The Microsoft Surface lineup has come a very far way, but battery life on these devices is still a problem which persists in the mind of many consumers. Well, as noted by Windows Latest, this looks to be a problem that Microsoft too is aware of. A February 2017 patent now shows the company is thinking of a new ultra-fast charging technology for Surface devices (via Neowin.)
The full details were disclosed by Free Patents Online, where several methods for fast-charging a smart battery are explained. The patent even goes on to mention problems with current wireless charging technologies and dives into the technical details on a new charging mechanism for faster changing. As the abstract highlights:
The methods and devices may include determining, by a battery management controller, a charging configuration for managing one or more battery modules of the smart battery and transmitting a charging configuration signal to one or more battery modules of the smart battery. The methods and devices may include receiving, by at least one of a plurality of charging coils, power from a wireless signal based on the wireless signal coupling energy to at least one of the plurality of charging coils at a frequency as the at least one of the plurality of charging coils and charging at least one battery module .
As always, it is best not to take this patent to heart, as not all patents eventually come to fruition. Additionally, there could be room for the fast-charging tech to spread to other devices too, as Microsoft mentions “computing devices” and smartphones throughout the patent. Time will have to tell, but for now, you can read the patent in full here.
