STMicro has introduced a combo of 50W wireless charging transmitter and receiver boards, namely the STEVAL-WBC2TX50 transmitter board and the STEVAL-WLC98RX receiver board, for the development of high-power wireless charging solutions such as medical and industrial equipment, home appliances, and computer peripherals. The transmitter board, based on the STWBC2-HP transmitter system-in-package (SiP), supports up to 50W of output power using the STMicro’s proprietary Super Charge (STSC) protocol, as well as the Qi 1.3 5W Baseline Power Profile (BPP) and 15W Extended Power Profile (EPP). The receiver board, based on the STWLC98 wireless power receiver IC, can handle up to 50W charging power through STSC, supports Qi BPP and EPP charging, and implements features such as Adaptive Rectifier Configuration (ARC) to extend charging distance by up to 50% and accurate voltage and current measurement for Foreign Object Detection (FOD). STEVAL-WBC2TX50 transmitter board highlights: STWBC2-HP wireless power transmitter chip MCU – STM32G071 […]
NexDock XL 15.6-inch touchscreen laptop shell for smartphones supports wireless charging
The NexDock XL is a 15.6-inch touchscreen laptop shell for a smartphone with wireless charging support and a 360-degree flip capability that can transform it into a laptop or a tablet, and be used in tent mode. With its USB-C 3.1 with DisplayPort and mini HDMI 1.4a input ports, the laptop shell can also potentially be used with other devices that output video, audio, and data through USB-C or/and HDMI. The phone can be secured with a magnet on the area between the display and keyboard both for wireless charging or even to use the phone as a touchpad. NexDock XL specifications Display 15.6-inch IPS touch screen with 1920 x 1080 FHD resolution, 120Hz, 16:9 aspect ratio Brightness: 300 nits, Contrast 800:1, Color Gamut: NTSC 72% / sRGB 100% Audio 4 x 2W speakers (THX approved) 3.5mm audio jack Full-sized backlit keyboard with multitouch trackpad on the side. Storage – […]
Energous 2W PowerBridge transmitter doubles wireless power for IoT devices
Energous has launched the 2W PowerBridge transmitter that doubles the energizing capability of Energous’ 1W transmitter found in WattUp 1W active energy harvesting developer kit, the “Wirelessly powered sensor evaluation kit“, and various deployments in the field. Energous wireless transmitters are used in IoT applications across the supply chain, logistics, retail, industrial and agricultural industries, which benefit from lower maintenance and wiring costs, and the new 2W transmitter will provide better RF coverage and power levels. Energous further explains its 2W PowerBridge helps reduce the need for replaceable batteries and charging cables since it can power IoT devices at a distance in industrial, commercial, and residential settings leading to a reduced need for maintenance or human intervention, enabling a more automated workflow, and the deployment of “Active Energy Wireless Power Networks”. So while there will also be wasted energy with at-a-distance wireless power, it could still make financial sense for […]
Panthronics PTX30W is a 1W NFC wireless charging listener IC
Panthronics PTX30W is an NFC wireless charging listener chip that can receive up to 1W as per the NFC Wireless Charging (WLC) specification unveiled in 2020 and integrates a power management unit and a Li-Ion battery charger. Offered in a compact 3.2mm2 (1.78 x 1.78 mm) WL-CSP package, the PTX30W will enable small battery-powered products, such as smartwatches and other wearables, to be charged over NFC. The chip can operate in standalone mode or connected to a host microcontroller, and the company claims it is around four times smaller than existing designs based on multiple discrete components. PTX30W features and specifications: Integrated NFC Wireless Charging Listener device Efficient Active Rectifier RF interface according to Forum Type 2 Tag Li-Ion battery charger with charging current from 5mA to 250mA MCU LDO with 1.8V or 3.3V output, up to 50mA Embedded power negotiation logic High-efficiency NFC wireless charging listener IC with up […]
Craob X – An ultrathin, portless laptop with a wireless charger & dock
They’ve already taken out our audio jacks, and many laptops don’t come with an Ethernet port, but the Craob X portless laptop goes even further by completely removing all ports, and relies on a magnetic wireless charger that sticks to the laptop lid, and offers some USB and audio ports, you know just in case you actually need to connect wired peripherals… The main advantage is that you’d get an ultra-thin 7mm thick laptop that only weighs around 860 grams. As long as you mostly rely on wireless keyboards, mice, headphones, or storage devices that may be a working solution, and if you need to charge the battery simply place the wireless charger on the back of the display. Craob X portless laptop preliminary specifications: SoC – Up to Intel Core i7-1280P Alder Lake processor with Iris Xe graphics (28W TDP) System Memory – Up to 32GB LPDDR5 RAM Storage […]
Pine64 launches PinePhone Keyboard case, back covers with LoRa radio, fingerprint scanner, wireless charging
Pine64’s PinePhone Linux smartphone and its successor, the upcoming PinePhone Pro, are designed to be modular and extensible with a PinePhone Keyboard case prototype showcased here in April 2021 and aimed to transform the phone into what looks like a PDA. The design has now been refined, and Pine64 has just launched the PinePhone (Pro) keyboard case for $49.99, together with three back covers with either a LoRa module, a fingerprint scanner, or Qi wireless charging for $9.99 to $24.99 depending on the model. All are now available on Pine64 store. PinePhone (Pro) Keyboard Case Key features and specifications: ISO QWERTY layout with 54 keys in 5 rows. Note the key caps can be rearranged, so you could easily make an AZERTY or QWERTZ keyboard for example 180° hinge for two-hand typing on surface or thumb-typing when held Pogo pin connector to connect to PinePhone (Pro) smartphone USB – USB […]
WattUp 1W active energy harvesting developer kit enables at-a-distance wireless charging
Two years ago, we noted Energous’ WattUp hearables developer kit that would charge earbuds with the company’s WattUp near-field wireless charging technology. The company has now introduced the WattUP 1W active energy harvesting developer kit capable of charging multiple IoT devices with at-a-distance wireless charging. The kit is said to be “active” because there’s a 6-inch transmitter, let’s call it a power gateway, and several IoT devices that harvest energy from it. Traditional passive solutions will harvest ambient energy from the surrounding environment, and may not deliver enough power, and do so unpredictably. The developer kit comes with the transmitter, plus one or more receiver units, and relies on the following main chips: Transmitter Dialog Semiconductor DA14682 SmartBond Bluetooth 5.0 Cortex-M0 SoC Dialog Semiconductor DA4100 Wireless Power Transmitter SoC Dialog Semiconductor DA3210 1W Power Amplifier A discrete rectifier and a DA2210 WPT rectifier Receiver(s) Dialog Semiconductor DA14531 Cortex-M0+ BLE 5.1 […]
NuCurrent showcases NFC charging at 3W, data rates up to 848 kb/s
The NFC Forum approved the Global Wireless Charging (WLC) specification last year with the new standard making it possible to wirelessly charge small, battery-powered consumer and IoT devices with a smartphone or other NFC charging device at a power transfer rate of up to one watt. The NFC WLC currently specifies power levels ranging from 100mW – 1W transmitted and data rates up to 106 kb/s, but NuCurrent claims to have gone beyond WLC specs, delivering over 3x more wireless power and over 8x faster data speeds. This was achieved with the company’s NuEva Development Platform for Near-Field Communication (NFC) Wireless Charging technology that provided up to 3W of power received (as opposed to just transmitted in the WLC specification) and data rates of up to 848 kb/s. NuCurrent expects the higher NFC charging power and data rates to enable new applications for small, space-constrained devices including wrist-wearables, smartwatches, styluses, […]