A 150-W IR WPT Embedded System at 6.78-MHz for the Supply and Control of Linear Motors

This paper describes a complete system for the wireless supply and control of linear motors for industrial automation. DC power is delivered to a set of five linear motors by means of an inductive resonant wireless power link at 6.78 MHz, exploiting a GaN-HEMT full-bridge inverter and PCB high-Q resonant coils. Additional AC/DC and DC/DC converters are used for the direct connection to the power grid and to regulate a 48-V DC-link for the supply of the motor drives. The WPT link feedback control is provided with a Bluetooth connection, which is also exploited for the wireless command of the motors. A dedicated embedded system with two microcontrollers controls the entire plant, regulating the supply WPT link and the motor functionalities. The system can deliver a maximum average transferred power of 150 W, when the free space between the coils is between 15 to 20 cm.