Inspiration
Inspired by our desire to learn and use high voltage appliance components in a wireless transmission project, and continued from our love of our program, ESET, and similar subjects. Our passion for cool electronics, and desire to learn further the subjects we enjoyed in earlier years inspired this project.
What it does
This machine takes in a DC signal and oscillates it so that it can be transmitted using resonant power transmission to a DC power supply that will be powering a mobile robot.
How we built it
We generated a sinusoidal wave using an oscillator that we built. This powers a resonant transformer that induces power wirelessly in a receiver coil. This receiver signal is then rectified and smoothed in a DC power supply we designed on board a low-voltage robot. This small bot is powered wirelessly by the inductance coupler setup. Unfortunately, we didn't have the high-voltage hardware needed to make the resonance efficient.
Challenges we ran into
Achieving the resonant frequency was tricky, as was achieving sufficient power levels at the receiving coupler. The robot's components all had high power requirements and keeping within the robot's power budget was a trick. Modifying components to suit the robot's needs, and finding the high-voltage components needed in appliance salvage were also significant challenges in this competition
Accomplishments that we're proud of
Getting consistent 20V+ from the resonant coupler assembly was rather impressive, as was running an entire robot on only 600mA of power. Building a rectifier, a linear regulation circuit, and a resonant oscillator were all great accomplishments.
What we learned
We learned many different skills over the course of this hack. From the basics of wireless power transmission to the use of power transmitted to do basic tasks. The combination of hardware, firmware, and software gave the team a wide perspective on how many different components come together to form a complex system.
What's next for FET Flux
Going forward into the future, our team would like to explore options for employing this technology to build a wireless future. Specifically, we believe that this technology could be used to wirelessly charge electric vehicles as they are parked. This goal will allow us to further our passion for this technology and help build a more connected world wirelessly.
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