Single-Phase Unity Power-Factor Inductive Power Transfer System

An inductive power transfer (IPT) system driven from a single phase utility is shown to be suitable for low power situations applicable to home and office and other small scale applications. The complete system is low cost yet highly efficient and in a novel development achieves essentially unity power factor at the input by modulation of the power controller in the pick-ups, while still achieving constant output voltage. The complete system is straightforward to use, has simple but effective protection strategies, and is easily adapted to other applications.