PowerLines by Linnea Brush

Conferences and Forums

PowerLines by Linnea Brush

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Some of these companies are doing really cool stuff, though. Powercast demonstrated how new devices can be powered without wires or even batteries. Wildcharge showed a flat, thin pad with a conductive surface. When a cell phone or electronic device that is enabled with WildCharge technology is placed on the pad, it will instantaneously receive power from the pad. And Fulton Innovation introduced an inductively coupled power circuit that adapts its operation to match the needs of the devices it supplies.

Okay, so these aren’t 150-inch plasma displays. But power supplies have their own wow factor, and power electronics editors are just the ones to translate their excitement to the reading (or viewing) public. Even if these technologies are too esoteric, the big system guys keep introducing products that have implications for power. General Motors is coming out with the Cadillac Provoq, which will run on lithium-ion batteries and a hydrogen fuel cell. Toshiba exhibited a fuel-cell-powered portable media player. And Panasonic is working with Microsemi on what is claimed to be the first Power-over-Ethernet midspan unit designed with powerline communications capability.

Like Comdex, CES takes a lot of planning, patience and stamina. Good shoes help, too. The effort is worth it, however. Maybe CES’s reputation precedes it – it used to be strictly a consumer products show, with very little in the way of peripheral, component content. When Comdex fell by the wayside (and Interop got too specialized), CES became “the” show to exhibit at. It’s getting a bit too big, but the exhibitors have expanded to the point that it’s now interesting for the power supply industry. Assuming the word gets out.

So, what did I find most interesting? As a Formula 1 fan, I was intrigued by the WiMAX-controlled car race. The BMW Sauber F1 Team worked with Intel to set up a small circuit for WiMAX-based radio control cars in a corner of the facility. Visitors could control these cars remotely from Intel’s booth inside the CES exhibition building, watching video transmitted from the cars on a notebook PC screen, sitting in driver’s seats copying that of an F1 car. The purpose was to highlight WiMAX’s coverage area, which is wider than that of existing wireless LANs.

I doubt there are enough Formula 1 fans to make this a good driver for communications power systems that are used with WiMAX installations. But power will continue to drive almost everything else.

More Information on the Web:

Consumer Electronics Show 2008 Video Coverage

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We would like to hear your comments on the topics discussed in this column. We welcome the opportunity to publish opposing opinions. Please email Jeff Shepard at jshepard@darnell.com.

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