Burst-Mode Wireless Power for Military Drones

Burst-Mode Wireless Power for Military Drones addresses one of the most persistent limitations in modern UAV operations: endurance constrained by onboard batteries. Instead of treating energy as carried payload, this paper reframes drone power as an encountered resource, proposing a burst-mode wireless power model where high-power electromagnetic energy is injected into constrained airspace corridors and intermittently absorbed by receiver-conditioned drones during flight. The approach deliberately avoids continuous power delivery, focusing instead on short-duration, high-intensity energy transfer that is operationally viable under military conditions. Using order-of-magnitude analysis and conservative assumptions, the paper demonstrates that kilometer-scale burst wireless power—at transmitter power levels comparable to existing military radars and directed-energy systems—can yield measurable net energy gains per flight segment. By defining a clear validity envelope, failure boundaries, and an escalation path from laboratory to field trials, the work positions burst-mode wireless power as a realistic supplement to onboard energy storage rather than a replacement. The paper is a system-level feasibility framework intended to guide future experimental and defense research.