A low frequency nonlinear energy harvester with large bandwidth utilizing magnet levitation

The application of vibration based energy harvesting in civil infrastructures usually has to resolve two major problems, namely, the low excitation frequency and large frequency range. To this end, a nonlinear energy harvester utilizing magnet levitation is proposed in this study. The proposed harvester can convert low frequency excitations into high frequency ones in its four doubly clamped piezoelectric beams through multi-impact. A large bandwidth is expected due to the stiffness nonlinearity introduced by using magnet levitation. A theoretical model is first developed for the harvester. Then, sinusoidal vibrations and simulated bridge vibrations are used as the external excitations to verify the performance of the harvester. The simulation results show an improved robustness of the harvester under low frequency vibrations, which indicates the proposed harvester is an ideal device for energy harvesting in civil infrastructures.