUT coupled magnetic resonance: specific specific 6.78 MHz ISM band from specific specific source resonator + specific specific capture resonator for specific specific kQ>1 strongly coupled regime for specific specific >90% efficiency at specific specific 10-30 cm air gap from specific specific MIT Marin Soljacic 2007 Science paper fundamental IP at specific specific 10 cm 2 kW HR-WPT highly-resonant wireless power transfer from specific specific S-S series-series capacitor compensation for specific specific Q factor >100 coil resonance; specific specific SAE J2954 EVWCS EV wireless charging system: specific specific 3.7/7.2/11 kW power classes at specific specific 85 kHz ±10% IPT inductive power transfer for specific specific GA ground assembly + specific specific VA vehicle assembly at specific specific Z1/Z2 height 100-150mm at specific specific ±200mm lateral misalignment tolerance for specific specific wireless EV charging BMW/Toyota OEM); QUALCOMM HALO (WITRICITY ACQUIRED 2019): 300+; specific EV WPT (specific specific Halo EV 7.2 kW+11 kW: specific specific 85 kHz inductive planar coil DD or specific specific DDQ double-D from specific specific ferrite+Al shield for specific specific >85% efficiency at specific specific full alignment from specific specific GA→VA 150mm Z height for specific specific Formula-E SAE J2954); APPLE: 500+; specific MagSafe+Qi (specific specific MagSafe 15W Qi2: specific specific N35 NdFeB magnet ring + specific specific annular 360° NFC guide coil from specific specific 1.5 pF fixed-frequency resonant capacitor for specific specific iPhone 12+ magnetic alignment from specific specific Qi2 MPP magnetic power profile standardized 2023; specific specific WPT thermal management: specific specific capacitive displacement current from specific specific charged plate proximity for specific specific FOD foreign object detection from specific specific capacitive sensor adjacent to specific specific TX coil for specific specific metallic object <10°C surface temperature rise during specific specific 15W Qi charging); SAMSUNG/TDK: 1,000+; specific Qi coil (specific specific WPC Qi multicoil array: specific specific 3-coil array from specific specific 360° free-placement for specific specific any orientation phone positioning + specific specific NFC RFID coexistence from specific specific ferrite tile shielding for specific specific 30×30mm TX base pad); POWERMAT (AIRCHARGE): 300+; specific inductive pad; LUXRYTEK; BROADCOM; NXP: 500+ combined charging ICs; WITRICITY SUBSIDIARY (ORIGINAL MIT IP); ELECTREON: 100+; specific dynamic EV road charging.

Wireless power transfer coil geometry innovations optimizing coupling coefficient and reducing EMI footprint; ferrite and aluminum composite shielding designs for EMC compliance; and foreign object detection FOD algorithms combining multiple sensing modalities to detect heated metallic objects above the charging pad represent core wireless charging innovation domains: COIL DESIGN PATENTS: WITRICITY; TDK; WURTH; SAMSUNG; MURATA; DELTA ELECTRONICS: specific WPT coil (specific specific DD double-D coil: specific specific two D-shaped single-layer wound coil from specific specific PCB trace or specific specific Litz wire for specific specific horizontal flux path from specific specific lower Z1/Z2 height 100mm EV chassis vs. specific specific circular spiral for specific specific better flux orientation + specific specific longer misalignment tolerance ±200mm at specific specific 85 kHz 7.2 kW for specific specific SAE J2954 compliant GA; specific specific Litz wire coil: specific specific stranded 40-500 AWG insulated strand wire from specific specific twisted multi-layer for specific specific AC proximity effect reduction at specific specific 85-400 kHz for specific specific <1% skin effect resistance increase at specific specific >100 kHz from specific specific 1 mm² equivalent solid 3-5× higher resistance at specific specific 100 kHz; specific specific segmented coil: specific specific sector-wound spiral segment from specific specific individually-switched segment at specific specific 6.78 MHz for specific specific 3D transmitter spatial freedom from specific specific flux steering + specific specific multi-device simultaneous charging from specific specific array coil at specific specific sub-resonance or specific specific super-resonance frequency per specific specific device); FERRITE SHIELDING PATENTS: TDK; MURATA; FERROXCUBE; FAIR-RITE; APPLE: specific EMC shielding (specific specific ferrite+Al composite: specific specific Mn-Zn ferrite tile from specific specific 1-3 mm from specific specific laminated under specific specific Al plate for specific specific GA or specific specific phone TX from specific specific >30 dB magnetic shielding at specific specific 85 kHz for specific specific ICNIRP exposure limit 6.25 μT + specific specific <25 W eddy current loss in specific specific Al chassis at specific specific 11 kW; specific specific segmented ferrite: specific specific ferrite tile array from specific specific 50×50 mm tile with specific specific 2mm gap between tiles for specific specific thermal expansion compliance + specific specific crack propagation prevention at specific specific -40°C→125°C from specific