Ossia, a developer of technology to power IoT devices remotely using RF energy, has teamed up with domestic appliance manufacturer Galanz to embed transmitters for powering domestic IoT devices into Galanz appliances.
Ossia says its CotaReal Wireless Power is able to efficiently deliver targeted energy to IoT devices without wires, cables, or charging pads and is ideal for smartwatches, mobile phones, sensors (home, medical, automotive, retail, or industrial), wearables, electronic price tags, and other small electronics.
It is one of a number of different approaches to providing power to small portable devices with using batteries.
The partnership will start by developing Cota wireless power transmitters for refrigerators, in-room A/C units, dishwashers, air purifiers, and dehumidifiers.
With Cota transmitters, Ossia says, these appliances can deliver power wirelessly to Cota-enabled devices within the home or office, automatically and without user intervention, and the Cota wireless power system can be managed via the Cloud.
US based Galanz is the largest microwave oven manufacturer in the world, In the US its refrigerators, air conditioning units, air purifiers, dehumidifiers and dishwashers are sold online and in big box stores such as Walmart and Home Depot.
The company is now moving into the hardware, software and chip side of smart home IoT including edge computer and wireless power.
Galanz’s senior technology advisor Dr Aglaia Kong described adding wireless power to home appliances as a necessary next step in developing more connected and rich lives. She said Galanz had evaluated the wireless power landscape and selected Ossia as best-in-class.
Ossia’s Cota technology comprises the Cota transmitter and the Cota Power Receiver —a silicon chip that can be embedded into any device and that uses walls and things, but not people or pets, to find a path to the Cota transmitter connected to a power source.
The receiver initiates the ‘conversation’ by sending a beacon signal to find a transmitter which then sends power back over the same paths.
The technology operates in the bands 2.4GHz – 5.8GHz over a claimed distance of up to nine metre, or 15 using two linked transmitters. Ossia claims “the transfer of energy is inherently safe. It naturally avoids people and pets.”
A single transmitter can transmit up to 20 Watts of RF power. Ossia’s white paper does not say how much power an individual receiver can harvest but says ‘even one watt of power will keep devices fully powered.”
Cota’s cloud-based software helps manage connected devices to give mobility, visibility, and flexibility when using the technology. The software can be used to:
- prioritise which devices need power first;
- allow administrators to set up and control who receives power and when;
- allow an administrator to view which devices have received power, and how much.
