The holidays are upon us and one of the hottest gifts this season will be wearables. Style and convenience is usually what people look for. But what about the battery? Charging a battery that is smaller than your thumb is totally different than charging a battery for smartphones or tablets. Wearable electronics are usually small in size such as smart watches, sports and fitness trackers and even clothing. Due to their physical constraints, the battery size and capacity is limited, even though longer battery run time becomes more critical for good user experience.
So, are you ready to design your power management solution to achieve the longest battery run time for your wearable devices? Selecting the right battery charger is almost the first thing you need to think about.
There are four main features an ideal charger IC for wearables should have:
Now that you have the ideal charger, let’s discuss the charging process with some exciting new technologies like wireless charging.
The TIDA-00318 is a reference design circuit dedicated to wireless charging for wearables. It has the low power wireless receiver bq51003 and linear charger bq25100 on the same PCB with a total solution size of 5 mm x 15 mm. It is smaller than a fingertip and can be easily placed inside any wearable devices on the market. Paired with TI’s wireless transmitter IC bq500212A, it is a complete charging solution that you can apply to your device.
Is there a wearable device on your wish list this year? Please leave a comment and let me know!
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