Pong Research Corporation was a cell phone accessories company that invented the Pong Case, a cell phone case with an embedded antenna that reduces exposure to cell phone radiation.

History

Pong Research was incorporated in 2011 and in 2014 relocated to Leesburg, Virginia to

Encinitas Encinitas (Spanish language, Spanish for "Small Oaks") is a beach city in the North County (San Diego area), North County area of San Diego County, California, United States. Located in Southern California, it is approximately north of San Di ...

, California. The company was financially backed by Catterton Partners, the leading consumer-focused private equity fund with over $4.5 billion under management. In 2014, the company changed its name to Antenna79, Inc. In 2016 Antenna79 merged with Invisible Gadget Guard, Inc. (a cell phone accessories company specializing in screen protection) to become Penumbra Brands, LLC.

Technology

The Pong Case antenna technology was created by PhD scientists educated at Harvard,

MIT The Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) is a private research university in Cambridge, Massachusetts, United States. Established in 1861, MIT has played a significant role in the development of many areas of modern technology and sc ...

UCLA The University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) is a public land-grant research university in Los Angeles, California, United States. Its academic roots were established in 1881 as a normal school then known as the southern branch of the C ...

and the

University of Manchester The University of Manchester is a public university, public research university in Manchester, England. The main campus is south of Manchester city centre, Manchester City Centre on Wilmslow Road, Oxford Road. The University of Manchester is c ...

. Using their knowledge of manipulating

radiofrequency Radio frequency (RF) is the oscillation rate of an alternating electric current or voltage or of a magnetic, electric or electromagnetic field or mechanical system in the frequency range from around to around . This is roughly between the upper ...

(RF) electromagnetic fields, Pong invented a coupling and re-radiating antenna that redistributes cell phone near-field radiation. Pong's first product was for the

iPhone 3G The iPhone 3G is a smartphone developed and marketed by Apple Inc. It is the List of iPhone models, second generation of iPhone, successor to the IPhone (1st generation), original iPhone, and was introduced on June 9, 2008, at the WWDC#2008, W ...

. The cases were made of a hard polycarbonate called Lexan and contain a micro-thin, gold-plated coupled antenna system (CAS) that redirects wireless energy away from the user, thus reducing exposure to mobile device radiation well below the FCC Specific Absorption Rate (SAR) limit—without compromising the device's ability to communicate. The cases use a passive antenna coupling technology works via a micro-thin gold-plated antenna embedded inside the Pong Case that redistributes the RF signal emitted from a mobile device away from the user's head and body without compromising the device's ability to communicate. Pong has 8 patents granted and 20 filings pending. In 2017 the Pong Case was renamed ''alara'', which stands for " as low as reasonably achievable", in reference to the technology significantly reducing RF exposure without compromising the device's ability to communicate.

Lab test results

In October 2009, ''Wired'' magazine tested the product at Cetecom, an FCC-certified lab in Milpitas, California that tests cell phone radiation levels for handset manufacturers. Using a specific anthropomorphic mannequin head filled with a brain-tissue simulating fluid. After a phone call simulation with and without the Pong case, it was found that the specific absorption rate (SAR) was reduced by 64.7% to 0.42 watts per kilogram.

References

{{reflist 2011 establishments in the United States Defunct computer companies based in California Defunct computer hardware companies Defunct computer companies of the United States