specific >10^5 thermal cycles for specific specific automotive GA); FOD FOREIGN OBJECT DETECTION PATENTS: WITRICITY; IDT (RENESAS); NXP; QUALCOMM; APPLE: specific FOD (specific specific Q-factor monitoring FOD: specific specific transmitted power - specific specific received power = specific specific coil quality factor change from specific specific metallic object on specific specific coil surface from specific specific eddy current power loss in specific specific object for specific specific ΔQ/Q threshold >2% FOD detection at specific specific 0.2g coin on specific specific 15W pad + specific specific NFC coil sweep from specific specific impedance scan for specific specific sub-Q metallic items from specific specific ring+watch shim; specific specific thermal camera FOD: specific specific IR bolometer array 16×16 at specific specific 100 ms frame rate from specific specific infrared temperature map for specific specific metallic object T rise >5°C during specific specific charging at specific specific sub-coil placement for specific specific false-positive-proof FOD at specific specific living object discrimination; specific specific analog+digital FOD sensor fusion: specific specific capacitive sense 10pF displacement from specific specific FOD + specific specific power loss monitoring ΔP>0.5W + specific specific NFC token communication for specific specific authenticated receiver for specific specific three-way confirmation for specific specific <1 false detection/month at specific specific 10M pad-hours).

Dynamic wireless charging for moving EVs enabling highway charging without stopping; far-field RF wireless power harvesting for IoT devices; and standard-essential patent SEP positions in Qi WPC and SAE J2954 represent three additional wireless charging patent domains with distinct strategic implications: DYNAMIC EV WIRELESS CHARGING PATENTS: ELECTREON; QUALCOMM; MOMENTUM DYNAMICS; BOMBARDIER: specific dynamic WPT (specific specific in-road coil array dynamic WPT: specific specific 1-2m road segment coil from specific specific paved-in PA-ferrite-coated copper coil for specific specific moving EV charging at specific specific 20 kW per segment from specific specific resonant IPT 85 kHz at specific specific V<130 km/h for specific specific 100 km range extension at specific specific <5 kWh/km Electreon Israel highway demo + specific specific API coil 2021 Michigan public road; specific specific vehicle receiver dynamic: specific specific double-D DD pickup coil from specific specific EVV vehicle VA for specific specific moving coupling k >0.15 at specific specific full-speed transit from specific specific digital grid communication CAN-bus for specific specific energy metering + specific specific billing per segment from specific specific cloud backend; specific specific static+dynamic combined: specific specific same resonant inverter 85 kHz from specific specific static GA + specific specific dynamic road module for specific specific single vehicle equipment for specific specific both highway charging + specific specific destination parking from specific specific modular infrastructure); FAR-FIELD RF ENERGY HARVESTING PATENTS: ENERGOUS; OSSIA; POWERCAST; WILIOT: specific RF WPT (specific specific 915 MHz 5.8 GHz beamforming RF: specific specific Energous WattUp phased array 32 antenna from specific specific 4W EIRP transmitter at specific specific <10 mW delivered at specific specific 1m for specific specific coin-cell IoT recharge at specific specific mW-class from specific specific Bluetooth LE + specific specific BLE advertisement power-harvesting for specific specific maintenance-free sensor tags; specific specific multi-source coherent combining: specific specific multiple RF nodes from specific specific phase-coherent beam alignment on specific specific device location from specific specific phase error <15° for specific specific 2× power density vs. specific specific single-transmitter for specific specific >100 mW at specific specific 50 cm for specific specific BLE+Zigbee node; specific specific RF rectenna antenna: specific specific dual-band bowtie antenna 915 MHz+2.4 GHz from specific specific CMOS voltage multiplier 7-stage for specific specific −20 dBm sensitivity at specific specific >30% PCE power conversion efficiency for specific specific IoT+wearable); STANDARDS COMPLIANCE AND SEP PATENTS: WITRICITY; WPC; SAMSUNG; NXP; APPLE: specific Qi/SAE SEP (specific specific Qi 2.0 communication: specific specific ASK amplitude-shift keying Qi backscatter from specific specific 250 kbps from specific specific RX→TX for specific specific power control + specific specific FK FSK frequency-shift keying from specific specific TX→TX 2 kbps for specific specific Qi2 MPP ping from specific specific NFC field-detect + specific specific NFC NDEF record for specific specific 15W iPhone → MagSafe compliance; specific specific SAE J2954 harmonics: specific specific 85 kHz±10% IPT WPT with specific specific harmonic suppression <25 dBμA/m at specific specific 3m CISPR 11 class B from specific specific filter + specific specific shielding design for specific specific J2954 TIR 2022 certified from specific specific test compliance measurement at specific specific AK+WMC test lab).

