Chemically enhanced isolated capacitance

• US 9,887,556 B2
• Filed: 09/08/2015
• Issued: 02/06/2018
• 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., Lilly, James D.
• Primary Examiner(s): Takaoka, Dean
• Assistant Examiner(s): Wong, Alan
• Application Number:
  US14/847,390
• Publication Number:
  US 20160079768A1
• Time in Patent Office: 882 Days
• CPC Class Codes: H01P 5/00 Coupling devices of the waveguide type
• CPC Class Codes: H02J 50/10 using inductive coupling
• CPC Class Codes: H02J 50/40 using two or more transmitting or receiving devices H02J50/50 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: H02J 50/80 involving the exchange of data, concerning supply or distribution of electric power, between transmitting devices and receiving devices
• CPC Class Codes: H04B 3/00 Line transmission systems combined with near-field transmission systems H04B5/00
• CPC Class Codes: H04B 3/52 Systems for transmission between fixed stations via waveguides
• CPC Class Codes: H04B 5/22 Capacitive coupling
• CPC Class Codes: H04B 5/24 Inductive coupling

Abstract

Disclosed are various embodiments for transmitting energy conveyed in the form of a guided surface waveguide mode along the surface of a lossy conducting medium such as, e.g., a terrestrial medium by exciting a guided surface waveguide probe. In one embodiment, compensation is provided to elevate isolated capacitance of a terminal of the waveguide probe in the form of mounted charge devices.

Claims

1. An apparatus, comprising:

a guided surface waveguide probe configured to create a plurality of resultant fields that are substantially mode-matched to a guided surface waveguide mode on a surface of a lossy conducting medium,

wherein the guided surface waveguide probe further comprises a charge terminal, the guided surface waveguide probe being further configured to impose a voltage magnitude and a phase on the charge terminal; and

a plurality of charge devices positioned on a surface of the charge terminal, a respective one of the plurality of charge devices configured to generate a free charge that is made available to couple energy into the guided surface waveguide mode.

2. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the charge terminal is elevated over the lossy conducting medium and is 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.

3. The apparatus of claim 2, wherein the charge terminal is one of a plurality of charge terminals.

4. The apparatus of claim 1, 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 a vicinity of the guided surface waveguide probe.

5. The apparatus of claim 4, wherein the charge terminal is one of a plurality of charge terminals.

6. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the free charge is generated responsive to the voltage magnitude imposed on the charge terminal reaching a predefined voltage.

7. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the respective charge device comprises a container of a gas substance having an electrode, the electrode having one end in contact with the gas substance and an opposite end in contact with a surface of the charge terminal.

8. The apparatus of claim 7, wherein the free charge is generated responsive to the voltage magnitude imposed on the charge terminal reaching a predefined voltage, wherein the predefined voltage is less than a breakdown voltage of the gas substance.

9. The apparatus of claim 7, wherein the gas substance comprises at least one noble gas.

10. The apparatus of claim 7, wherein the gas substance is maintained at a pressure that is conducive for ionizing the gas substance and does not allow for the gas substance to become conductive.

11. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the respective charge device comprises a container of an insulating gas having an electrode, the electrode having one end in contact with the insulating gas and an opposite end in contact with a surface of the charge terminal.

12. The apparatus of claim 11, wherein a surface of the container comprises an insulator material.

13. A method comprising:

positioning a plurality of charge devices on a surface of a charge terminal, a respective one of the plurality of charge devices configured to generate a free charge that is made available to couple energy into a guided surface waveguide mode;

generating, via a guided surface waveguide probe, a plurality of resultant fields that is substantially mode-matched to the guided surface waveguide mode on a surface of a lossy conducting medium, wherein the guided surface waveguide probe comprises the charge terminal; and

transmitting, via the guided surface waveguide probe, electrical energy in a form of a guided surface wave along a surface of the lossy conducting medium.

14. The method of claim 13, further comprising setting a physical height for the charge terminal so that the plurality of resultant fields substantially synthesize a wave front incident at a complex Brewster angle of the lossy conducting medium, resulting in substantially zero reflection.

15. The method of claim 14, wherein the charge terminal is one of a plurality of charge terminals.

16. The method of claim 13, further comprising electrically coupling a feed network 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 a vicinity of the guided surface waveguide probe.

17. The method of claim 16, wherein the charge terminal is one of a plurality of charge terminals.

18. The method of claim 13, wherein the respective charge device comprises a container of a gas substance having an electrode, the electrode having one end in contact with the gas substance and an opposite end in contact with a surface of the charge terminal.

19. The method of claim 18, further comprising maintaining the gas substance at a pressure that is conducive for ionizing the gas substance and does not allow for the gas substance to become conductive.

20. The method of claim 13, wherein the charge terminal comprises a spherical shape, the method further comprising limiting a physical height for the charge terminal to be 4D or less, wherein D=a diameter of the charge terminal.

21. An apparatus comprising:

a guided surface waveguide probe configured to create a plurality of resultant fields that are substantially mode-matched to a guided surface waveguide mode on a surface of a lossy conducting medium,

wherein the guided surface waveguide probe further comprises a chemically enhanced charge terminal, the guided surface waveguide probe being further configured to impose a voltage magnitude and a phase on the chemically enhanced charge terminal; and

wherein the chemically enhanced charge terminal comprises a dielectric container structure filled with an insulator substance which is configured to generate a free charge that is made available to couple energy into the guided surface waveguide mode.