Vibration-based Pieoelectric Energy Harvesting

Energy harvesting from ambient wasteful energies for the purpose of running low-powered electronics has emerged during the last decade as an enabling technology for wireless applications. The goal of this technology is to provide remote sources of electric power and/or to recharge storage devices, such as batteries and capacitors. The concept has ecological ramifications in reducing the chemical waste produced by replacing batteries and potential monetary gains by reducing maintenance costs. The potential for enabling wireless monitoring applications, such as structural health monitoring, also brings an element of increasing public safety. With the previously mentioned potential as motivation, the area of energy harvesting has captivated both academics and industrialists. This has resulted in an explosion of academic research and new products. The evolution of low-power-consuming electronics and the need to provide wireless solutions to sensing problems have led to an emergence of research in energy harvesting. One of the most studied areas is the use of the piezoelectric effect to convert ambient vibration into useful electrical energy.