Wireless Electronic Components Research Articles

METHOD OF THE SENSOR SYSTEMS' SYNTHESIS AND DRONES FOR IDENTIFYING THUNDERSTORM ACTIVITY'S AREAS

A feature of the aviation use in various physical and geographical conditions, in the event of emergency situations, in combat operations is the performance of tasks in the conditions of limited existing navigation and meteorological support systems functioning. Ensuring flight safety , monitoring the state and changing meteorological conditions can be implemented through the use of alternative solutions.It is suggested in the work to choose as a direction of research modern technologies that are introduced in various spheres of life, primarily on issues of national security and defense. These areas include the use of unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) to solve various problems, modern infocommunication technologies in which the tasks of wireless data exchange and electronic components with low power supply are considered. The integrated use of such technologies makes it possible to expand the possibilities of monitoring meteorological conditions in mountainous areas, the coastal zone where the capabilities of stationary meteorological support systems are limited. A method for the synthesis of sensor systems and UAVs is presented and that makes it possible to monitor atmospheric parameters and, based on the analysis of the data obtained, to identify zones of thunderstorm activity. The method is based on the use of prognostic models for calculating the indices of the atmospheric convection occurrence. The values of the calculated indices are the basis for the forecast of thunderstorm activity. The conditions for the application of these models is the determination of atmospheric parameters at different heights, the value of which is determined by the level of given isobaric surfaces. Such measurements are proposed to be implemented on the basis of a monitoring sensor network’s creation, the main elements of which are sensor systems, unmanned aerial vehicles and wireless data exchange technologies. The assessment of the possibility of implementing the proposed method was carried out by conducting experimental studies and comparing the results obtained with the data of existing systems for monitoring meteorological conditions. It is confirmed that the results of the study can serve as a basis for creating both local systems for monitoring thunderstorm activity and as part of integrated monitoring systems that ensure the safe and efficient use of airspace by manned and unmanned aerial vehicles.

Stretchable, dynamic covalent polymers for soft, long-lived bioresorbable electronic stimulators designed to facilitate neuromuscular regeneration

Bioresorbable electronic stimulators are of rapidly growing interest as unusual therapeutic platforms, i.e., bioelectronic medicines, for treating disease states, accelerating wound healing processes and eliminating infections. Here, we present advanced materials that support operation in these systems over clinically relevant timeframes, ultimately bioresorbing harmlessly to benign products without residues, to eliminate the need for surgical extraction. Our findings overcome key challenges of bioresorbable electronic devices by realizing lifetimes that match clinical needs. The devices exploit a bioresorbable dynamic covalent polymer that facilitates tight bonding to itself and other surfaces, as a soft, elastic substrate and encapsulation coating for wireless electronic components. We describe the underlying features and chemical design considerations for this polymer, and the biocompatibility of its constituent materials. In devices with optimized, wireless designs, these polymers enable stable, long-lived operation as distal stimulators in a rat model of peripheral nerve injuries, thereby demonstrating the potential of programmable long-term electrical stimulation for maintaining muscle receptivity and enhancing functional recovery.

Aspect Ratio-Dependent Dynamics of Piezoelectric Transducers in Wireless Acoustic Power Transfer.

Acoustic power transfer (APT) for wireless electronic components has received growing attention as a viable approach to deliver power to remotely located small electronic devices. The design of an efficient APT system requires accurate models to describe its individual components as well as the interaction between them. Most of the analytical models available to represent the bulk piezoelectric transducers used in APT are limited to either thin rod or thin plate transducers. However, transducers with moderate aspect ratios are often used, especially at the receiver end. In this work, in addition to reviewing standard theories, models based on the Rayleigh and Bishop rod theories are developed to analyze transducers [transmitter (TX) or receiver (RX)] with various aspect ratios. Results from these models are compared with experimental data and finite-element analysis to determine the range of aspect ratios in which they are valid. In addition, fluid loading effects on the predictions of all models are investigated, and the generated pressure fields by the transducers with different aspect ratios are compared. The resulting models are used to analyze the effect of aspect ratio on the performance of the transducer when operated as a TX or an RX in an APT setting.

A novel low-frequency broadband piezoelectric energy harvester combined with a negative stiffness vibration isolator

The transformation of waste vibration energy into low-power electricity has been intensely researched over the last decade to enable self-sustained wireless electronic components. Many kinds of nonlinear oscillators have been explored by several research groups in an effort to enhance the frequency bandwidth of operation. The negative stiffness vibration isolator, as a kind of passive vibration isolator, has undergone extensive investigation because of its low-frequency isolator characteristics. In this article, a novel broadband piezoelectric vibration energy harvester, which can be used for low-frequency ambient mechanical energy harvesting, is designed, and its dynamic responses are analyzed based on the advantage of the negative stiffness vibration isolator. The multi-scale perturbation method is applied to solve the electromechanical equations of the piezoelectric vibration energy harvester and obtain approximate analytical solutions. Solutions based on the analytical method and numerical simulations reveal the characteristics of significant broadband performance. The effects of the various system parameters on the frequency responses and output voltage of the piezoelectric vibration energy harvester system are investigated in detail, and the vibration isolation ability is verified by experimental measurements. It was concluded that the proposed piezoelectric vibration energy harvester achieved broadband vibration energy harvesting in the low-frequency vibration range.

