Abstract
Internet of Things (IoT) is envisioned to bring the Internet connection to every object/ service/process to seamlessly and efficiently observe, manage, and control pervasive systems. This necessitates the employment of wireless standalone devices in excessive numbers. However, periodic maintenance of thousands, maybe millions of batteries will add massive workload and replenishment costs to the operation. In order to alleviate this problem, we introduce a totally new energy harvesting paradigm based on utilizing ambient electric-field in the vicinity of lighting elements. A low voltage prototype is designed, constituted, and evaluated on a generic $4\times 18\text{W}$ -T8 ceiling-type fluorescent troffer. Empirical results disclose the availability of 1.5 J of energy that can be gathered in 30 min when a copper plate, i.e., the harvester, covered by a reflective dielectric is employed. The design issues to achieve the best performance attainable are addressed in both theoretical and experimental manners. The physical model of the proposed technique and an applicable circuit diagram for its execution are provided. We also point out possible application areas, and protocol stack requirements specific to our proposal to conveniently enable self-configuring IoT services, which are free from battery constraints.
Highlights
Internet of Things (IoT) is a prominent enabling technology that seamlessly interconnects everyday objects to grant a whole new set of benefits including numerous types of services [1]–[3]
Even though the majority of IoT devices have duty cycling, their operation remarkably suffers from limited energy capabilities
Exploiting light, heat, motion, and electromagnetic (EM) radiation comes into prominence to mitigate the ongoing energy constraints of IoT devices
Summary
Internet of Things (IoT) is a prominent enabling technology that seamlessly interconnects everyday objects to grant a whole new set of benefits including numerous types of services [1]–[3]. Preliminary studies of E-field energy harvesting are first performed on power grid assets due to high-voltage resultant E-field in abundance Attractive outcomes of this method in providing advanced monitoring and intelligent control directed research efforts to develop low-voltage models. In this regard, lighting elements, i.e., the integral part of daily human life, come to the forefront due to strong and continuous E-field gradient in the vicinity [6].
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