Sijun Du

An Efficient SSHI Interface With Increased Input Range for Piezoelectric Energy Harvesting Under Variable Conditions

Piezoelectric vibration energy harvesters have been widely researched and are increasingly employed for powering wireless sensor nodes. The synchronized switch harvesting on inductor (SSHI) circuit is one of the most efficient interfaces for piezoelectric vibration energy harvesters. However, the traditional incarnation of this circuit suffers from a significant startup issue that limits operation in low and variable amplitude vibration environments. This paper addresses this start-up issue for the SSHI rectifier by proposing a new architecture with SSHI startup circuitry. The startup circuitry monitors if the SSHI circuit is operating correctly and re-starts the SSHI interface if required. The proposed circuit is comprehensively analyzed and experimentally validated through tests conducted by integrating a commercial piezoelectric vibration energy harvester with the new interface circuit designed in a 0.35-μm HV CMOS process. Compared to conventional SSHI rectifiers, the proposed circuit significantly decreases the required minimum input excitation amplitude before energy can be harvested, making it possible to extract energy over an increased excitation range.

Twenty-Eight Orders of Parametric Resonance in a Microelectromechanical Device for Multi-band Vibration Energy Harvesting

This paper contends to be the first to report the experimental observation of up to 28 orders of parametric resonance, which has thus far only been envisioned in the theoretical realm. While theory has long predicted the onset of n orders of parametric resonance, previously reported experimental observations have been limited up to about the first 5 orders. This is due to the rapid narrowing nature of the frequency bandwidth of the higher instability intervals, making practical accessibility increasingly more difficult. Here, the authors have experimentally confirmed up to 28 orders of parametric resonance in a micromachined membrane resonator when electrically undamped. While the implication of this finding spans across the vibration dynamics and transducer application spectrum, the particular significance of this work is to broaden the accumulative operational frequency bandwidth of vibration energy harvesting for enabling self-powered microsystems. Up to 5 orders were recorded when driven at 1.0 g of acceleration across a matched load of 70 kΩ. With a natural frequency of 980 Hz, the fundamental mode direct resonance had a −3 dB bandwidth of 55 Hz, in contrast to the 314 Hz for the first order parametric resonance; furthermore, the half power bands of all 5 orders accumulated to 478 Hz.

Maximizing Output Power in a Cantilevered Piezoelectric Vibration Energy Harvester by Electrode Design

A resonant vibration energy harvester typically comprises of a clamped anchor and a vibrating shuttle with a proof mass. Piezoelectric materials are embedded in locations of high strain in order to transduce mechanical deformation into electric charge. Conventional design for piezoelectric vibration energy harvesters (PVEH) usually utilizes piezoelectric material and metal electrode layers covering the entire surface area of the cantilever with no consideration provided to examining the trade-off involved with respect to maximizing output power. This paper reports on the theory and experimental verification underpinning optimization of the active electrode area of a cantilevered PVEH in order to maximize output power. The analytical formulation utilizes Euler-Bernoulli beam theory to model the mechanical response of the cantilever. The expression for output power is reduced to a fifth order polynomial expression as a function of the electrode area. The maximum output power corresponds to the case when 44% area of the cantilever is covered by electrode metal. Experimental results are also provided to verify the theory.

Piezoelectric vibration energy harvesting: A connection configuration scheme to increase operational range and output power:

For a conventional monolithic piezoelectric transducer (PT) using a full-bridge rectifier, there is a threshold voltage that the open-circuit voltage measured across the PT must attain prior to any transfer of energy to the storage capacitor at the output of the rectifier. This threshold voltage usually depends on the voltage of the storage capacitor and the forward voltage drop of diodes. This article presents a scheme of splitting the electrode of a monolithic piezoelectric vibration energy harvester into multiple (n) equal regions connected in series in order to provide a wider operating voltage range and higher output power while using a full-bridge rectifier as the interface circuit. The performance of different series stage numbers has been theoretically studied and experimentally validated. The number of series stages ( n ≥ 1 ) can be predefined for a particular implementation, which depends on the specified operating conditions, to achieve optimal performance. This enables the system to attain comparable performance compared to active interface circuits under an increased input range while no additional active circuits are required and the system is comparatively less affected by synchronized switching damping effect.

