Dynamic Wireless Charging Systems: Technological and Managerial Challenges and Opportunities

Dear Colleagues,

Electric mobility systems—including electric vehicles (EVs), unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs or drones), and mobile robotic platforms—together with their associated charging infrastructures are undergoing rapid evolution. As mobility increasingly extends across ground, aerial, and autonomous robotic domains, dynamic wireless charging (DWC) has emerged as one of the most advanced and flexible energy replenishment paradigms. DWC enables mobile platforms to replenish energy during operation through dynamic electromagnetic coupling with distributed transmitter infrastructures, such as wireless charging lanes (WCLs) for road vehicles, embedded charging surfaces for mobile robots, and designated wireless charging corridors or pads for low-altitude drones. This “charging-while-operating” capability offers strong potential to alleviate energy constraints inherent in conventional stationary charging, thereby enabling longer mission durations, higher system availability, and more scalable electrified mobility and automation ecosystems.

Despite its conceptual appeal and demonstrated technical feasibility, DWC has so far been deployed primarily in a limited number of pilot-scale projects. Most existing implementations are restricted to dedicated or semi-controlled environments, such as local transit lines, logistics facilities, warehouses, or structured robotic testbeds, rather than open, large-scale, and heterogeneous mobility networks. The slow pace of widespread adoption can be attributed to several factors, including high infrastructure and maintenance costs, stringent safety and electromagnetic compatibility requirements, and the complexity of system design, operation, and management arising from the strong coupling among DWC systems, mobile platform dynamics, traffic or fleet coordination, and human-centric service systems. For example, foreign object detection (FOD) remains a costly yet essential measure for mitigating fire and safety risks in ground-embedded wireless charging infrastructures; frequent misalignment between mobile receivers and distributed transmitter coils—caused by traffic variability, robotic path deviations, or aerial positioning errors—poses significant challenges to maintaining stable and efficient power transfer; and uncertainties in user behavior, fleet scheduling, mission planning, and routing decisions under DWC introduce substantial complexity into proactive infrastructure planning and operational management.

Against this backdrop, this Special Issue aims to provide a forward-looking forum for addressing both technological and managerial challenges associated with the large-scale deployment of DWC systems. Contributions that adopt interdisciplinary perspectives, integrate multiple mobility domains, or combine physical-layer innovations with system-level and policy-oriented analyses are particularly encouraged.

The Special Issue welcomes original research articles and comprehensive review papers. Topics of interest include, but are not limited to, the following:

• Technological innovations for DWC infrastructure in ground, aerial, and robotic applications;
• Vehicle, drone, and mobile robot design considerations for DWC compatibility;
• Dynamic wireless charging for autonomous fleets and robotic systems;
• Integration and management of DWC systems with renewable energy sources and microgrids;
• Safety, reliability, electromagnetic compatibility, and risk management of DWC systems;
• Demand modeling, mission planning, and market analysis for DWC-enabled mobility;
• Cost, regulatory, and policy implications of DWC for vehicles, drones, and robotics;
• Interactions between DWC systems and traffic networks, robotic coordination, and power grids;
• Modeling and simulation of DWC-related multi-domain mobility systems;
• Optimization, coordination, and control of DWC-enabled vehicles, drones, and robotic fleets.

We look forward to receiving your valuable contributions.

Dr. Zhen Tan
Dr. Liang Huang
Dr. Liang Zheng
Guest Editors

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• dynamic wireless charging (DWC)
• electric and autonomous mobility
• fleet operation and control
• infrastructure management
• safety and reliability