Thin-foil self-resonant wireless power coil
AssigneeNeuralink Corp.
InventorsLucia Fauth, Joshua S. Hess
Life of this patent
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Abstract
A coil formed from a flexible polymer substrate that is printed with metal traces is disclosed in which the flexible substrate has notches that align each loop as the substrate is wound into a ring. The notches are precisely spaced so that the diameter of each loop is well controlled. As the substrate is wound, adhesive is applied along its length to fill gaps between each loop's layer. Ideally, the adhesive has a similar dielectric constant as the polymer substrate. The resulting coil has loops of metal traces separated by precise a thickness of dielectric. The precision in spacing between metal layers and dielectric allows the coil to be designed for self-resonance.
Claims22
A thin-foil wireless power coil apparatus comprising:
- a coil wound from a continuous strip of flexible polymer upon which a metal pattern is printed, the continuous strip including alignment notches along a lateral side that are spaced to align when the coil is wound such that each loop of the coil is a predetermined radial distance from each other, the metal pattern having:
- a section of continuous metal foil with a connection point at each end for receipt of power;
- and
- a shield section comprising metal fingers connected with a shield ground electrically isolated from the continuous metal foil section, the shield section enclosing a circumference of the coil;
- and
- an adhesive that fills gaps between each loop.
A method of manufacturing a thin-foil wireless power coil, the method comprising:
- providing a continuous strip of flexible polymer;
- printing a metal pattern upon the flexible polymer, wherein the metal pattern includes:
- a section of continuous metal foil with a connection point at each end for receipt of power;
- and
- a shield section comprising metal fingers connected with a shield ground electrically isolated from the continuous metal foil section;
- cutting notches along a lateral side of the continuous strip;
- applying adhesive to the continuous strip;
- winding the continuous strip into a coil such that each notch is aligned with another of the notches, and the shield section encloses a circumference of the coil;
- and
- allowing the adhesive to cure.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.