The state-of-the-art wireless body area sensor networks: A survey

Wireless body area sensor network is a sub-field of wireless sensor network. Wireless body area sensor network has come into existence after the development of wireless sensor network reached some level of maturity. This has become possible due to the tremendous technological advancement leading to easy-to-use wireless wearable technologies and electronic components that are small in size. Indeed, this field has gained significant attention in recent time due to its applications which mostly are toward healthcare sector. Today, tiny-sized sensors could be placed on the human body to record various physiological parameters and these sensors are capable of sending data to other devices so that further necessary actions could be taken. Hence, this can be used for diagnosis of disease and for developing serious health-complication alert systems. Considering this recent hot topic, the intent of this work is to present the state-of-the-art of various aspects of wireless body area sensor network, its communication architectures, wireless body area sensor network applications, programming frameworks, security issues, and energy-efficient routing protocols. We have tried to cover the latest advancements with some discussion on the available radio technologies for this type of network. Future visions and challenges in this area are also discussed.

Internal resonance for nonlinear vibration energy harvesting

The transformation of waste vibration energy into low-power electricity has been heavily researched over the last decade to enable self-sustained wireless electronic components. Monostable and bistable nonlinear oscillators have been explored by several research groups in an effort to enhance the frequency bandwidth of operation. Linear two-degree-of-freedom (2-DOF) configurations as well as the combination of a nonlinear single-DOF harvester with a linear oscillator to constitute a nonlinear 2-DOF harvester have also been explored to develop broadband energy harvesters. In the present work, the concept of nonlinear internal resonance in a continuous frame structure is explored for broadband energy harvesting. The L-shaped beam-mass structure with quadratic nonlinearity was formerly studied in the nonlinear dynamics literature to demonstrate modal energy exchange and the saturation phenomenon when carefully tuned for two-to-one internal resonance. In the current effort, piezoelectric coupling and an electrical load are introduced, and electromechanical equations of the L-shaped energy harvester are employed to explore primary resonance behaviors around the first and the second linear natural frequencies for bandwidth enhancement. Simulations using approximate analytical frequency response equations as well as numerical solutions reveal significant bandwidth enhancement as compared to a typical linear 2-DOF counterpart. Vibration and voltage responses are explored, and the effects of various system parameters on the overall dynamics of the internal resonance-based energy harvesting system are reported.

Contactless ultrasonic energy transfer for wireless systems: acoustic-piezoelectric structure interaction modeling and performance enhancement

There are several applications of wireless electronic components with little or no ambient energy available to harvest, yet wireless battery charging for such systems is still of great interest. Example applications range from biomedical implants to sensors located in hazardous environments. Energy transfer based on the propagation of acoustic waves at ultrasonic frequencies is a recently explored alternative that offers increased transmitter-receiver distance, reduced loss and the elimination of electromagnetic fields. As this research area receives growing attention, there is an increased need for fully coupled model development to quantify the energy transfer characteristics, with a focus on the transmitter, receiver, medium, geometric and material parameters. We present multiphysics modeling and case studies of the contactless ultrasonic energy transfer for wireless electronic components submerged in fluid. The source is a pulsating sphere, and the receiver is a piezoelectric bar operating in the 33-mode of piezoelectricity with a fundamental resonance frequency above the audible frequency range. The goal is to quantify the electrical power delivered to the load (connected to the receiver) in terms of the source strength. Both the analytical and finite element models have been developed for the resulting acoustic-piezoelectric structure interaction problem. Resistive and resistive–inductive electrical loading cases are presented, and optimality conditions are discussed. Broadband power transfer is achieved by optimal resistive-reactive load tuning for performance enhancement and frequency-wise robustness. Significant enhancement of the power output is reported due to the use of a hard piezoelectric receiver (PZT-8) instead of a soft counterpart (PZT-5H) as a result of reduced material damping. The analytical multiphysics modeling approach given in this work can be used to predict and optimize the coupled system dynamics with very good accuracy and dramatically improved computational efficiency compared to the use of commercial finite element packages.

