Wireless Power Companies Merge, But No Real-Life Devices Yet

A hopeful anonymous reader writes "It looks like Splashpower (Or what is left of it anyway) was purchased by the company behind eCoupled. Hopefully this means that interoperable wireless power is one step closer to reality as two of the companies trying to comercialize the technology are now the same." (US readers, read "administration" as "bankruptcy.")

Surgeon General's Warning

Putting your head between your portable kettle and your microwave emitting kettle charger can seriously damage your health.

Re:

Well, of course. An oven is optimized to fry things.

administration isn't chapter 7

In UK law, administration is closer to US Chapter 11 than Chapter 7; the company is assumed to be capable of being returned to the status of a going concern, rather than a set of assets and liabilities pending liquidation. But in the US the management of the company would normally remain as debtors in possession; in the UK an administrator is more hands-on than a US trustee, has to be agreed by the court, and works for the creditors rather than the shareholders. ian

Re:

Thanks for explaining that more tactfully than I was about to.

Michael Faraday being dead and all...

The acquisition reinforces Fulton's industry-leading position in the rapidly growing wireless power industry by expanding both the breadth and depth of Fulton's substantial patent portfolio, comprised of over 250 patents granted or pending worldwide.

Whaa

In-flight charging ...

And around the year 2100 FAA will give the OK for this technology to be used in the planes (but not during landing & take-off).

I thought tesla already did all this??

I thought tesla already perfected wireless power and the US government covered it all up. Didn't he once drive a electric car using a wireless power source he made from a few bucks in parts from a radio shop?

Re:

A radio shop...

Re:I thought tesla already did all this??

There is a claim that Tesla drove an electric car powered only by a small device that he made from simple parts purchased from a retail store, yes.

However, there is no verification of this claim (like many of the other claims of Tesla's supposedly-amazing inventions.)

While there is a great tendency to credit these claims (I have it too) there is no supporting evidence except one supposed-eyewitness account. The best I would say is that if I would believe it of anyone, I would believe it of Tesla, who saw the design for efficiently producing AC fully-formed in his head while reciting (or was it listening to?) a poem.

Re:

Wasn't that a duplication machine that The Great Danton modified to operate as such?

Ummm

Holy dipshit, batman, wirelesss power? Is this Tesla [wikipedia.org] or PT Barnum? [wikipedia.org] I'd REALLY feel foolish if I actually R this FA, is there some Rube Goldberg explanation of how, exactly, "wireless power" would work?

I think perhaps you're either a little over a month la [wikipedia.org]

Re:

I'd REALLY feel foolish if I actually R this FA, is there some Rube Goldberg explanation of how, exactly, "wireless power" would work?

It does work.

Here is a Popular Science explanation on how it does:

http://www.popsci.com/scitech/gallery/2008-01/electricit [popsci.com]

Re:

So basically it's a transformer with the coils seven feet apart? How much power has to be supplied to the transmitting coils to light the sixty watt bulb?

And it seems that for resonance to work, the bulb's recieving coil would have to be EXACTLY in the rig

Re:

Wireless power has been used as long as I've been alive. Granted, this has been in lighting devices, such as neon and fluorescent lights... http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fluorescent_lamp [wikipedia.org]

I mean I'm surprised that you didn't know, that like neon signs don't

Re:

Dude, you spoiled the joke ;)

I see patterns...

... of vapor

Look at the vaporware tag..

Hopefully this means that interoperable wireless power is one step closer to reality..

So you mean "one step closer" in a Zeno sense?

Power by wireless now, and in five years...

...viagra by wireless.

Log into Gmail, download the viagra attachment, stiff as a board and one happy missus.

Do you HAVE to lose efficiency?

What about a microwave frequency laser? Low enough power that it doesn't cook things. But that should allow you to target devices and deliver a much higher efficiency.

Any thoughts?

Pfft, I've had wireless power for years

Really, it's pretty bloody simple. Hook a POE adapter into a wireless ethernet bridge.

Voila! Power over wireless ethernet.

Editing

He can editorialize about Britishisms, but he can't correct the spelling of "commercialize?"

Re:

Dunno about Tesla, but ThinkGeek already has this for sale [thinkgeek.com].

Re:

that's an old april fool's joke. try hitting the "add to cart" button.

don't feel too stupid. i got fooled by it too.

Re:

Of course it's a sham. It destroyed Tesla's reputation. There is no way to transmit electricity and hope to get anything approaching a meaningful level of efficiency. Maybe something like high intensity lasers, but I doubt anyone would want that in thei

Re:

"Of course it's a sham. It destroyed Tesla's reputation. There is no way to transmit electricity and hope to get anything approaching a meaningful level of efficiency."

Of course, there is might not be a way nitrogen or oxygen are ever going to efficiently