Forever Battery a compelling talking point at CES

Well, this lead was impressive, coming from a tech watcher who if you read his articles regularly know that he does not swoon easily. Andrew Liszewski, Gizmodo. "After covering CES for 10 years, nothing I've seen at the show has me as excited about the future as Ossia's wireless charging technology."

Ossia has worked on something they call the Cota Forever Battery. We need little explanation to turn heads to fuller attention. They have worked on a battery powered wirelessly. The Forever Battery and its associated technology, dubbed Cota, created much interest at CES.

It's all about a battery that may never need replacing.

Editor in Chief of Tom's Guide Mark Spoonauer said that "there is something very compelling about the idea of a Forever Battery and a system that can deliver power at long distances."

The battery would get its power from the Cota Tile. The company defines Cota Tile as a wireless power transmitter disguised as a drop ceiling tile. Transmitter? Spoonauer explained how "This transmitter would sit in your house, perhaps mounted on a wall, and deliver juice over the 2.4-GHz spectrum to a tiny receiver in the battery."

"Radio waves used by Cota (2.4GHz frequency) almost see our world as if it is made of mirrors and glass; everything is either absorbing (like our bodies) or reflecting partially (like dry wall) or reflecting totally (like metal cabinets)," wrote Hatem Zeine on the company site last year.

Ossia's system will consistently charge the battery from anywhere in the house, as long as it's in range of one of the company's Cota Tiles," wrote Alex Lee in Alphr.

More details on how it works were discussed.

Joel Hruska, ExtremeTech: "According to Ossia, Cota works because the Cota Transmitter contains dozens of tiny RF antennas, with similar antennas mounted within the AA battery, charging case, or hypothetical smartphone."

Liszewski said "the transmitter broadcasts a directed and concentrated RF signal towards a given device in a room, which is absorbed by the gadget's own RF antennas inside, and turned into usable power."

Cota is not limited to just a few feet. The Tile can power multiple devices in motion, without a line of sight, at a distance, said the company.

As for batteries, wouldn't we just like to walk away from the whole concept of battery. Alex Lee in Alphr said we cannot just yet. He said, "a lot of gadgetry, and children's toys, still rely on physical batteries. From remote controls and smoke detectors to smart IOT devices like lights, security systems and locks, removable batteries remain unavoidable."

Still, the repercussions of disposable batteries that need replacing go beyond inconvenience.

Alphr: "Every year, in the United Kingdom alone, 600 million disposable batteries are thrown away, with only a third of these being recycled. While the amount of mercury in these alkaline batteries has been reduced, the substances in batteries leak into the soil and groundwater in landfills, releasing pollutants and toxins into the air."

Ossia has other alarming numbers. "Each year, more than 3 billion batteries are thrown away in the United States alone. Although battery makers have reduced the quantity of toxic materials in batteries, battery disposal remains regulated and poses environmental risks."

© 2018 Tech Xplore