Micro air vehicles energy transportation for a wireless power transfer system

Abstract

The aim of this work is to demonstrate the feasibility use of an Micro air vehicles (MAV) in order to power wirelessly an electric system, for example, a sensor network, using low-cost and open-source elements. To achieve this objective, an inductive system has been modelled and validated to power wirelessly a sensor node using a Crazyflie 2.0 as MAV. The design of the inductive system must be small and light enough to fulfil the requirements of the Crazyflie. An inductive model based on two resonant coils is presented. Several coils are defined to be tested using the most suitable resonant configuration. Measurements are performed to validate the model and to select the most suitable coil. While attempting to minimize the weight at transmitter's side, on the receiver side it is intended to efficiently acquire and manage the power obtained from the transmitter. In order to prove its feasibility, a temperature sensor node is used as demonstrator. The experiment results show successfully energy transportation by MAV, and wireless power transfer for the resonant configuration, being able to completely charge the node battery and to power the temperature sensor.

Integrated WPT-PLC System Applied to UAV: Characterization of a Two-Coil Channel Considering Misalignment Scenarios

“…Likewise, the theoretical capacity is influenced by horizontal misalignment where maximum values are reached when the transceivers are perfectly aligned, as shown in Figure 10b. In general, the channel capacity is calculated in a reduced frequency band [1][2][3][4][5][6][7][8][9][10] MHz, which can explain the lower value obtained for the data rate. Moreover, the channel capacity is calculated for different SNR values; the obtained result shows that a high data rate is reached under an acceptable and rational noise scenario and for higher SNR values.…”

“…However, several authors have studied the possibility of integrating WPT technology in AV; the idea of refueling a UAV during a mission can provide the ability for longer missions and minimize human interaction [5][6][7][8][9]. In [5], the feasibility of the WPT charging system applied to the DJI FSSO drone is performed and the magnetic field levels emitted by the WPT coil currents are analyzed while considering the misalignments between the coils.…”

“…In [5], the feasibility of the WPT charging system applied to the DJI FSSO drone is performed and the magnetic field levels emitted by the WPT coil currents are analyzed while considering the misalignments between the coils. Moreover, with the aim of minimizing the misalignment effects and improving the landing Electronics 2022, 11, 1249 2 of 13 precision, in [6], the authors propose a new topology consisting of an array of independent coils used as a charging ground station, while in [7], this promising technology is integrated into a drone named Crazyflie 2.0 (Bitcraze AB, Malmö, Sweden) to wirelessly power a sensor network. Finally, in [8,9], the authors discuss the possibilities of using drones and UAVs for infrastructure inspections while proposing a dynamic wireless charging scenario considering the power lines as a source of the magnetic field.…”

“…In previous work [5][6][7][8][9], the receiver coil is mounted under the frame of the drone, with a vertical distance of at least 10 cm from the transmitter coil, causing a poor coupling coefficient, and in addition, the EM interference with the electronic components is already placed on the drone. However, in order to adopt this topology, additional turns in the secondary are required as well as considering the ferrite as a solution to achieve high WPT efficiency, which reduces the maximum weight of the pick-up.…”