Superconducting Resonant Inductive Power Coupling

In military operations unmanned rovers can be sent into dangerous situations to acquire intelligence. The inductive coupling allows for a rover to explore caves or the rubble of a demolished building, as well as undersea operations to power Unmanned Underwater Vehicles. FEMA could benefit by providing temporary power in areas where the infrastructure has been lost. A primary interest in commercial markets is power delivery to small electronics such as laptops, cell phones and PDAs. In this application, the receive side would not be superconducting. These wireless power systems are currently under development by other companies, however the efficiency of such systems could be substantially improved if the stationary transmission coil were superconducting, with the appropriate thermal control. This combination could increase the efficiency of such a system from 10% to over 90% over the distances of interest.

The technology applies wherever power generation at the point of need is unavailable, insufficient or too costly (in terms of mass). Powering multiple rovers within a polar lunar crater is an ideal application since the lack of sunlight generates a need for power delivery while providing an ideal thermal environment for the superconductors. Another example is a Mars rover architecture where a slow moving "crawler" provides power to a suite of agile rovers performing sampling and analysis tasks over a wide swath. Near the crawler the small rovers would fully function and store excess energy, whereas farther away they would operate primarily from stored energy until recharging becomes necessary. Other applications may involve human or robotic EVA outside of ISS, where the ISS would provide an ample power source. In 6 DOF operation the inductively coupled system has the advantage of less sensitivity to orientation than solar power generation. More »