Hybrid Class-E synchronous rectifier for wireless powering of quadcopters

This paper presents the development of a hybrid Class-E synchronous rectifier for wireless powering of quad-copters through inductive power transfer. A synchronous rectifier relaxes the heatsink requirement for continuous operation as the transistor conduction losses will be lower than the diode conduction losses. This provides an advantage when the weight of the electronics is significant for the application. With minimal control circuitry requirements, the developed rectifier achieves inherent output voltage regulation with output load while soft switching the transistor throughout the entire output load range. The synchronous rectifier design process and the electronics required for synchronous rectification are described. Furthermore, the experimental results of a 11W wireless quadcopter powering system are presented along with the conclusions from this case study.