Splashpower
Encyclopedia
Splashpower Ltd. was a United Kingdom
-based company founded in June 2001. It had been attempting to develop technology for wireless charging
of portable devices such as mobile phone
s, personal digital assistant
s, mp3 players and camera
s. Their system worked through electromagnetic induction
, adding a free positioning induction loop (at the "SplashPad") to the conventional fix induction loop at the wallplug (used to shift between AC and DC currents). According to the company's claims, rechargeable devices equipped with a small SplashModule were placed upon a mousepad
-sized SplashPad and had their batteries recharged at a normal rate.
A Splashpower system was featured on Tomorrow's World
(a popular science/IT programme from the BBC
) some years ago, where it was given praise and demonstrated a London cafe setting where be-suited executive types were able to charge their phones and PDAs whilst having a power lunch.
the company had yet to make an announcement as to when products would be commercially available or at what price.
Some technical details of the Splashpower technology can be found in US patent 6,906,495 (available also from the USPTO). the company had not publicly disclosed key parameters of its technology - such as the power transfer efficiency, the practical limits on power levels, and how tolerant the technology is to the presence of metallic objects in the magnetic field - which made it difficult to evaluate the product.
Splashpower technology was predicted to become available during 2007, but the company was not able to bring the technology to market. As of April 2008, the company had declared bankruptcy.
In May 2008 Splashpower was acquired by Fulton Innovation, the developers of eCoupled
wireless power technology.
Economy of the United Kingdom
The economy of the United Kingdom is the sixth-largest national economy in the world measured by nominal GDP and seventh-largest measured by purchasing power parity , and the third-largest in Europe measured by nominal GDP and second-largest measured by PPP...
-based company founded in June 2001. It had been attempting to develop technology for wireless charging
Inductive charging
Inductive charging uses an electromagnetic field to transfer energy between two objects. This is usually done with a charging station. Energy is sent through inductive coupling to an electrical device, which then can use that energy to charge batteries....
of portable devices such as mobile phone
Mobile phone
A mobile phone is a device which can make and receive telephone calls over a radio link whilst moving around a wide geographic area. It does so by connecting to a cellular network provided by a mobile network operator...
s, personal digital assistant
Personal digital assistant
A personal digital assistant , also known as a palmtop computer, or personal data assistant, is a mobile device that functions as a personal information manager. Current PDAs often have the ability to connect to the Internet...
s, mp3 players and camera
Camera
A camera is a device that records and stores images. These images may be still photographs or moving images such as videos or movies. The term camera comes from the camera obscura , an early mechanism for projecting images...
s. Their system worked through electromagnetic induction
Electromagnetic induction
Electromagnetic induction is the production of an electric current across a conductor moving through a magnetic field. It underlies the operation of generators, transformers, induction motors, electric motors, synchronous motors, and solenoids....
, adding a free positioning induction loop (at the "SplashPad") to the conventional fix induction loop at the wallplug (used to shift between AC and DC currents). According to the company's claims, rechargeable devices equipped with a small SplashModule were placed upon a mousepad
Mousepad
A mousepad or mouse mat is a surface for enhancing the usability of a computer mouse.-History:During a 1968 presentation by Douglas Engelbart marking the public debut of a mouse,...
-sized SplashPad and had their batteries recharged at a normal rate.
A Splashpower system was featured on Tomorrow's World
Tomorrow's World
Tomorrow's World was a long-running BBC television series, showcasing new developments in the world of science and technology. First aired on 7 July 1965 on BBC1, it ran for 38 years until it was cancelled at the beginning of 2003.- Content :...
(a popular science/IT programme from the BBC
BBC
The British Broadcasting Corporation is a British public service broadcaster. Its headquarters is at Broadcasting House in the City of Westminster, London. It is the largest broadcaster in the world, with about 23,000 staff...
) some years ago, where it was given praise and demonstrated a London cafe setting where be-suited executive types were able to charge their phones and PDAs whilst having a power lunch.
the company had yet to make an announcement as to when products would be commercially available or at what price.
Some technical details of the Splashpower technology can be found in US patent 6,906,495 (available also from the USPTO). the company had not publicly disclosed key parameters of its technology - such as the power transfer efficiency, the practical limits on power levels, and how tolerant the technology is to the presence of metallic objects in the magnetic field - which made it difficult to evaluate the product.
Splashpower technology was predicted to become available during 2007, but the company was not able to bring the technology to market. As of April 2008, the company had declared bankruptcy.
In May 2008 Splashpower was acquired by Fulton Innovation, the developers of eCoupled
Ecoupled
eCoupled is a proprietary near-field wireless energy transfer technology developed by Fulton Innovation, a division of Alticor. It provides wireless power transfer via inductive coupling between a primary transmission coil and a secondary receiving coil...
wireless power technology.