Detection of object location and displacement to cause wireless-power transmission adjustments within a transmission field

1. A system for wireless-power transmission, comprising:

a radio-frequency wireless-power transmitter, including one or more antennas, that is in communication with a sensor, wherein the sensor is distinct from the one or more antennas, for acquiring data for motion recognition and tracking of a plurality of objects and a receiving electronic device, distinct from the plurality of objects, within at least a portion of a transmission field of the radio-frequency wireless-power transmitter; and

one or more processors of the radio-frequency wireless-power transmitter configured to:

while transmitting radio-frequency power waves to a location of the receiving electronic device, detect, based at least in part on the data, a current location and a tracked movement of an object of the plurality of objects away from the current location and towards a predicted location at which the object of the plurality of objects would arrive after the tracked movement; and

in accordance with a determination that the predicted location of the object of the plurality of objects after the tracked movement would be within a predetermined distance of the location of the receiving electronic device:

send instructions to cause adjustments to transmission of one or more radio-frequency power-transmission waves by the radio-frequency wireless-power transmitter to the location of the receiving electronic device based on one or more safety techniques to protect the object of the plurality of objects in conjunction with the tracked movement to the predicted location of the object of the plurality of objects away from the current location and towards the predicted location, wherein:

the one or more safety techniques include one or more of:

 determining power density levels in the transmission field and ensuring that living beings of the plurality of objects are not exposed to power density levels exceeding predefined exposure limits and a margin of error, and

 determining a power density level at the predicted location and ensuring that the object of the plurality of objects is not exposed to power density levels exceeding predefined exposure limits and the margin of error; and

the receiving electronic device is configured to use energy from the one or more radio-frequency power-transmission waves to (i) power the receiving electronic device and/or (ii) to charge a power source of the receiving electronic device.

2. The system of claim 1 , wherein the sensor comprises a first sensing element at a first position on the radio-frequency wireless-power transmitter and a second sensing element at a second position on the radio-frequency wireless-power transmitter, and the sensor is a binary sensor that is configured to acquire stereoscopic sensor data.

3. The system of claim 2 , wherein the sensor is a stereoscopic sensor and the first sensing element and the second sensing element are located at respective separated positions on the radio-frequency wireless-power transmitter, and

the one or more processors are also further configured to:

determine, using stereoscopic location information based on the data acquired by the first sensing element and the second sensing element, if a distance between the predicted location of the object of the plurality of objects and the location of the receiving electronic device within the transmission field would be within the predetermined distance; and

in accordance with the determination that the predicted location of the object of the plurality of objects after the tracked movement would be within the predetermined distance of the location of the receiving electronic, send an instruction to cause ceasing of transmission of the one or more radio-frequency power-transmission waves to the location of the receiving electronic device.

4. The system of claim 1 , wherein the sensor is a thermal sensor, the data is thermal imaging information captured by the thermal sensor, and the one or more processors are also configured to:

identify the object of the plurality of objects in the thermal imaging information; and

determine a location of the object of the plurality of objects based on the thermal imaging information.

5. The system of claim 1 , wherein the object of the plurality of objects is a human that is recognized based on data acquired by the sensor.

6. The system of claim 5 , wherein the data is data used for recognition of humans among the plurality of objects, and the data comprises activity recognition data.

7. The system of claim 6 , wherein the data used for recognition of humans among the plurality of objects comprises data indicating a human entering within the transmission field.

8. The system of claim 7 , wherein the one or more processors are also configured to send an interrupt signal to the radio-frequency wireless-power transmitter when an obstruction moving across a field of view of the sensor is detected, the interrupt signal temporarily disabling transmission of the one or more radio-frequency power-transmission waves.

9. The system of claim 6 , wherein the one or more processors are further configured to implement a tracking algorithm to determine a movement of the receiving electronic device within the transmission field.

10. The system of claim 6 , wherein the one or more processors are further configured to monitor and track the plurality of objects within the transmission field in real-time based on additional data acquired by the sensor.

