DARPA, the part of the US Department of Defense responsible for developing military technology, wants drones that can be charged wirelessly from a distance. This would allow them to fly indefinitely.
DARPA has already released $500,000 in 2021 to fund research into this technology. This money went to the University of Texas. The university is now announcing in a press release that it will receive another $250,000 from DARPA to continue the research.
The university is already using resources to create a larger version of the same technology that makes wireless charging for your phone possible. Wireless charging works by sending low-frequency electromagnetic waves over a very short distance. It is collected by a coil in your phone and then converted into electricity that goes to the battery.
More difficult than simple wireless charging
Researchers at the University of Texas are developing wireless charging over a greater distance. This is more difficult, because electromagnetic waves lose strength the longer they travel. The solution, according to the researchers, is to use a series of transmitters and small antennas to direct the waves along a specific path. To achieve this, the drone must always be visible in a straight line.
The goal is to eventually have a drone that can continue to fly as long as it can be charged. But according to the researchers, this technology could also be useful outside the military world. This would eventually enable electric cars and smartphones to be charged remotely. DARPA is often behind the applications we all use, such as GPS and the Internet.
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