Will STWBC86 and STWLC38 Work with 3rd Party Qi Chargers/Receivers?

[JAKE2]

Hi everyone,
I'm currently working with a wireless charging system using STWBC86 (transmitter) and STWLC38 (receiver) from STMicroelectronics. Both chips are based on the WPC Qi standard and are designed for wireless power transfer.

I have a few questions regarding compatibility with other Qi-based devices:

1. If I place a different Qi-certified transmitter (e.g., commercial wireless charger) on top of the STWLC38,
   will it charge properly?

2. Conversely, if I put a third-party Qi receiver (e.g., Qi-based earbuds case) on top of the STWBC86 transmitter,
   will it charge successfully?

3. If compatibility issues occur in either case, does that mean that Qi version alignment (e.g., Qi 1.2.4) is not
   sufficient to ensure interoperability? Or are there manufacturer-specific implementations that can affect compatibility?

I'd really appreciate any insights or experience anyone has had with mixed-device Qi systems.
Thanks in advance!

[willzhou · Accepted solution]

Hi Jake
1.Yes, STWLC38 is based on the WPC Qi standard, if you set STWLC38 BPP mode it will work at 5W, for EPP it work at 10W.
2.Yes, STWBC86 is based on the WPC Qi standard, it is only BPP 5W.
3.if other TX/RX is Qi 1.2.4, it do not have issues

[AnkhInnovationsLLC]

Hey @JAKE2 , be warned that ST has pulled all support for those chips. People are saying you need > $1,000,000 in sales volume to even download the software or purchase dev kits. If you're not doing those volumes I would recommend looking at TI and Renas, they both offer paired Qi transmitter / receiver solutions with publicly available dev kits, software and data sheets.

[JAKE2]

Hi Willzhou,

Thanks a lot for your input — really appreciate you sharing your knowledge.

[JAKE2]

Hello AnkhInnovationsLLC,
Thank you for your feedback. I truly appreciate your insight and the time you took to share it.