Micro energy harvesting via piezoelectric and electromagnetic dynamics for higher power output

• Main Authors: Mohd Tahir, Mohamad Safiddin, Wahid, Azni Nabela, Mohamad Hanif, Noor Hazrin Hany, Janin, Zuriati
• Format: Proceeding Paper
• Language: English; English
• Published: IEEE 2023
• Subjects: TK Electrical engineering. Electronics Nuclear engineering
• Online Access: http://irep.iium.edu.my/110315/7/110315_Micro%20energy%20harvesting%20via%20piezoelectric.pdf; http://irep.iium.edu.my/110315/13/110315_Micro%20energy%20harvesting%20via%20piezoelectric_SCOPUS.pdf; http://irep.iium.edu.my/110315/; https://ieeexplore.ieee.org/document/10373504; https://doi.org/10.1109/ICSIMA59853.2023.10373504
• Institution: Universiti Islam Antarabangsa Malaysia

Micro enery harvesting is a promising technology for powering small-scale electronic devices using ambient sources which are normally vibrating at low frequencies. Limitations arise when relying solely on a single energy conversion mechanism, such as the exclusive use of piezoelectric beams. Piezoelectric beams excel at high-frequency energy conversion, leaving low-frequency vibrations untapped. To address this issue, a hybrid energy harvester integrating both piezoelectric beams and magnetic coils emerges as a solution to complement the capability of a piezoelectric harvester. In this work, a copper wound coil is added to an energy harvester assembly that consist of a piezoelectric beam, an eccentric mass and NdFeB permanent magnets that act as proof mass. Each time the eccentric mass passes the beam, the magnets at a fixed distance, repel each other. This simultaneously change magnetic flux around the wound copper coil to generate a larger amount of current. This proposed hybrid configuration produced the highest energy output as compared to the piezoelectric only or electromagnetic only energy harvester, when subjected to a 5 Hz vibration input. This research demonstrated the ability of the hybrid energy harvester to produce electrical power at a low frequency input, which provides optimistic possibility to cater for the energy demand for wearable electronic and wireless devices.