A multitude of new devices powered without wires or even batteries is becoming possible with a technology that Powercast is showcasing this week at the Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas. The company has developed wireless, contactless solutions that actually send power to devices such as smart phones, personal media players and GPS units.

Reduced to essentials a transmitter chip broadcasts an RF signal across empty space so that receiver chips can capture the energy for recharging batteries or powering devices directly—such as LEDs. Powercast technologies can also power industrial, aerospace and medical devices.

"Last year, we demonstrated power transmission through several feet of air.
"This year we can transfer higher power—at close range—to mainstream consumer devices," said Powercast's CEO John Shearer.

Though most applications are over distances of approximately a meter, Powercast has demonstrated performance to the military that goes well beyond a meter. Following a proof of concept for the U.S. Department of Defense completed in the fall of 2007, Powercast is now building a prototype for the DoD.

Here's the basic idea: A Powercaster transmitter circuit, running on conventional power, transmits watts or microwatts wirelessly to a corresponding Powerharvester receiver circuit in the targeted device. A single transmitter can power multiple devices at once. Receivers can be as small as 9 mm square and as thin as 0.2 mm.

"We launched our first product in 2007, in partnership with Philips. We introduced the first FCC-compliant consumer product that powers LEDs wirelessly," said Shearer. "Our first shipment alone included more than 50,000 Powerharvester modules."

Founded in 2003, Powercast is a pioneer in wireless power transfer that is inspiring contact-free products that were impossible to build, until today.