11. A computer-implemented method for wireless-power transmission comprising:

generating, by a sensor of a radio-frequency wireless-power transmitter, the radio-frequency wireless-power transmitter being in communication with the sensor, wherein the sensor is distinct from one or more antennas of the radio-frequency wireless-power transmitter, data for motion recognition and tracking of a plurality of objects and a receiving electronic device, distinct from the plurality of objects, within at least a portion of a transmission field of the radio-frequency wireless-power transmitter;

detecting, while transmitting radio-frequency power waves to a location of the receiving electronic device, by one or more processors of the radio-frequency wireless-power transmitter and based at least in part on the data, a current location and a tracked movement of an object of the plurality of objects away from the current location and towards a predicted location at which the object of the plurality of objects would arrive after the tracked movement; and

in accordance with a determination that the predicted location of the object of the plurality of objects after the tracked movement would be within a predetermined distance of the location of the receiving electronic device:

sending instructions, by the one or more processors, to cause adjustments to transmission of one or more radio-frequency power-transmission waves to the location of the receiving electronic device based on one or more safety techniques to protect the object of the plurality of objects in conjunction with the tracked movement to the predicted location of the object of the plurality of objects away from the current location and towards the predicted location, wherein:

the one or more safety techniques include one or more of:

determining power density levels in the transmission field and ensuring that living beings of the plurality of objects are not exposed to power density levels exceeding predefined exposure limits and a margin of error, and

determining a power density level at the predicted location and ensuring that the object of the plurality of objects is not exposed to power density levels exceeding predefined exposure limits and the margin of error; and

the receiving electronic device is distinct from the object of the plurality of objects and is configured to use energy from the one or more radio-frequency power-transmission waves to (i) power the receiving electronic device and/or (ii) to charge a power source of the receiving electronic device.

12. A non-transitory, computer-readable storage medium including instructions that, when executed by one or more processors of a radio-frequency wireless-power transmitter, cause the radio-frequency wireless-power transmitter to perform operations including:

while transmitting radio-frequency power waves to a location of a receiving electronic device that is within a transmission field of the radio-frequency wireless-power transmitter, detecting, based at least in part on data, a current location and a tracked movement of an object of a plurality of objects away from the current location and towards a predicted location at which the object of the plurality of objects would arrive after the tracked movement, wherein the radio-frequency wireless-power transmission includes one or more antennas and a sensor, distinct from the one or more antennas, that is for acquiring data for motion recognition and tracking of the plurality of objects; and

in accordance with a determination that the predicted location of the object of the plurality of objects after the tracked movement would be within a predetermined distance of the location of the receiving electronic device:

sending instructions to cause adjustments to transmission of one or more radio-frequency power-transmission waves by the radio-frequency wireless-power transmitter to the location of the receiving electronic device based on one or more safety techniques to protect the object of the plurality of objects in conjunction with the tracked movement to the predicted location of the object of the plurality of objects away from the current location and towards the predicted location, wherein:

the one or more safety techniques include one or more of:

determining power density levels in the transmission field and ensuring that living beings of the plurality of objects are not exposed to power density levels exceeding predefined exposure limits and a margin of error, and

determining a power density level at the predicted location and ensuring that the object of the plurality of objects is not exposed to power density levels exceeding predefined exposure limits and the margin of error; and

the receiving electronic device is configured to use energy from the one or more radio-frequency power-transmission waves to (i) power the receiving electronic device and/or (ii) to charge a power source of the receiving electronic device.

13. The non-transitory, computer-readable storage medium of claim 12 , wherein the sensor comprises a first sensing element at a first position on the radio-frequency wireless-power transmitter and a second sensing element at a second position on the radio-frequency wireless-power transmitter, and the sensor is a binary sensor that is configured to acquire stereoscopic sensor data.

14. The non-transitory, computer-readable storage medium of claim 13 , wherein the sensor is a stereoscopic sensor and the first sensing element and the second sensing element are located at respective separated positions on the radio-frequency wireless-power transmitter, and

the instructions, when executed by the one or more processors, further cause the radio-frequency wireless-power transmitter to perform operations including:

determining, using stereoscopic location information based on the data acquired by the first sensing element and the second sensing element, if a distance between the predicted location of the object of the plurality of objects and the location of the receiving electronic device within the transmission field would be within the predetermined distance; and

in accordance with the determination that the predicted location of the object of the plurality of objects after the tracked movement would be within the predetermined distance of the location of the receiving electronic, sending an instruction to cause ceasing of transmission of the one or more radio-frequency power-transmission waves to the location of the receiving electronic device.

15. The non-transitory, computer-readable storage medium of claim 13 , wherein the object of the plurality of objects is a human that is recognized based on data acquired by the sensor.

16. The non-transitory, computer-readable storage medium of claim 15 , wherein the data used for recognition of humans among the plurality of objects comprises activity recognition data.

17. The non-transitory, computer-readable storage medium of claim 16 , wherein the data used for recognition of humans among the plurality of objects comprises data indicating a human entering within the transmission field.

18. The non-transitory, computer-readable storage medium of claim 17 , wherein the instructions, when executed by the one or more processors, also cause sending of an interrupt signal to the radio-frequency wireless-power transmitter when an obstruction moving across a field of view of the sensor is detected, the interrupt signal configured to temporarily disable transmission of the one or more radio-frequency power-transmission waves.