Effect of Coupling Between Multiple Transmitters or Multiple Receivers on Wireless Power Transfer

The operation of wireless power transfer systems with multiple transmitters (TXs) or receivers (RXs) is investigated. With multiple TXs or RXs in a limited space, couplings occur between TXs or between RXs. The frequency conditions for maximum efficiency and power transfer under such couplings are proposed. Effective resonant frequency of the TXs or the RXs is changed due to such couplings, and driving and/or resonant frequencies should therefore be adjusted accordingly. The amount and type of the required adjustments are provided. The efficiencies in these conditions are discussed. These concepts are supported by experiments with couplings between TXs or between RXs. Using the proposed frequency adjustments, 51-65-W power is transferred with 45%-57% efficiency, even with very low coupling coefficients of 0.025-0.063 from TX to RX. This improvement is significant compared to the unadjusted cases where less than 4 W is transferred with only 5%-33% efficiency.