Aircharge is supplying sushi chain Hissho Sushi with wireless charging that doubles as a contactless table ordering interface. One of the first installations of Aircharge+ is at a Hissho Sushi restaurant in a Rogers, Arkansas, Walmart store, the company said Friday. It includes a connected platform using wireless chargers combined with digital table markers. The circular spots, resembling coasters, are branded with the restaurant’s logo and have a table number to allow staff members to locate the table placing an order; a digital interface connects customers via digital menu to the ordering and point-of-sale systems. Ordering and paying via smartphone lets customers avoid contact with menus and order points, multiple visits by staff and handling of cash, said the company. Customers low on battery power can charge their devices at their seat to access the digital functions, it said.

Scientists at Washington University in St. Louis developed a way to make “smart bricks” to store electricity for powering electronics devices, blogged the school, citing an Aug. 11 Nature article. Researchers converted red bricks, bought at Home Depot for 65 cents each, into a supercapacitor. “We have developed a coating of the conducting polymer PEDOT [poly(3,4-ethylenedioxythiophene)],” comprising nanofibers that “penetrate the inner porous network of a brick; a polymer coating remains trapped in a brick and serves as an ion sponge that stores and conducts electricity,” said Julio D’Arcy, assistant chemistry professor. The red pigment in bricks -- iron oxide -- is essential for triggering the polymerization reaction, he said. The authors calculate that walls made of energy-storing bricks could bank a substantial amount of energy. “A brick wall serving as a supercapacitor can be recharged hundreds of thousands of times within an hour,” said D’Arcy. “If you connect a couple of bricks, microelectronics sensors would be easily powered.” A proof of concept in the Nature article shows a brick directly powering a green LED.

Energous is working with Xentris Wireless to develop ruggedized wireless charging for the military. Products will have freedom of alignment and the ability to monitor battery levels through software control, said the companies Wednesday. Xentris will supply the U.S. Army “mission-ready” charging technology, and the two companies will collaborate on next-generation wireless offerings.

Energous introduced a transmitter module Thursday designed to “ease integration and adoption” of its next-generation wireless charging technology. The module is said to reduce the footprint of the company's WattUp technology for incorporation in smart speakers, medical devices, laptops and tablets, which could send power to compatible receiver devices such as fitness bands, smartwatches, game controllers and hearing aids. Maximum power output is 1 watt.

InfinaCore announced a pocket-size portable Qi charger that, once charged, can charge devices wirelessly without being plugged into an AC outlet. The P3 can also function as an 18-watt power bank when plugged into a wall socket, offering USB 3.0 Quick Charge technology and USB Type C Power Delivery, it said.

As demand increases for IoT sensors and wearables, so does the need for efficient, practical power solutions, AirFuel Alliance President Sanjay Gupta emailed us Friday. IoT sensors and wearables such as smart glasses and hearables are typically powered by batteries that need to be replaced or charged frequently, a “significant pain point” for consumers the alliance hopes to address with an RF-based wireless power standard, Gupta said. RF-based wireless power delivers power “in a 3D volume, can charge multiple devices safely and simultaneously, and can be readily integrated into small devices with no flat surfaces,” he said. The concept of 3D charging “has always been exciting” but has only overcome regulatory and safety hurdles in the past couple of years, he said. The first products to incorporate the technology are now coming to market; “maturity of the market" and the regulatory environment make the timing right "to define a global standard,” said Gupta. AirFuel members will participate in the standard initiative, he said. Among the 30 AirFuel Alliance members listed on the website Friday were Samsung, STMicroelectronics, Huawei, Energous, TDK, WiTricity, the EPA’s Energy Star program, Omron and the University of Tennessee at Chattanooga.

The AirFuel Alliance is inviting worldwide participation in setting an RF wireless charging standard, it said Thursday. AirFuel RF uses RF wave to transfer energy from a few centimeters up to a few meters, which the alliance calls “true spatial freedom.” RF technology can be integrated into small electronic devices, such as wearables, hearing aids and IoT sensors, it said. The alliance didn’t respond to questions.

Yank Technologies said its contactless wireless charger, MotherBox, landed FCC Part 18 certification. Yank introduced the automotive charging concept in 2017. MotherBox operates with a receiver and can charge multiple devices simultaneously. It’s Android and iOS-compatible and allows free movement of the devices being charged, said the company. Certification will help the company produce a high-power, scalable wireless charger for new industries, including the automotive market, it said.

Zens is taking preorders for an accessory that charges an Apple Watch or AirPods from a USB-C port, it said Friday. The Qi and MFi-certified accessory is dual-sided and is designed to plug into a laptop’s USB-C port for “reversible” wireless charging: The Watch fits on one side; AirPods in a wireless charging case on the other. Pricing through the Zens website is about $67, with shipping in October.

Ossia is collaborating with Japanese electrical products company Marubun for its Cota wireless over-the-air power technology, it said Wednesday. Devices can be activated, managed and monitored via the Cota Cloud platform, it said, and its receivers embedded into IoT devices, wearables and other electronics across industrial, automotive and consumer applications. Marubun will be a sales arm for Ossia in Japan, a market “aggressively pursuing” technology innovation such as wireless power, said Ossia. Energous has gotten regulatory approval for its charging technology (see 2002280015).