Electronics such as phones and laptops may start shedding their power cords within a year.

That's the prediction of Eric Giler, CEO of WiTricity, a company that's able to power light bulbs using wireless electricity that travels several feet from a power socket.

WiTricity's version of wireless electricity -- which converts power into a magnetic field and sends it sailing through the air at a particular frequency -- still needs to be refined a bit, he said, but should be commercially available soon.
Giler, whose company is a spinoff of a Massachusetts Institute of Technology research group, says wireless electricity has the potential to cut the need for power cords and throw-away batteries.

"Five years from now, this will seem completely normal," he said.

One set of researchers is able to send power over long distances but in very small amounts

SOURCE: http://www.cnn.com/2009/TECH/09/02/wireless.electricity/index.html

Fear not. In these days of green energy, no such gizmo's will ever make past the drawing board into our homes. PHCN's wires are here to stay.

LOL! You think?
But the thought of wireless Internet connectivity was also laughed at in those days of dial-up - Those were the days!!!

wowowoww that's crazy. will all that magnetic/electric charge n stuff affect us human beings though. since they're going through the air. lol

canuck :
LOL! You think?
But the thought of wireless Internet connectivity was also laughed at in those days of dial-up - Those were the days!!! 

Yeah, it works by electromagnetic induction, the energy transerred is affected by the inverse square law. . . Ok one or two might be wanting to hang me at this moment (for being boring); but the inverse square law ensures that all such wireless devices will waste energy over any sort of distance. Thats why PHCN is still very safe.
If it wasn't a wasteful technology, we could have had electric cars zoom along roads, charging themselves from the pavement.

There are some scenarios where this will work and the technology is already used eg some electric toothbrush chargers (the type where the toothbrush sits in the crade without any visible connection to it). The catch is the distance is very small.

How many Volts and Amperage can you transmit this way with out it being harmful to humans, do you know ppl that live under high voltage wires are prone to cancer.

@Poster, I am not wrong, You still need electricity to power your wireless electricity modules. So PHCN can't be waiting for this because all this does is, on the user end, do away with using of cables, while on the PHCN end, it changes nothing.

OgidiBoy:

How many Volts and Amperage can you transmit this way with out it being harmful to humans, do you know ppl that live under high voltage wires are prone to cancer.

Wow, you do have a point, people who live under electric transmission lines are at more risk to have cancer. But man, the way technology changes is amazing, i was reading an article on how scientists had done the impossible: they had created electrical transmission conductors [size=13pt]WHICH HAVE NO RESISTANCE TO ELECTRICITY  [/size]. http://www.newsweek.com/id/200068/page/1

I thought this was a big deal, now i find out that they have something better wireless electrical transmission. Dang it these MIT boys are good.

I knew a guy in Lagos working on this 2 years ago and he sent it to some research institute in the USA for a competition. Beware of the kind of information you give out all in the name of competition.


Back to this technology, it can only produce very little electricity. It can't take away powerlines. Managing to produce only 12 volts will not get us very far. But It's something though.

contract the witricity to private companies who will rip naija pips off like mtn, celtel (i no remember their new name self) and glo


let's go there!

nex:

I knew a guy in Lagos working on this 2 years ago and he sent it to some research institute in the USA for a competition. Beware of the kind of information you give out all in the name of competition.


Back to this technology, it can only produce very little electricity. It can't take away powerlines. Managing to produce only 12 volts will not get us very far. But It's something though.

It's really the Amp [current] that kills 0.1A is enough to stop the human heart. Volts up to 50,000 just gives you a good shock . It's a good technology if it is properly used, I won't trust Nigerians with it just yet.

For you to get a current as high as you describe, you need to attach a really large device, probably the size of a football pitch to your power outlet.

canuck:

Electronics such as phones and laptops may start shedding their power cords within a year.

That's the prediction of Eric Giler, CEO of WiTricity, a company that's able to power light bulbs using wireless electricity that travels several feet from a power socket.

