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Drones Can Now Charge from Microwave

CIO Insider Team | Tuesday, 24 August, 2021
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Japanese researchers have just come up with a new free-flying drone that does not require a battery to charge, instead it can be microwaved? That’s right, the free-flying drone can be charged using microwaves.

Typically most drones used Lithium Polymer (LiPo) batteries for their lightweight and the ability to induce massive juice of power in small packages, proving to be most suitable for drones.

But with a microwave, the story gets even better since the drones’ power source is affixed to earth and the drone does not have to fly with it.

As microwaves are a type of electromagnetic radiation that produces ample energy to be converted into electricity, is the same way as sunlight getting converted into electricity with solar panels.

To make it clear, an experiment was conducted using a microwave beam placed beneath the drone after its take-off. As a result, the drone flew 2.6 feet which is 0.8 meters for 30 seconds.

The experiment revealed that 30 percent of emissions from the microwave were absorbed by the drone, while the remaining 40 percent got converted into electricity to be used for propulsion. But there still remains immense space for development before it’s permitted near a rocket.

"Microwave power is transferred from the ground antenna to the drone's antenna in drone tests. The RF (radio frequency) is converted to DC (direct current) through a rectifier, and the DC electricity is used to power the drone's motors. It's referred to as a ‘rectenna’ (rectifier + antenna)”, explains a study by Kohei Shimamura of the University of Tsukuba.

But what do rockets have to do with this? Heavy fuel sources are used in rockets. The fuel supply accounts for over 90 percent of a rocket's total weight. The entire rocket gets significantly lighter if microwaves are utilized.

Accordingly, new research published in the ‘Journal of Spacecraft and Rockets,' which reveals the potential of employing microwaves as an alternative fuel source, this transformation may occur soon enough.

The role of drones is equally important to those such as contactless payment systems, and especially since they fly their services across defense, healthcare, and various other sectors.

Furthermore, logistic service companies, such as BlueDart, have created the Blue Dart Med-Express Consortium to carry vaccines and emergency medical supplies to India's most distant places. In reality, several technology companies are employing Drones to fulfill diverse functions in meeting anticipated demands in numerous industries.

End-users are increasingly receiving various types of Drones to verify their identity, such as Fixed Wing, HALE, MALE, and UCAV, in tandem with the Government of India's increasing initiatives in widely utilizing Drones in various activities such as defense, entertainment, industrial, agriculture, and commercial uses, which is directly driving demand for the market over the cosmos.

"Microwave power is transferred from the ground antenna to the drone's antenna in drone tests. The RF (radio frequency) is converted to DC (direct current) through a rectifier, and the DC electricity is used to power the drone's motors. It's referred to as a ‘rectenna’ (rectifier + antenna)”, explains a study by Kohei Shimamura of the University of Tsukuba.

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