To ensure high quality wireless charging power transmitters, the Wireless Charging Alliance (WPC) has published the Qi 1.3 specification with extended power profiles. The new specification creates a need for high-security chip authentication devices that support a full range of services. In response to this demand, Microchip Technology Inc. (an American Microchip technology company) announced the launch of a new industrial-grade TrustFLEX ECC608 and auto-grade Trust Anchor TA100 for Qi 1.3 power transmitter combined with Microchip security key configuration services. The new solution is an integrated secure storage subsystem, including key configuration for both consumer and automotive systems.

     The current Qi 1.3 specification mandates the addition of a secure storage subsystem with a security key configuration (including X.509 certificates) to cryptographically verify the source and quality of the authenticated power emitter. When the receiver (as in a mobile phone) is placed on the Qi 1.3 power transmitter, it may initially accept 5W charge or no charge at all. Then, after the X.509 based Elliptic Curve Encryption (ECC) certification successfully proves that the charger is an approved "harmless" device, the phone will safely receive a 15W charge, significantly reducing the charging time.

     Microchip is a WPC-certified manufacturing Certificate Authority (CA), which not only provides pre-configured secure storage subsystem solutions to reduce complexity and shorten development time, but also communicates with the WPC root certificate issuing authority on behalf of Microchip's customers to process the entire key ceremony, thus lowering the technical threshold of entry. Microchip provides complete certification reference designs for automotive and consumer applications, including applied single chip microcomputer (MCU), Qi 1.3 software protocol stack, secure storage subsystem supporting cryptographic library, and configuration services, making it a one-stop Qi 1.3 solution provider.

     "Our WPC secure storage subsystem solution demonstrates Microchip's continued commitment to facilitating the deployment of state-of-the-art security architectures in high volumes in embedded systems," said Nuri Dagdeviren, vice president of Microchip Technology's Security Products Business Unit. We are constantly working to lower the barriers to entry for customers in the wireless charging market to adopt this complex but extremely important technology."