A Nonlinear Hybrid Energy Harvester

Abstract

This manuscript discusses a magnetically coupled nonlinear hybrid piezo-electromagnetic energy harvester under harmonic base motion. Linear energy harvester works optimally when the natural frequency of the harvester meets the resonating frequency, elsewhere harvested power falls drastically. Most of the ambient vibration sources are random in nature. Hence, considering the realistic application, narrowband linear vibration energy harvesters are inefficient. Alternatively, nonlinear energy harvesters are capable of producing the electrical power over a broad frequency range. Hence, to acquire the optimum power in the broader frequency range, a magnetically coupled hybrid piezo-electromagnetic energy harvester is developed. In this current work, a tip loaded unimorph piezo cantilever beam configuration is used to scavenge electrical energy from the strain developed in the piezoelectric patch and spring-magnetic mass attached to another end of the cantilever beam with solenoid arrangements are used to scavenge electrical energy from the relative motion between magnetic mass and solenoid. This hybrid harvester is coupled with magnetic oscillators to introduces nonlinearity in the developed harvester. This paper compares, the energy harvested from the hybrid harvester with that of conventional piezoelectric and electromagnetic harvesters for both linear and nonlinear systems.