US Patent 9247588 System and method for device identification

An inductive power supply system includes a non-contact power supply for energizing a device. The inductive power supply system includes a communication system for enabling communication between a device and the system. The device transmits an identifier to the system. If the device does not have a transmitter, the system attempts to determine the type of device from a characterization of the power consumption by the device. If the device cannot be characterized, the inductive power supply system can be operated manually.