A vibration powered wireless mote on the Forth Road Bridge

The conventional resonant-approaches to scavenge kinetic energy are typically confined to narrow and single-band frequencies. The vibration energy harvester device reported here combines both direct resonance and parametric resonance in order to enhance the power responsiveness towards more efficient harnessing of real-world ambient vibration. A packaged electromagnetic harvester designed to operate in both of these resonant regimes was tested in situ on the Forth Road Bridge. In the field-site, the harvester, with an operational volume of ~126 cm3, was capable of recovering in excess of 1 mW average raw AC power from the traffic-induced vibrations in the lateral bracing structures underneath the bridge deck. The harvester was integrated off-board with a power conditioning circuit and a wireless mote. Duty- cycled wireless transmissions from the vibration-powered mote was successfully sustained by the recovered ambient energy. This limited duration field test provides the initial validation for realising vibration-powered wireless structural health monitoring systems in real world infrastructure, where the vibration profile is both broadband and intermittent.

Cantilevers-on-membrane design for broadband MEMS piezoelectric vibration energy harvesting

Most MEMS piezoelectric vibration energy harvesters involve either cantilever-based topologies, doubly-clamped beams or membrane structures. While these traditional designs offer simplicity, their frequency response for broadband excitation are typically inadequate. This paper presents a new integrated cantilever-on-membrane design that attempts to both optimise the strain distribution on a piezoelectric membrane resonator and improve the power responsiveness of the harvester for broadband excitation. While a classic membrane-based resonator has the potential to theoretically offer wider operational frequency bandwidth than its cantilever counterpart, the addition of a centred proof mass neutralises its otherwise high strain energy regions. The proposed topology addresses this issue by relocating the proof mass onto subsidiary cantilevers and integrates the merits of both the membrane and the cantilever designs. When experimentally subjected to a band-limited white noise excitation, up to approximately two folds of power enhancement was observed for the new membrane harvester compared to a classic plain membrane device.

Experimental Observation of Noise Reduction in Weakly Coupled Nonlinear MEMS Resonators

In this paper, we present the strongly nonlinear behavior of a 2-degree-of-freedom weakly coupled microelectromechanical systems (MEMS) resonator system in a mixed nonlinear regime, using a closed-loop phase feedback oscillator approach. Three out of four nonlinear bifurcation points within a strongly nonlinear coupled resonator system, with both electrical and mechanical nonlinearities, were revealed. Furthermore, we are able to study the amplitude and frequency stabilities of the resulting system when biased at the bifurcation points. Specifically, we discover that, as compared with the linear case, orders of magnitude improvement in amplitude and frequency signal resolution can be observed at the nonlinear bifurcation points, demonstrating that coupled nonlinear MEMS resonators can be useful for enhancing the amplitude and frequency stability for relevant applications. [2017-0092]

An Inductorless Bias-Flip Rectifier for Piezoelectric Energy Harvesting

Piezoelectric vibration energy harvesters have drawn much interest for powering self-sustained electronic devices. Furthermore, the continuous push toward miniaturization and higher levels of integration continues to form key drivers for autonomous sensor systems being developed as parts of the emerging Internet of Things (IoT) paradigm. The synchronized switch harvesting (SSH) on inductor and synchronous electrical charge extraction are two of the most efficient interface circuits for piezoelectric energy harvesters; however, inductors are indispensable components in these interfaces. The required inductor values can be up to 10 mH to achieve high efficiencies, which significantly increase overall system volume, counter to the requirement for miniaturized self-power systems for IoT. An inductorless bias-flip rectifier is proposed in this paper to perform residual charge inversion using capacitors instead of inductors. The voltage flip efficiency goes up to 80% while eight switched capacitors are employed. The proposed SSH on capacitors circuit is designed and fabricated in a 0.35-

Real World Assessment of an Auto-parametric Electromagnetic Vibration Energy Harvester

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Experimental and Theoretical Study of a Piezoelectric Vibration Energy Harvester Under High Temperature

CMOS process. The performance is experimentally measured and it shows a 9.7