Wireless charging startup IP strategy must account for WiTricity's broad foundational IP from MIT magnetic resonance work; the dense Qi coil and electronics IP held by Samsung TDK and consumer electronics companies; the emerging dynamic EV charging space with fewer large blocking patents; and the SEP landscape in standards-based wireless charging: WIRELESS CHARGING STARTUP IP STRATEGY: UNDERSTAND THE WIRELESS CHARGING IP LANDSCAPE: WITRICITY HOLDS FOUNDATIONAL MAGNETIC RESONANCE IP: WiTricity (1,000+; MIT Soljacic 2007 fundamental) and its Qualcomm Halo acquisition (300+) have the most significant foundational IP in resonant wireless charging for EVs — any startup doing resonant WPT >5 cm air gap should conduct detailed FTO against WiTricity; QI CONSUMER ELECTRONICS IS VERY CROWDED: Samsung (1,000+) Apple (500+) TDK (500+) and Murata (300+) hold dense consumer electronics Qi IP covering coil design, ferrite shielding, FOD, and charging control — differentiation is difficult in mainstream Qi consumer charging; DYNAMIC EV IS EMERGING WITH MORE WHITESPACE: Dynamic in-road charging (Electreon 100+, Qualcomm/WiTricity 300+) is a newer and less crowded IP space than static EV wireless charging — startup potential exists in novel road-integration systems, novel pickup coil designs, and novel energy metering systems for per-segment billing; RF FAR-FIELD ENERGOUS AND OSSIA OCCUPY BUT NOT CROWDED: Energous (300+) and Ossia (200+) have built focused RF beamforming WPT portfolios — the multi-source coherent combining domain has less coverage and could be differentiated with novel antenna array designs or novel rectenna designs for specific frequency/power targets; WHEN TO PATENT IN WIRELESS CHARGING: NOVEL COIL GEOMETRY WITH MEASURED COUPLING COEFFICIENT AND EFFICIENCY VS. MISALIGNMENT: specific novel coil configuration (specific specific geometry + specific specific winding pattern + specific specific ferrite placement) with specific measured coupling coefficient k at specific specific nominal and specific specific ±X mm lateral misalignment + specific specific transfer efficiency % at specific specific operating power level + specific specific EMF emissions μT at specific specific distance vs. specific specific circular spiral or specific specific DD coil SAE J2954 reference baseline at specific specific same gap and power level — misalignment tolerance data over a 2D grid is the key differentiator for most wireless coil patents; NOVEL FOD SENSOR SYSTEM WITH MEASURED SENSITIVITY AND FALSE POSITIVE RATE: specific novel FOD sensor approach (specific specific sensor type + specific specific sensing modality + specific specific algorithm) with specific measured minimum detectable metallic object size mm² + specific specific T-rise sensitivity °C + specific specific false positive rate detections/hour at specific specific typical home/EV environment + specific specific detection latency ms vs. specific specific Q-factor or specific specific power loss FOD baseline; NOVEL DYNAMIC CHARGING SYSTEM WITH MEASURED COUPLING AT SPEED AND ENERGY DELIVERY: specific novel dynamic charging system (specific specific road segment design + specific specific pickup coil + specific specific power control) with specific measured coupling k at specific specific vehicle speed km/h + specific specific energy delivered kWh/km at specific specific coil segment spacing m + specific specific infrastructure cost $/lane-km vs. specific specific Electreon or specific specific Momentum Dynamics reference system; § 101: wireless charging hardware (coil, ferrite, inverter circuit, shielding) = fully patent-eligible; charging algorithm alone = potential Alice risk; anchor algorithm claims to specific coil current measurement and power control hardware; KEY FTO CHECKLIST: WiTricity MIT CMUT 6.78 MHz kQ>1 S-S resonance SAE J2954 GA+VA ±200mm 85 kHz; Qualcomm Halo DD/DDQ 85 kHz 11 kW >85% efficiency Formula-E; Apple MagSafe NdFeB ring annular Qi2 MPP 15W NFC guide; Samsung WPC Qi 3-coil 360° free-placement ferrite tile NFC coexistence; Energous WattUp 32-element phased array 915 MHz+5.8 GHz BLE power harvest; Electreon 1-2m segment in-road coil 20 kW 85 kHz moving dynamic.