本文摘要：Backed by the financier J.P. Morgan, Nikola Tesla, the inventor and rival to Thomas Edison, built in the early 1900s the Wardenclyffe Tower, a 187-foot-high structure on Long Island, which he said could transmit electricity wirelessly. The project failed, and Tesla ended up broke. (In an earlier experiment in Colorado, Tesla had wirelessly lit up 200 lamps over a distance of 25 miles, but pedestrians witnessed sparks jumping between their feet and the ground, and electricity flowed from faucets when turned on. Oops.)尼古拉特斯拉是19世纪末20世纪初与托马斯爱迪生相媲美的发明家。

Backed by the financier J.P. Morgan, Nikola Tesla, the inventor and rival to Thomas Edison, built in the early 1900s the Wardenclyffe Tower, a 187-foot-high structure on Long Island, which he said could transmit electricity wirelessly. The project failed, and Tesla ended up broke. (In an earlier experiment in Colorado, Tesla had wirelessly lit up 200 lamps over a distance of 25 miles, but pedestrians witnessed sparks jumping between their feet and the ground, and electricity flowed from faucets when turned on. Oops.)尼古拉特斯拉是19世纪末20世纪初与托马斯爱迪生相媲美的发明家。1901年，他从亿万富翁J.P.摩根那里取得资助，在纽约长岛修筑了一座高达187英尺的无线电能传输塔——沃登克里弗塔。

惜项目最后告终，特斯拉本人也宣告破产。（特斯拉之前曾在科罗拉多州做到过类似于的实验，顺利地将25英里之外的200盏灯照亮。

不过据现场目击者称之为，他们能深感电流从地面穿越脚底，甚至当地居民在关上水龙头时，都能看见水流在哗哗静电……）Fast-forward over a century, and wireless electricity is finally gaining some traction. More than one hundred companies including startups such as WiTricity and ProxybyPower and giants such as Toyota (TM), Intel (INTC), Samsung, and Foxconn are investing in the technology. The challenge: to take the wires out of the power equation by transmitting electricity through magnetic fields.一个多世纪过去了，无线电能传输技术已获得了一些进展。一百多家公司正在研究这项技术，其中既有WiTricity和ProxybyPower等新创公司，又有丰田（Toyota）、英特尔（Intel）、三星（Samsung）和富士康（Foxconn）等跨国企业。目前的挑战在于：按照功率方程原理，让电能从通过电缆传输变为通过磁场传输。

When in the atmosphere, electricity exists as a magnetic field. The trick is to capture it safely to recharge devices. Todays electric toothbrushes charge wirelessly -- as power is transmitted through a magnetic field from the charger to the brush. You can already buy wireless recharging pads: Place your cellphone on a pad thats plugged into the wall, and it will recharge. These pads, however, have their limitations -- the cellphone has to be in the right position, and it can take a long time. A New Zealand company called PowerbyProxy has demonstrated a system where you can put multiple cellphones on a pad in any position, and it will charge the devices as fast as a traditional charger. Samsung last month invested $4 million in the company.电能在空气中传播时会改变为电磁场。所以我们可以十分安全性地给手机等设备无线充电。

现在广泛用于的无线充电式电动牙刷就是这个原理——电能通过磁场从电源传输给牙刷。市面上还有不少无线充电板，只要接上电源，再行把手机放在上面就能无线充电。

不过这种电池板有不少缺点：手机必需敲得恰到好处，而且电池时间也很长。新西兰一家叫PowerbyProxy的公司发明者了一套新的系统，用户可以同时把多部手机安放电池板上的任何方位，电池速度迅速，时间与传统方式非常。三星公司上个月宣告向PowerbyProxy投资400万美元。The next step: charging without being so tied to a pad. Thats the technology a Watertown, Mass., company named WiTricity is developing. Based on work done at MIT, the technology -- on which the company holds exclusive patents -- uses magnetic resonance to move power through the air -- which means electricity can be moved farther distances without a wire. The way it works: Two devices resonate at the same frequency so that the magnetic waves can travel very precisely from one point to another. Plug a resonator into a wall outlet, and a device installed on a cellphone or an electric car receives the power and starts recharging. WiTricity says its system can move an impressive 3,300 watts -- enough to charge an electric car -- with little efficiency loss. Says Eric Giler, the CEO of WiTricity: We all love electricity and are willing to do almost anything to get it. It will be the last thing to go wireless, but it will go wireless.下一个目标：需要电池板也能无线充电。