WiTricity's version of wireless electricity -- which converts power into a magnetic field and sends it sailing through the air at a particular frequency -- still needs to be refined a bit, he said, but should be commercially available soon.
Giler, whose company is a spinoff of a Massachusetts Institute of Technology research group, says wireless electricity has the potential to cut the need for power cords and throw-away batteries.

"Five years from now, this will seem completely normal," he said.

One set of researchers is able to send power over long distances but in very small amounts

SOURCE: http://www.cnn.com/2009/TECH/09/02/wireless.electricity/index.html

It cannot happen in Nigeria until 2060 even if the rest of the world start tonight.

next link=topic=318526.MSG#MSG date=1251934488:

For you to get a current as high as you describe, you need to attach a really large device, probably the size of a football pitch to your power outlet.

I'm not too familiar with the Volts and Amps used in Nigeria so I won't talk too much about that. 0.1A is really not that much, A 277V 60Hz ballast that is used to power a simple 2 lamp florescent fixture needs 0.22 Amps. So it really does depend on the device.

Wireless electricity? Just what I've been thinking about.

~Sauron~:

It cannot happen in Nigeria until 2060 even if the rest of the world start tonight.

Bad Boyyyy!!!!!

This famous phrase was uttered back in 1920 by an American President : " Everything that can be invented HAS been invented already."

OgidiBoy:


I'm not too familiar with the Volts and Amps used in Nigeria so I won't talk too much about that. 0.1A is really not that much, A 277V 60Hz ballast that is used to power a simple 2 lamp florescent fixture needs 0.22 Amps. So it really does depend on the device.

Nigeria is on 230V.

Any appliance that requires 0.22amps in the US with 115V will require 0.11amps at 230V. However, the appliance must be ready to work with 230V to work.

Afam:

Nigeria is on 230V.

Any appliance that requires 0.22amps in the US with 115V will require 0.11amps at 230V. However, the appliance must be ready to work with 230V to work.

Thanks Afam, 0.11amps is still a lot of Amperage to be transmitting through the air. I really need to research on this new technology, it sounds good and all because you eliminate the use of conductors and conduits but how safe  is it.

The current is not transmitted - it is only generated at the device through magnetic induction.

BTW there's nothing new here - all transformers work through magnitic induction. Current through Coil A generates current in coil B - so you can step down or up depending on the ratio of copper turns in coil A to Coil B. In essence an electromagnetic source can generate magnetic fields in a coil at some distance (small however) - all electrical souces generate some level of EMF, hence shielding on cables, and in your home electrical appliances.

$poOne:

The current is not transmitted - it is only generated at the device through magnetic induction.

BTW there's nothing new here - all transformers work through magnitic induction. Current through Coil A generates current in coil B - so you can step down or up depending on the ratio of copper turns in coil A to Coil B. In essence an electromagnetic source can generate magnetic fields in a coil at some distance (small however) - all electrical souces generate some level of EMF, hence shielding on cables, and in your home electrical appliances.

Basic Physics, transformers have oil inside of them to dissipate the heat generated, so how are you going to take care of the heat generated with this wireless Electricity. Also do we know the effects of prolonged exposure to magnetic fields produced which we all know will be greater then the Magnetic filed of the universe.

I hope you know I'm not trying to ague or cause trouble, I'm just trying to figure out if this wireless electricity thing will work in Nigeria

OgidiBoy:

Basic Physics, transformers have oil inside of them to dissipate the heat generated, so how are you going to take care of the heat generated with this wireless Electricity. Also do we know the effects of prolonged exposure to magnetic fields produced which we all know will be greater then the Magnetic filed of the universe.

Not all transformers have oil for cooling. Air cooling is common and is used for quite a number of transformers out there even in electricity based systems.

Afam:

Not all transformers have oil for cooling. Air cooling is common and is used for quite a number of transformers out there even in electricity based systems.

That's right Afam, but in Nigeria where it's always hot and humid will this Wireless tech only work in an Air conditioned room ?