Goodbye wires... MIT experimentally demonstrates wireless power transfer

physorg.com ^ | 6/7/07

[Straight Vermonter]

Wireless power transfer over two-meter distance, from the coil on the left to the coil on the right, where it powers a 60W light bulb. Members of the team that performed the experiment are obstructing the direct line of sight between the coils; front row: Peter Fisher (left) and Robert Moffatt; second row: Marin Soljacic; third row: Andre Kurs (left), John Joannopoulos and Aristeidis Karalis. Photo / Aristeidis Karalis

[martin_fierro]

I have a bad feeling about this.

[CutePuppy]

Nicola Tesla, is that you?

[sirchtruth]

When I was younger I never got into science, but now that I'm wiser I love reading about these things, especially physics and how these scientific discoveries relate to biblcal elements.

One thing I've always thought of is when science discovers an alternative way around time/space, which I believe they see glimpses of all the time, that will be most exciting!

How does light know when to act like a particle or wave?

[Fresh Wind]

[billorites]

Tort lawyers are going to love this.

[Paladin2]

Don’t leave your floppy disks in the line of fire.

[AliVeritas]

Thanks for posting.

A friend of mine, a retired nuclear engineer, and I have talked about this for years. He said the technology to do this has been around decades ago and wondered why it was never done. He spoke about wireless power to other continents and how easy it would be to do it. I have to get him to sign up so he can give all the background and process.

[CutePuppy]

http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Nikola_Tesla&printable=yes

[A.A. Cunningham]

Nikola Tesla

Tesla Memorial Society

Tesla sits below the Tesla Coil in his Colorado Spring Laboratory. The coil creates millions of volts of electricity with a frequency rate of 100,000 alterations per second.

[raybbr]

They don’t say what the coil on the left is using in wattage. What is the efficiency of transfer and aren’t the waves of energy created by the sending coil that are not being used simply being wasted?

[mylife]

whats a floppy disk?
Do they even sell those anymore?

[Past Your Eyes]

I work for a rural electric coop. I’m retiring in a couple years. Just in time for sticks and wires to be obsolete? Great.

[Eye of Unk]

I suggest reading an Edger Rice Burroughs novel about how on Mars even aircraft flew with wireless radio beamed power for the electric motors.

This would be the largest technological achievement of the century if we could eventually power through the air for an electric car.

All autos in a city can run off of power cell sites, at the very least this could possibly end all these fruitless wars over oil control.

[Right Wing Assault]

The article conveniently neglects the 45% efficiency problem.

Discussed here:
http://news.independent.co.uk/sci_tech/article2631620.ece

[Erik Latranyi]

What a fantastic future we have!

Imagine where almost nothing gets plugged in anymore and your portable devices charge everywhere you go (inside your car, inside any building, etc.)

[Fresh Wind]

Just wait until someone figures out that this will cause cancer...

[RangerM]

Yes.

And that is why it is impractical. I’ve read about this a few years ago, and from what I understand, the amount of energy you have to put into the trasmission is massive, relative to the amount of useful work/energy that is realized. Much like our wonderful system of “social programs” in this country.

[raybbr]

Thanks. This is just a variation of Tesla’s design. Nothing real innovative. Other than creating a directed flow of energy.

[ovrtaxt]

AWESOME.

Have you seen the cost of copper lately? If this is marketable, it will change the entire electrical contracting industry!