Cota Wireless Power Solution Improves With Long Range Charging Through Closed Doors

Disrupt Battlefield alumnus and wireless power pioneer Ossia has made some new advances with its Cota tech that it showed off to investors recently, including extended range and the ability to transmit without direct line-of-sight, making it much closer to becoming a practical everyday technology suitable for general use. The startup can now charge a smartphone from a distance of 40-feet, through a variety of surfaces including walls and closed doors.

That’s impressive because it means the tech is getting much nearer to where it needs to be to ship as a consumer-focused product. The plan is currently to unveil the next-generation prototype of the tech to the public later this year, which will incorporate these latest advancements to its tech. Ossia is currently working with consumer electronics makers using the Cota tech under license to incorporate receivers in new products, which will work in tandem with Cota transmitters to charge gadgets wirelessly and in the background, using communication similar to that which occurs now between your devices and Wi-Fi routers.

The vision is for a single Cota transmitter to charge or power all the devices in a an average single-family home or small office suite. It works using ultra-low power beacon signals to find and identify power-needing devices, and then transmitting charging signals to said devices using more energy, but still no more than you’d expend making a phone call with a smartphone, for instance. Adding improved capabilities through solid surfaces means Cota is better able to extend its reach to a whole office or home from a single central hub.

Other potential applications, including powering sensors and monitors on factory floors, will also require improved range and reach, so it’s promising to see the company making progress in that direction.