A General Parameter Optimization Method for a Capacitive Power Transfer System with an Asymmetrical Structure

Abstract

Capacitive power transfer (CPT) is an attractive wireless power transfer (WPT) technology and it has been widely studied in many applications. Symmetrical structures and high-order compensation networks are always produced as optimization results and common configurations for high-efficiency CPT systems. However, in space-limited scenarios, an asymmetric structure tends to be a better choice. The related large number of high-order asymmetric system parameters is a key problem in parameter design. In this study, a general parameter design method that is based on reactive power optimization is proposed for an electric field resonance-based CPT system with an asymmetric six-plate coupler. The reactive power in the compensation network was analyzed and optimized under the constraint of transferred power. With equal reactive power, the optimization complexity was significantly reduced and the optimized system parameters were provided. To validate the effectiveness of the proposed method, a 1 MHz, 3.2 kW asymmetric CPT protype with 100 mm gap distance was implemented. The results indicate that, with the optimized parameters, high system efficiency can be achieved when the system’s volume is reduced. At the rated power, about 95% DC–DC overall efficiency was achieved through a 6-pF coupling capacitor.