About UsWorld’s First Customizable Wireless Battery Charger Controller
STMicroelectronics Release New Power Transfer Solution for Phones, Wearables and Battery-Powered Devices
The STWBC digital controller for wireless battery charger (WBC) transmitters from STMicroelectronics offers the most flexible and efficient solution for controlling power transfer from a WBC transmitter (TX) to a receiver (RX) in WBC-enabled phones, wearables, and other battery-powered devices that use electromagnetic induction for re-charge. As a member of the Qi Wireless Power Consortium and the PMA (Power Matters Alliance), ST ensures full compatibility with these leading wireless-charging protocols and is one of the first companies that hold certification for the newest Qi 1.1.2 A11 standard.
The STWBC performs all the essential functions for transmitter control: it is able to precisely control the amount of transmitted power to match the requirements of the receiving unit in terms of maximizing the efficiency of the power transfer and minimizing any increase in operating temperature. The digital feedback between TX and RX units also allows the detection of metal objects close to the receiver (foreign object detection FOD) that could result in potential hazards, enabling the STWBC to stop power transmission when such objects are detected.
Key Features of the STWBC include:
- Multiple Qi and PMA standards support
- Qi 1.1.2 A11-certified
- Up to 5W power capability for mobiles, wearables, remote controls
- Native support for half-bridge and full-bridge topologies
- 5V operating voltage
Uniquely, the STWBC comes with firmware options to offer customers the ability to personalize their end product without the need of external microcontrollers:
- A turn-key Qi 1.1.2 A11 certified solution (reference design board STEVAL-ISB027V1), fully interoperable with Qi-enabled mobile phones
- API (application programming interface) access to customize the underlying firmware, for example modifying the behavior of the LEDs or GPIOs in response to the receiver behavior and supporting I²C and UART communication within a network
The device is offered together with a complete ecosystem to support customers in building their applications, including the Qi 1.1.2 A11-certified reference design board (STEVAL-ISB027V1), API libraries and documentation to develop software customizations, as well as a comprehensive graphical user interface to monitor real-time performance and diagnostics.
Technical Specifications of the STWBC Digital Controller for Wireless Battery Charger Transmitter
- Multiple Qi certified and PMA (Power Matters Alliance) standard compatible
- Support for up to 5 W applications
- Mobile
- Wearable, sports gear, medical
- Remote controllers
- Native support to half-bridge and full bridge topologies
- 5 V supply voltage
- 2 firmware options
- Turnkey solution for quick design
- APIs available for application customization
- Peripherals available via Application Programming Interface
- ADC with 10 bit precision and 1 MΩ input impedance
- UART
- I²C master fast/slow speed rate
- GPIOs
- Memory
- Flash and E2PROM with read-while-write and error correction code
- Program memory: 32 KBytes Flash; data retention 15 years at 85 °C after 10 kcycles at 25 °C
- Data memory: 1 KByte true data E²PROM; data retention:15 years at 85 °C after 100 kcycles at 85 °C
- RAM: 6 KBytes
For more information on the STWBC wireless battery charger controller, visit the ST website at STMicroelectronics STWBC product page.
The STMicroelectronics website address is www.st.com
[Reprinted with kind permission from STMicroelectronics - Release Date 2nd March, 2015]
