Optimization of an Electromagnetic Energy Harvesting Backpack Under Actual Walking and Running Scenarios

Author(s):  
Christopher Mullen ◽  
Soobum Lee

Energy harvesting technology can provide a renewable, portable power source for soldiers who rely solely on battery power in the field. Electromagnetic energy harvesters scavenge energy from wasted kinematic and vibration energy in human motion. The motion of interest in this paper is vertical hip displacement during human gait that acts as a base excitation. The placement of a permanent magnet based linear generator mounted in a backpack can make use of this excitation that results in relative motion of the magnet to the coil of copper wire, which induces an electric current. This current can be used to charge a battery or capacitor bank installed on the backpack to power portable electronic devices, thereby reducing the need for extra batteries and overall battery weight. The purpose of this research is to use a multi-variable optimization algorithm to identify an optimal coil and magnet layout for power maximization. Results from this study will pave the way for a more efficient energy harvesting backpack while providing better insight into the efficiency of magnet and coil layout for various applications for electromagnetic power generation from vibration.

Energy ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 228 ◽  
pp. 120591
Author(s):  
Ning Zhou ◽  
Zehao Hou ◽  
Ying Zhang ◽  
Junyi Cao ◽  
Chris R. Bowen

Author(s):  
Yan Chen ◽  
Armaghan Salehian

Vibration energy harvesting devices have been widely used to power many electronic self-sustainable devices. Most traditional linear energy harvesters exploit the phenomenon of resonance to produce electric power. Nonlinear energy harvesters however present more interesting alternatives and have demonstrated capabilities to harvest power over a wider range of frequencies due to characteristics such as bifurcation. The aim of this study is to introduce an alternative design to nonlinear electromagnetic energy harvesting devices to improve the power production of the unit. The configuration presented in the current work has more degrees of freedom compared to some previously designed devices, and has demonstrated higher power efficiency over a wider range of frequencies. The power outputs for both previous and current designs are compared and validated against their experimental values. Finally, the validated numerical model is used to find the optimal design to produce the maximum power.


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