As wireless charging options rapidly emerge, it is more important than ever for the electronic device industry to get on the same page about wireless power interoperability across rechargeable electronic devices. To this end, Underwriters Laboratories (UL), a safety testing and certification organization, is developing a first-edition standard for induction power transmitters and receivers for use with low-energy products. The UL 2738 is a set of proposed standards that would apply to induction power transmitters. The new requirements will not apply to products powered by the induction transmitters or receivers.

“What we try and do is help the industry find efficient ways to get products to market,” says Asli Solmaz-Kaiser, business development manager of batteries and power supplies at UL. “One of the ways we do this is to publish standards. That way, we don’t have to recreate necessary requirements every time a product goes off the market.”

The proposed UL requirements for induction powered transmitters and receivers for use with low-energy products will apply to:

Induction power transmitters intended to be supplied by a branch circuit of 600 volts or less;

Induction receivers intended for use with specific induction power transmitters; and

Induction receivers intended for use with induction power transmitters conforming to industry accepted interoperability specifications.

Diverse Review

Before becoming certified standards, the proposed requirements must undergo a comprehensive review process by a global standards technical panel. The panel is open to product manufacturers, supply chain personnel, government representatives, consumers and those responsible for enforcing the requirements of codes or standards. UL is currently assembling a wireless technical panel and hopes to schedule its first meeting in the fall.

“Each member of the panel is really expert in his or her own area and will work together with manufacturers to bring safe products to market,” says Kevin L. Ravo, primary engineer at UL. “We set it up that way so there is not one set of interests that will sway the panel in one direction. We want to get a variety of technical experts involved.”

After the panel is assembled and investigates the requirements, the rules are submitted to a technical panel for a formal voting process, in which each member is given the chance to formally veto aspects of the standards. Devising the standards is a delicate process, Ravo says. The panel must ensure that they are all-encompassing, yet not constrictive.

“One challenge we have to be careful of is, it can be easy to set up standards that tend to impact the potential flexibility as far as the design of products,” Ravo notes. “We have to be careful to make standards as technologically independent as possible, focusing on characteristics from a safety perspective.”

International Potential

The standards will apply to wireless charging devices in the United States, but can be adopted by manufacturers across the world as they export products into the states. UL has experience developing international standards, which Solmaz-Kaiser says bodes well for the industry’s acceptance of these standards over the long-term.

“As these standards mature for us, we can help the industry take them into a more international level,” she explains. “We can help manufacturers bring safe products to the international market, as well.”