With the most recent wireless power FCC approval, Ossia is calling for “all hands on deck” to make wireless power a reality. This means we are accelerating efforts across all initiatives such as technology advancements, regulatory approvals, and manufacturing and distribution partnerships to bring our working wireless power at a distance technology to life in the real world.
If you’ve been following along on this journey, you are likely just as excited as we are for Cota Real Wireless Power -- that is, power over the air, without wires, charging pads, or the need for line of sight -- to gain significant momentum and begin to hit the market. You may have seen a live demonstration or heard about an FCC certification. But you might not know the whole story.
The Momentum of Cota Real Wireless Power
If you’re new to the idea of Real Wireless Power, or would like to see the weight of the achievement in the last decade all in one place, here’s a brief and abbreviated history of Cota:
- 2008, Cota begins development in stealth mode and will remain hidden until 2013, when it is first demonstrated at TechCrunch. It’s the only demonstrable over-air, at-a-distance wireless power system.
- 2013: Ossia wins the Chevrolet Driving Ingenuity Award.
- 2015: Ossia is awarded our fifth patent for wireless charging technology.
- 2015-2019, Cota wins year-after-year consecutive CES Innovation awards.
- 2016, Ossia receives our ninth U.S. patent for a core technology that defines the state of the art in the remote wireless charging sector.
- 2017: Cota Tile™ is launched, to demonstrate a Cota transmitter in the shape of a ceiling tile.
- 2017: Cota Forever Battery™ is revealed, a AA-battery-shaped wireless power receiver intended to bridge the gap between current battery-operated and future wireless power devices.
- 2017, Cota passed the same safety thresholds for Wi-Fi and Bluetooth operations as the FCC requirements for safety and interference.
- Early 2018: Cota Forever Sleeve™, a smartphone adapter that enables continuous charging over air, even while in use, is introduced with much fanfare and awards. The sleeve is considered a “bridge” for current devices while future devices will have the wireless power receiver built right in.
- 2019: Cota Real Wireless Power wins Edison Gold at the Edison Best New Product Awards™
- 2019: The FCC granted Ossia an equipment authorization for the Cota wireless power system (Cota Transmitter and Receiver) wireless power delivery and data communications under Parts 18 and 15, respectively, of the FCC's rules and certifying the system to be marketed and sold in the U.S.
The Wireless Power Ecosystem Is Healthy and Growing
While Ossia has been developing the wireless power technology, we have also been building the wireless power ecosystem.
In 2017, the first Imagine Conference was held to bring together change-makers and leaders who are working to enable a wirelessly powered world. The third annual conference will be held in October 2019.
Since January of 2018, Ossia has been gathering a strong posse of partners, including Motherson, Displaydata, Xirgo, SES-Imagotag, Molex, BOE, and Spigen. These visionaries, among others who were waiting for the moment of FCC validation, saw the value of Cota early, so they could be at the starting line when the FCC said go. Now, it’s go time.
Wireless Power Behind the Scenes
Although the public might not have seen much action from the wireless power space, together with our partners, we have been busy developing prototypes, running test cases, and learning where we might have the biggest impact with our first FCC certification, which is aimed at commercial use.
Discussions with large retail companies and other manufacturers are ongoing, and we anticipate more strategic partnerships -- and consumer applications -- as we continue to work toward FCC certification of expanded use cases and international approvals.
We can already see the benefits of planning early and partnering early, mostly in that those companies that are participating in the advancement of wireless power now have already established a strong role in shaping how it turns out (and when). We look forward to meeting our next innovative partner companies.
