Compact and High-Efficiency Novel Wireless Power Transfer System for Reconfigurable Seat in Autonomous Vehicle Applications

This article proposes a novel resonator structure for wireless power transfer (WPT) in autonomous vehicle seat applications. The proposed WPT system employs helical coils for both the transmitter and receiver (RX), achieving a high coupling coefficient exceeding 0.5 across a substantial RX movement range. To mitigate the complexity of the system due to RX movement, an M -uniform resonator with unequal turn spacing was developed using a genetic algorithm based on theoretical analysis. While the RX was moving, the proposed M -uniform resonator reduced the receiving-side voltage and current variations to 5.8% and 4.4%, respectively. This represents a significant improvement over the 34.1% and 37.0% observed in conventional coil designs with equal turn spacing. Additionally, the proposed system maintained a total system efficiency above 85% over the entire RX movement range, demonstrating its suitability for dynamic WPT applications without the need for RX position detection systems. In conclusion, the proposed resonator overcomes the tangling and reliability issues of traditional power cables, enabling flexible seat movement in future autonomous vehicles to optimize their interior space.