According to Chris Surdi, marketing specialist for PowerBeam, a member of the 8th Continent Chamber of Commerce, wireless electricity really is as simple as it sounds.

PowerBeam is revolutionizing power transmission by integrating optical technology to produce safe, reliable and abundant wireless power. Through its patented technology, PowerBeam can “beam” power over great distances to devices of any kind that require electricity to operate. What that means to consumers is: no more high electrical installation costs, no more searching for a nearby outlet (that, in the end, still isn’t close enough!), no more ugly winding and dangling cords, and no more tethering a mobile device to the wall to recharge it (thus making it immobile). Based out of San Jose, Calif., PowerBeam provides a straightforward solution to wireless technology for not only commercial use but for the space industry as well.

PowerBeam’s patented wireless electricity system uses Powmitters™ and Powceivers™ to deliver power without wires. The optical technology turns electricity into optical power. That power is then beamed across open space into a receiver. Similar to a solar cell, the receiver turns the optical power back into electricity. Whatever device is attached to the receiver is powered without any wires.

“No matter what you do, you cannot have an outlet in every square foot within a room. With PowerBeam, you can,” Surdi said. “We have the ability to ‘beam’ power to any device anywhere within line of sight giving you the freedom to live truly wirelessly. Wireless technology is now feasible.”

This is, according to Surdi, the natural evolution and the essence of the wireless trend; the ability to control where, when and how much power is transmitted and to what it is transmitted.

PowerBeam expects to have its technology in the market within 18 months, connecting items such as digital signage displays in retail stores, small TVs, digital photo frames, home theaters and lighting fixtures.

One particular value proposition from the consumer perspective is that PowerBeam’s solution will work continuously all day long without any interruptions due to power loss. The word “recharge,” Surdi commented, will be deleted from everyday vocabulary.

NASA has expressed interest in the PowerBeam concept for both terrestrial and space-based applications. As part of their Centennial Challenges, NASA sponsors The Spaceward Foundation, which manages the Power Beaming (Climber) Competition. The competition is seeking new ways to power the Space Elevator continuously as it ascends into outer space from the surface of the earth. The company has talked extensively with NASA to put its wireless technology on space rovers.

“PowerBeam is commercializing this technology right out of the gate, a technology that would otherwise be the domain of government projects,” Surdi said. “PowerBeam has bundled advancements in wireless technology into a package that is convenient and safe to use in consumer environments and in Space 2.0.”