Revolutionizing Wireless Charging: How Pad-to-Pad Link Boosts Reliability

Robots are already reshaping industries and manufacturing and their role is only set to grow. As we enter 2025, more and more industrial, delivery and fulfillment processes are being automated. While improved productivity and process efficiency are key drivers of this trend, labor shortages are also a factor. With a limited supply of qualified workers, automation provides a cost-effective alternative for scaling capacity. Alongside, advances in artificial intelligence, machine learning and computer vision have made automated guided vehicles (AGVs) smarter and more efficient, leading to an increase in their adoption across all sectors. And that means the global AGV market is likely to reach around $15 billion by 2035, up from $4 billion in 2022.

With the rise of automation, ensuring AGVs remain powered in the demanding environments of factories and warehouses has emerged as a critical challenge. Wireless and inductive charging technologies have already begun to reshape how AGVs operate, offering solutions to reduce downtime and enhance efficiency. Delta’s MOOVair Wireless Charging System, bolstered by its innovative Pad-to-Pad Link (PPL) communication technology, is redefining what’s possible.

By enabling industrial vehicles to maintain continuous operation, even in the harshest conditions, Delta is setting a new benchmark for reliability and performance in AGV charging systems. Here Jonas Enderlin, system architect for inductive charging systems at Delta, describes why MOOVair with PPL is a technology set to define the future.

The benefits of wireless charging
Wireless charging eliminates the need for manual human intervention to connect AGVs to chargers or swap battery packs. By removing physical contacts that can wear out or collect dust, oil, or dirt, this technology enhances reliability in industrial settings. It also minimizes maintenance, repairs and downtime, ensuring smoother and more efficient operations.

At up to 95%, the efficiency of wireless charging solutions is on par with wired solutions. But unlike wired, no manual plugging in and out is required — charging simply starts automatically and in the most efficient way. This is particularly beneficial for facilities managing large fleets.

What’s more, wireless charging systems are compact and can be easily integrated into existing environments. A single charging unit can charge multiple vehicles, even if those vehicles operate with different battery voltages.

Next-level wireless charging systems
As wireless charging transforms AGV operations, ensuring seamless communication between the grid side and the vehicle side is critical to maximizing efficiency and reliability.

While technologies such as Bluetooth, Wi-Fi and infrared have traditionally been used to close the control loop in inductive power transfer systems, these face inherent challenges in the complex, high-demand environments where AGVs usually operate.

Wi-Fi, designed for broad coverage and simultaneous device connectivity, is not optimized for wireless charging. In busy environments, overloaded signals can disrupt the charging process, leading to inefficiencies and downtime.

Bluetooth, while suitable for short-range communication, operates in the same 2.4 GHz spectrum as Wi-Fi, making it susceptible to interference. In settings with many connected devices, this can compromise reliability and consistency.

Infrared offers localized communication but requires a clear line of sight, making it vulnerable to the impacts of dust, dirt and direct sunlight commonly found in industrial environments.

How the Pad-Pad-Link (PPL) technology helps wireless charging
Delta Energy Systems in Germany has developed a patented solution, Pad-Pad-Link (PPL) specifically designed to address the challenges of closing control loops in inductive charging systems. Unlike Wi-Fi or Bluetooth, PPL operates outside the crowded 2.4 GHz spectrum, ensuring minimal interference in environments with high device density.

MOOVair with PPL communication leverages a magnetic field communication mechanism in the 13.56 MHz decameter frequency band, similar to the NFC standard used for payments or access devices. With its limited range, this design enhances resilience to interferences and improves the pairing process. Due to magnetic field as physical medium resilience to environmental factors such as dust, dirt, moisture and other physical obstructions is clearly superior to any of conventional solutions..

This allows power transfer and data transmission to occur seamlessly within the shared space between the pads, even in harsh industrial conditions. PPL’s limited spatial range provides superior interference immunity and precise counterpart identification, reducing downtime and ensuring continuous, efficient operation in demanding environments.

Being less vulnerable to unauthorized signal interception or hacking, PPL is an ideal choice for environments where secure data transmission is important.

The future of industrial automation
MOOVair with PPL marks a transformative step forward, redefining wireless power transfer as a smart, adaptive system tailored to meet the evolving demands of logistics, manufacturing and automation.

By optimizing operational efficiency across diverse industrial sectors, it addresses key challenges in modern automation. For organizations aiming to future-proof their technological infrastructure, PPL offers more than incremental improvements — it provides a strategic leap toward intelligent, resilient systems.

PPL has the potential to transform power management, communication and operational strategy, paving the way for a new era of industrial innovation.

Autor Jonas Enderlin, R&D Manager IEV, IMBU – Delta Energy Systems (Germany) GmbH