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Electromagnetic micro energy harvester for human locomotion

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Abstract

This paper reports the design and characterization of a proposed electromagnetic harvester. The harvester is made of permanent magnets and the overall size is of AA battery. Using Faraday’s law of induction, the harvester is capable of producing vibrational energy into electrical energy at low frequencies. The proposed harvester is to be used for bio-medical devices such as pacemakers and hearing aids. Human locomotion is the main source of vibrational energy that will be harnessed. Magnetic harvester can be attached anywhere on the human body in presence of motion such as mounting on the boot when walking. For low frequencies of 0–35 Hz and displacement of 0–7.2 mm, the micro harvester is capable of producing power anywhere from 0 to 38 mW at 0–35 Hz with power density of \(4.44 \times 10^{ - 4} {\text{W}}/{\text{cm}}^{3}\).

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Acknowledgments

The authors would like to acknowledge and thank “Arjae Spectral Enterprises Inc.” and “NSERC—Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council of Canada” for their support in this project. Also the authors would like to thank Prof. Armaghan Salehian in Mechanical Engineering Department at University of Waterloo for providing the testing equipment.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Mechanical and Mechatronics Engineering Department, University of Waterloo, 200 University Ave. West, Waterloo, ON, N2L3G1, Canada

    Pratik Patel & Mir Behrad Khamesee

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  1. Pratik Patel
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  2. Mir Behrad Khamesee
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Correspondence to Mir Behrad Khamesee.

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Patel, P., Khamesee, M.B. Electromagnetic micro energy harvester for human locomotion. Microsyst Technol 19, 1357–1363 (2013). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00542-013-1820-1

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s00542-013-1820-1

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