AutoCharge: Automatically Charge Smartphones Using a Light Beam

Smartphone charging imposes a big burden to users because they often have to recharge their smartphones every day or even multiple times per day. In this paper we try to answer the following question: can smartphones get automatically charged without requiring explicit effort from users? To this end, we propose a new approach, called AutoCharge, to explore the feasibility of automatic smartphone charging. The AutoCharge approach automatically locates a smartphone on a desk and charges it in a transparent matter from the user. This is achieved by two techniques. First, we leverage solar charging technique but use it in indoor spaces, to remotely charge a smartphone using a light beam without a wire. Second, we employ an image-processingbased technique to detect and track smartphones on a desk for automatic smartphone charging. As a result, AutoCharge is able to largely reduce users’ efforts in smartphone charging and significantly improve the user experience. We have designed and implemented a prototype system of the AutoCharge approach. We report the design details of the light charger and the smartphone detection and tracking system. Experimental results show that our prototype is able to detect the presence of a smartphone within seconds and charge it as fast as existing wired chargers, demonstrating the feasibility of automatic smartphone charging.