Modeling and Simulation Analysis of a Two-degree-of-Freedom Nonlinear Piezoelectric Energy Harvester

Abstract

In order to improve energy harvesting efficiency, this paper shows the design of a two-degree-of-freedom (2-DOF) nonlinear piezoelectric energy harvester. The proposed harvest is realized by introducing magnetic attraction to a 2-DOF piezoelectric cantilever beam in order to broaden the energy harvesting bandwidth. Electromechanical equations describing this nonlinear system are presented. The simulation results confirmed the advantage of this new 2-DOF nonlinear harvester. Performance comparison shows that the 2-DOF nonlinear harvester has much higher energy harvesting efficiency than a conventional one-degree-of-freedom (1-DOF) nonlinear one.