2015/3/4 22:46:21
Source: Web
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More than a
century ago, Nikola Tesla,
the legendary engineer and inventor, proposed building a globe-spanning system
for transmitting electricity wireless.
Tesla’s bold
idea has finally begun to become more than just an idea.
IKEA, the Swedish home
furnishing juggernaut, revealed a new line of products equipped with wireless
power charging systems for mobile devices.
The so-called
“Home Smart” furniture collection will include bedside tables, lamps and desks
embedded with wireless power charging systems based on the Qi standard.
Qi is a
technical standard for transferring electrical power without wires developed by
the Wireless Power
Consortium (WPC).
“Our belief is
that mobile phones are vital parts to people’s lives at home and their desire
to stay connected, and Qi addresses an unmet need to keep devices powered,”
said Bjorn Block, Range Manager for Lighting and Wireless Charging, at IKEA.
Founded in 2008,
the WPC currently boasts more than 200 member companies, including bran name
companies like Microsoft, Samsung, Sony and Verizon Wireless.
Dozens of
phones, cars and other devices have been designed on the Qi standard.
Qi-enabled technologies are currently available in 3,000 hotels, restaurants,
airports and public locations worldwide.
The Qi-based
furniture line is scheduled to debut next month in IKEA’s big box stores in
Europe and North America.
As you might
expect for a century-plus old technology, Qi is not the only game in town.
Last year, a
start-up company called WiTricity licensed a wireless power charging technology
to Intel developed by a team of MIT researchers.
“It’s probably a
dream of any professor at MIT to help change the world for a better place,”
said Marin Soljacic, a physics professor at MIT and a co-founder of WiTricity.
“We believe wireless charging has a potential to do that.”
Intel is integrating the WiTricity technology into various computing devices.
In 2013, Toyota also has licensed the technology.
The WiTricity
technology can charge mobile devices and electric cars from a distance of about
one foot with roughly 95% efficiency.
This feat may
seem modest when compared with the wireless powering marvels Tesla claimed to
be possible, but it is a step in that direction and possibly a very big one.
(Credit: Web)