Sony Battery Patent: Phone Could Wirelessly Suck Power From Your Friend's Device

In case your phone runs out of battery and you don’t have a charger on you, you could recharge your device wirelessly from your friend -- at least that’s what Sony is trying to do.

The company recently filed a patent called “Configuration of Data and Power Transfer in Near Field Communications.”

Read: Sony Adds PS4 Games To PlayStation Now Streaming Service

The patent relates to electronic devices, such as tablets and smartphones, and is focused on finding “methods and systems for configuring wireless power and data transmission between one or more consumer electronic devices.”

One of the methods Sony is looking into is wireless charging between the power transfer antenna of one device and the antenna of another gadget. The company wants to be able to wirelessly send encrypted data between two devices though the devices’ antennas and decrypting the data after it has been transferred.

Here are some images the patent includes:

However, you shouldn’t expect to see wireless charging on Sony devices anytime soon, since it’s just a patent and the company is only looking at different methods.

Apple’s iPhone 8 Rumored Feature: Wireless Charging

Meanwhile, rumors have suggested Apple is closer to making wireless charging happen. Some reports have said the upcoming iPhone 8 will feature the technology. Last month, Apple joined the Wireless Power Consortium, which is a group of firms that invest in and help develop Qi inductive wireless charging standard.

Read: Wireless Charging On 'iPhone X' Gains Traction After Apple Joins Wireless Power Consortium

Apple’s move spurred rumors of the company rolling out a new iPhone with wireless charging this year. After Apple joined the consortium, a Reuters report revealed the tech company has five different groups working on wireless charging technology for the iPhone 8.

Apple is expected to release the iPhone 8 and two other models, the iPhone 7S and iPhone 7S Plus, this September.