Three-Degree-of-Freedom Hybrid Piezoelectric-Inductive Aeroelastic Energy Harvester Exploiting a Control Surface

Aeroelastic energy harvesting by transforming wind energy into low-power electricity via low-profile and geometrically scalable devices has received growing attention in the literature of energy harvesting for wireless electronic components. The goal is to harvest flow energy available in high-wind areas toward enabling self-powered systems, such as sensor networks employed in structural health and usage monitoring of aircraft and rotorcraft. Other than bluff-body-based energy harvester configurations using vortex-induced vibrations, the use of an aeroelastic typical section with a proper transduction mechanism is a popular and convenient approach to create instabilities and persistent oscillations for flow energy harvesting. In this work, a hybrid three-degree-of-freedom airfoil-based aeroelastic energy harvester that simultaneously uses piezoelectric transduction and electromagnetic induction is analyzed based on fully coupled electroaeroelastic modeling. This particular configuration exploits a control surface for enhanced design flexibility as compared to its well-explored two-degree-of-freedom counterparts. The two transduction mechanisms are added to the plunge degree of freedom in the presence of two separate electrical loads, and dimensionless electroaeroelastic equations are obtained. The effects of aeroelastic parameters and load resistance values on the overall electroaeroelastic behavior (total power generation and linear flutter speed) are discussed in detail.

Electroaeroelastic analysis of airfoil-based wind energy harvesting using piezoelectric transduction and electromagnetic induction

The concept of transforming aeroelastic vibrations into electricity for low-power generation has received growing attention in the last few years. The goal is to convert airflow energy into electricity for powering small electronic components employed in wireless applications. The potential applications for aeroelastic energy harvesting range from aircraft structures to several engineering problems involving wireless electronic components located in high wind areas. The use of a typical airfoil section is a convenient approach to create instabilities and persistent oscillations in aeroelastic energy harvesting. This article analyzes two airfoil-based aeroelastic energy harvesters using (a) piezoelectric transduction and (b) electromagnetic induction. An airfoil with two degrees of freedom is investigated by adding piezoelectric and electromagnetic couplings to the plunge degree of freedom in two separate cases. The governing dimensionless electroaeroelastic equations are given in each case with a resistive load in the electrical domain for predicting the power output at the flutter boundary. The effects of several dimensionless system parameters on the dimensionless electrical power output as well as the dimensionless linear flutter speed are investigated for piezoelectric and electromagnetic energy harvesting from airflow-induced vibrations. The simulations presented in this study can be employed for designing and optimizing airfoil-based wind energy harvesters.

Modeling and Analysis of Piezoelectric Energy Harvesting From Aeroelastic Vibrations Using the Doublet-Lattice Method

Multifunctional structures are pointed out as an important technology for the design of aircraft with volume, mass, and energy source limitations such as unmanned air vehicles (UAVs) and micro air vehicles (MAVs). In addition to its primary function of bearing aerodynamic loads, the wing/spar structure of an UAV or a MAV with embedded piezoceramics can provide an extra electrical energy source based on the concept of vibration energy harvesting to power small and wireless electronic components. Aeroelastic vibrations of a lifting surface can be converted into electricity using piezoelectric transduction. In this paper, frequency-domain piezoaeroelastic modeling and analysis of a cantilevered platelike wing with embedded piezoceramics is presented for energy harvesting. The electromechanical finite-element plate model is based on the thin-plate (Kirchhoff) assumptions while the unsteady aerodynamic model uses the doublet-lattice method. The electromechanical and aerodynamic models are combined to obtain the piezoaeroelastic equations, which are solved using a p-k scheme that accounts for the electromechanical coupling. The evolution of the aerodynamic damping and the frequency of each mode are obtained with changing airflow speed for a given electrical circuit. Expressions for piezoaeroelastically coupled frequency response functions (voltage, current, and electrical power as well the vibratory motion) are also defined by combining flow excitation with harmonic base excitation. Hence, piezoaeroelastic evolution can be investigated in frequency domain for different airflow speeds and electrical boundary conditions.

Augmenting forearm crutches with wireless sensors for lower limb rehabilitation

Forearm crutches are frequently used in the rehabilitation of an injury to the lower limb. The recovery rate is improved if the patient correctly applies a certain fraction of their body weight (specified by a clinician) through the axis of the crutch, referred to as partial weight bearing (PWB). Incorrect weight bearing has been shown to result in an extended recovery period or even cause further damage to the limb. There is currently no minimally invasive tool for long-term monitoring of a patient's PWB in a home environment. This paper describes the research and development of an instrumented forearm crutch that has been developed to wirelessly and autonomously monitor a patient's weight bearing over the full period of their recovery, including its potential use in a home environment. A pair of standard forearm crutches are augmented with low-cost off-the-shelf wireless sensor nodes and electronic components to provide indicative measurements of the applied weight, crutch tilt and hand position on the grip. Data are wirelessly transmitted between crutches and to a remote computer (where they are processed and visualized in LabVIEW), and the patient receives biofeedback by means of an audible signal when they put too much or too little weight through the crutch. The initial results obtained highlight the capability of the instrumented crutch to support physiotherapists and patients in monitoring usage.