UW is part of a $ 5.8 million contract to study wireless charging on the moon

A team of multiple organizations, including UW, plans to develop a line of lightweight, ultra-fast wireless chargers that could help both humans and robots live and work on the moon.Sarah McQuate / University of Washington

A challenge to life in space is power: how to keep humans comfortable and robots running when there are no built-in power outlets and when solar power isn’t always an option.

Now a team of organizations – led by space technology company Astrobotic and including the University of Washington and the UW WiBotic spinout – has received a $ 5.8 million contract to develop a line of ultra-fast, lightweight wireless chargers that could help both humans and robots live and work on the moon. This contract is part of NASA’s Tipping Point call for proposals.

Although prototypes for wireless charging have existed since 2011, this new MRI-based power system would be the first of its kind in space.

Wireless charging in space comes with a number of problems, such as how to prevent metal iron in moon dust – or lunar regolith – from interfering with charging connections. UW received $ 440,000 from this contract to investigate how the lunar regolith affects wireless power transfer.

“Moon dust is very fine and tends to stick to surfaces because it becomes electrically charged. The UW team is addressing the fundamental research question of how the size and composition of dust particles affect the efficiency of power transfer, “said Joshua Smith, lead researcher at UW, professor at the Paul G. Allen School. of Computer Science & Engineering and the Department of Electrical Computer Engineering. “We plan to take an approach that is a hybrid of science and engineering: we will develop a synthetic moon dust that is consistent with known relevant properties, but which represents the worst case for our wireless power transfer system.

“Our work will be the basis of the engineering requirements for the rest of the team. It will help us answer questions like: How much extra power would have to be transferred to overcome the expected heat losses? Or how much cooling capacity must be built into the system to remove the heat produced by the lunar dust? “

Astrobotic’s CubeRover, developed in collaboration with NASA’s Kennedy Space Center, is the first space technology to be integrated with the wireless charging system. Part of NASA’s Tipping Point contract will fund the development of CubeRover’s intelligent autonomous navigation system, which will enable precise navigation where GPS is not an option. This will equip the CubeRover – and other planetary traveling technologies – to find charging docks to light up again and again and survive the 14-day lunar night.

Astrobotic will qualify the entire system in space, test the engineering and flight models, and lead the integration of CubeRover and the ultra-fast multi-kilowatt wireless charging system, designed by WiBotic. WiBotic will also provide technical, mechanical and electrical support.

“These rovers need easy and reliable access to power in an environment that includes extremely abrasive dust and cold temperatures, making it a perfect application for WiBotic’s innovative contactless proximity charging solutions,” says Ben Waters , CEO of WiBotic. “We look forward to working with Astrobotic and the team to provide flexible and durable charging stations that power a range of manned and unmanned lunar vehicles.”

This wireless charging technology could have significant utility not only on the Moon, but also in critical space applications on Mars, in orbit and beyond. Future teams will be able to adapt wireless technology to different assets such as moon vehicles, power tools, flight systems, and more. The base station, power receiver and CubeRover flight units will be delivered to NASA for inclusion in an upcoming lunar mission via the Commercial Lunar Payload Services program in 2023.

Adapted from a version of Astrobotic.