GUIDED SURFACE WAVE POWERED SENSING DEVICES

• US 20160080034A1
• Filed: 09/08/2015
• Published: 03/17/2016
• Est. Priority Date: 09/11/2014
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Quantum Wave LLC
• Original Assignee: Cpg Technologies, LLC
• Inventors: Corum, James F., Corum, Kenneth L., Pinzone, Joseph F., D'Aurelio, Michael J.
• Granted Patent: US 10,498,393 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: G01S 19/08 providing integrity information, e.g. health of satellites or quality of ephemeris data
• CPC Class Codes: G01S 19/42 Determining position
• CPC Class Codes: G01S 5/02 using radio waves using satellite radio beacon systems for determining position G01S19/00
• CPC Class Codes: H01P 3/00 Waveguides; Transmission lines of the waveguide type
• CPC Class Codes: H01Q 1/00 Details of, or arrangements associated with, antennas arrangements for varying orientation of directional pattern H01Q3/00
• CPC Class Codes: H02J 50/001 Energy harvesting or scavenging
• CPC Class Codes: H02J 50/005 Mechanical details of housing or structure aiming to accommodate the power transfer means, e.g. mechanical integration of coils, antennas or transducers into emitting or receiving devices
• CPC Class Codes: H02J 50/20 using microwaves or radio frequency waves
• CPC Class Codes: H04B 3/52 Systems for transmission between fixed stations via waveguides
• CPC Class Codes: H04B 5/00 Near-field transmission systems, e.g. inductive or capacitive transmission systems
• CPC Class Codes: H04B 5/73 for taking measurements, e.g. using sensing coils
• CPC Class Codes: H04B 5/79 for data transfer in combination with power transfer

Abstract

Disclosed is a sensing device including a guided surface wave receive structure, a physical parameter sensor, and a radio frequency transmitter. The guided surface wave receive structure may be configured to obtain electrical energy from a guided surface wave traveling along a terrestrial medium. The physical parameter sensor may be coupled to the guided surface wave receive structure. The physical parameter sensor may also measure a physical parameter associated with a physical environment local to the physical parameter sensor. The radio frequency transmitter may be coupled to the guided surface wave receive structure and communicatively coupled to the physical parameter sensor. The radio frequency transmitter may also obtain a physical parameter measurement and transmit the physical parameter measurement over a wireless network.

Claims

1. An apparatus, comprising:

a guided surface wave receive structure configured to obtain electrical energy from a guided surface wave traveling along a terrestrial medium;

a physical parameter sensor coupled to the guided surface wave receive structure, the physical parameter sensor configured to measure a physical parameter associated with a physical environment local to the physical parameter sensor; and

a radio frequency transmitter coupled to the guided surface wave receive structure and communicatively coupled to the physical parameter sensor, the radio frequency transmitter configured to obtain a physical parameter measurement and transmit the physical parameter measurement over a wireless network.

2. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the physical parameter sensor and radio frequency transmitter are experienced as a load at an excitation source coupled to a guided surface waveguide probe generating the guided surface wave.

3. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the guided surface wave receive structure further comprises:

a charge terminal elevated over a lossy conducting medium; and

a receiver network coupled between the charge terminal and the lossy conducting medium, the receiver network having a phase delay (Φ

) that matches a wave tilt angle (Ψ

) associated with the guided surface wave, the wave tilt angle (Ψ

) based at least in part upon characteristics of the lossy conducting medium in a vicinity of the receiving structure.

4. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the guided surface wave receive structure comprises at least one of:

a magnetic coil, a linear probe, or a tuned resonator.

5. The apparatus of claim 1, further comprises a computing device connected to the physical parameter sensor and the radio frequency transmitter, the computing device being configured to obtain the physical parameter measurement from the physical parameter sensor, to form a message containing the physical parameter measurements, and to transmit the message via the radio frequency transmitter.

6. The apparatus of claim 5, wherein the computing device is experienced as a load at an excitation source coupled to a guided surface waveguide probe generating the guided surface wave.

7. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the physical parameter sensor is further configured to measure at least one of light, temperature, moisture, quantity of rain, quantity of snow, presence of rain, presence of snow, humidity levels, wind speed, wind direction, cloud height, wave height, heart rate, blood pressure, location, or presence of a substance.

8. The apparatus of claim 1, further comprising a power circuit coupled to the wherein the guided surface wave receive structure, the power circuit comprising a power rectifier and a capacitor.

9. The apparatus of claim 1, further comprising a power circuit coupled to the wherein the guided surface wave receive structure, the power circuit comprising a battery.

10. A system, comprising:

a guided surface waveguide probe configured to transmit a guided surface wave traveling along a terrestrial medium;

a sensing device comprising a guided surface wave receive structure coupled to an electrical load, the guided surface wave receive structure being configured to obtain electrical energy from the guided surface wave and the electrical load being experienced as a load at an excitation source coupled to a guided surface waveguide probe generating the guided surface wave;

the electrical load comprising;

a physical parameter sensor configured to measure a physical parameter associated with a physical environment local to the physical parameter sensor; and

a radio frequency transmitter communicatively coupled to the physical parameter sensor, the radio frequency transmitter configured to transmit a physical parameter measurement over a wireless network.

11. The system of claim 10, wherein the electrical load further comprises a computing device communicably connected to the physical parameter sensor and the radio frequency transmitter, the computing device configured to obtain the physical parameter measurement from the physical parameter sensor, to form a message containing the physical parameter measurements, and to cause the radio frequency transmitter to transmit the message.

12. The system of claim 10, wherein the physical parameter sensor is further configured to measure at least one of light, temperature, moisture, quantity of rain, quantity of snow, presence of rain, presence of snow, humidity levels, wind speed, wind direction, cloud height, wave height, heart rate, blood pressure, location, or presence of a substance.

13. The system of claim 10, wherein the guided surface waveguide probe comprises a charge terminal elevated over a lossy conducting medium configured to generate at least one resultant field that synthesizes a wave front incident at a complex Brewster angle of incidence (θ

_i,B) of the lossy conducting medium.

14. The system of claim 13, wherein the charge terminal is one of a plurality of charge terminals.

15. The system of claim 13, further comprising a feed network electrically coupled to the charge terminal, the feed network providing a phase delay (Φ

) that matches a wave tilt angle (Ψ

) associated with a complex Brewster angle of incidence (θ

_i,B) associated with the lossy conducting medium in the vicinity of the guided surface waveguide probe.

16. A method, comprising:

receiving electrical energy as a guided surface wave using a guided surface wave receive structure;

supplying the electrical energy to an electrical load coupled to the guided surface wave receive structure, the electrical load comprising a location triangulation circuit and a radio frequency transmitter, where the location triangulation circuit is communicably coupled to the radio frequency transmitter;

receiving a plurality of radio transmissions in the location triangulation circuit from at least three sources; and

determining a location of a location device in the location triangulation circuit based at least in part on the plurality of radio transmissions.

17. The method of claim 16, further comprising sending the location via at least one of the radio frequency transmitter or the guided surface wave receive structure.

18. The method of claim 16, wherein one of the at least three sources comprises at least one of a GPS satellites or a positional RF transmitter.

19. The method of claim 16, further comprising:

receiving orbital information of the at least three sources from a remote server via an internet connection; and

initializing an identification of the location of the location device based in part on the orbital information of the at least three sources.

20. The method of claim 19, wherein the orbital information comprises emphemeris data, reference location data, and at least one reference time.