SBIR Phase I: In-Motion, Capacitive, Wireless Charging System for Material Handling Vehicles

The broader and commercial impacts of this Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) Phase I project will eliminate the downtime for battery charging of material handling vehicles (MHVs) (i.e., mobile robots and forklifts) with in-motion capacitive wireless charging, thereby increasing the productivity and economic competitiveness of warehouses. Implementation of in-motion capacitive wireless charging in warehouses and roadways would enable the use of much smaller batteries (up to 80% smaller) for most electric vehicles (EVs) and MHVs, dramatically reducing costs and making them less expensive than their gasoline powered counterparts. This dramatic price reduction will speed up the transition from internal combustion engines to electric vehicles. Mass roadway deployment of in-motion capacitive wireless charging would significantly reduce air pollution and the US dependence on oil, increasing US national security. This Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) Phase I project will develop a capacitive wireless charging system for in-motion charging of MHVs. The project will develop a robust, safe, and fully automated system capable of wirelessly charging an MHV on demand, at power levels up to 1 kW. The research will address three technical challenges: 1) achieving high power transfer in the presence of coupler misalignments; 2) activating and deactivating the charging apparatus in a seamless and safe manner; and 3) maintaining thermally stable continuous operation and achieving efficient rectification at 1 kW, 6.78 MHz with commercially available power semiconductor devices. The misalignment tolerance will be enabled through an enhanced coupler design that ensures full power delivery over a substantially enlarged area of overlap compared to conventional coupler designs. The automated activation and deactivation will be enabled by a sensing, control, and communication system comprising a modulated optical actuation scheme and power-transfer based decision making. The continuous power delivery will be enabled by a custom-designed thermal management solution. The efficient rectification at high frequency will be enabled by innovations in matching network design that mitigate the impact of the rectifier’s parasitics. Addressing these challenges will enable the technology to be commercializable. This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.