坐落于马萨诸塞沃特敦的WiTricity公司在这个领域甚有作为。这家公司利用电磁谐振技术在空气中传输电能，意味著电能未来将会构建远距离无线传输。这项技术的基础是麻省理工学院（MIT）的研究成果，WiTricity持有人独家专利。

它的明确原理如下：如果两个谐振物体具备完全相同的频率，那么电能将十分准确地从一方传输到另一方。只要把谐振器放入插座，在另一边的电动汽车或手机里加装上对应的设备，它们就能接管到电能，开始电池。WiTricity称之为目前已能传输高达3300瓦特电能而损耗大于，这早已充足给一辆电动汽车电池了。

WiTricity首席执行官埃里克吉尔说道：“我们都热衷电能，不愿不惜一切代价取得它。电能或许是我们最后一个期望无线简化的东西，而这个目标终将构建。”Is the process safe? Because electricity moves through the air as magnetic waves that are similar to the earths magnetic waves, it poses no harm to humans, says Giler. The FCC has set limits for magnetic fields, and WiTricity claims its devices fall well below that threshold. The industry, however, will still face a tough time educating and persuading consumers that these devices are safe.这个过程否安全性？吉尔称之为因为电能以电磁波的形式通过空气传输，这和地球的电磁场类似于，所以对人类会造成危害。

美国联邦通讯委员会（FCC）对电磁场技术有不少规定，WiTricity自称为它的设备都合乎FCC的拒绝。不过，整个工业界仍面对极大的挑战，必须在教育和宣传上大大希望，以萌生广大消费者的疑虑。

In recent weeks, Intel and Hon Hai/Foxconn, seeing wireless charging as a possible killer app for electronic devices such as laptops and cellphones, invested in WiTricity. Schlumberger, which is interested in cutting the number of wires in its oil rigs to save maintenance costs, was an early investor, as was Toyota, which is reported to have plans to test a wireless charging station for plug-in cars.英特尔和鸿海/富士康集团将无线充电技术视作笔记本和手机等电子设备的刺客级应用于。它们在几周前投资了WiTricity公司。石油巨头斯伦贝谢（Schlumberger）是WiTricity的早期投资者，它期望新技术能增加自己油田里的电线数量，以节约确保成本。丰田公司也参予了投资，有消息称之为它计划测试一种用作挂电式电动车的无线充电车站。

The technology has applications outside the consumer sphere as well. WiTricity is working with the Pentagon to wirelessly charge those robots that disarm bombs. When soldiers try to plug in the robots for recharging, they sometimes get shot by snipers. Doing it wirelessly would reduce the danger. In the medical world, patients with heart pumps have to have electric wires running out of their bodies, which can cause infections. WiTricity is working with heart pump maker Thoratec to create a wireless solution.无线充电技术不仅在民用领域崭露头角，在其他领域也大放异彩。WiTricity正在和五角大楼合作，研究如何对美国军方的拆弹机器人无线充电。目前这些机器人必须人工替换电池，不少士兵在操作者时会被敌方的狙击手枪杀。无线充电将很大地防止死伤。

在医疗领域，病人们所用于的心脏辅助泵必须外接电源，很更容易引发病毒感染。WiTricity正在与心脏辅助泵制造商Thoratec合作开发无线充电装置。How long before this technology becomes a reality? All these applications are in the testing stage, but Giler says that within the next couple of years many of them will be hitting the market.这项新技术何时才能变成现实？目前所有领域都还在实验阶段，不过吉尔回应，我们未来将会在未来几年相继看见涉及的新产品面世。

Until then, where did I put that cellphone charger again.到那时，我的手机充电器该何去何从呢？。

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