Magnetoelastic energy harvester for structural health monitoring applications

Abstract

Research presented in this paper focuses on the experimental and theoretical analysis of a compact, nonlinear, broadband energy harvesting device. Cantilevered structure zigzag beams have been shown to have natural frequencies orders of magnitudes lower than traditional cantilever beam geometries of the same size. Literature has also demonstrated that a cantilever beam harvester design combined with a magnetic field introduces nonlinearities in the response which can increase bandwidth of the device. Current energy harvester designs are relatively large in size, are most efficient at high frequencies, or only useful for narrowband linear operation. The proposed research introduces a zigzag geometry beam used in conjunction with a magnetic field to create a compact device capable of low frequency broadband energy harvesting. Experimental results are shown comparing both the linear and nonlinear energy harvesting capabilities of the zigzag structures. Experimental results are the focus of this paper, however, analytical expressions for the fundamental mode shape, natural frequency, and electromechanical coupling are presented for the linear lumped parameter system. A physics based magnetic force model for the nonlinear system is also proposed.