• Journal of the Korean Institute of Electrical and Electronic Material Engineers
• /
• v.29 no.2
• /
• pp.84-89
• /
• 2016

We present the results of a study of a piezoelectric generator that generates electricity by the application of tension to an element. A device is named "EYE-type generator". The EYE-type generator consists of a rectangular ceramic and two elastic body plates that are attached to upper and lower surfaces of a ceramic. If tension is applied to both ends of the elastic body, that tension is transformed to pressure on the ceramic through a change in the form of the elastic body, causing a piezoelectric effect whereby electricity is generated by the ceramic. This generator is relatively durable because a forces are not applied directly to the ceramic. We examined dependencies of the generator's output characteristics on the size of the ceramic and elastic body. A resonance and output characteristics were analyzed by using a finite element method. The generator was fabricated based on results of the analysis, and this was attached to a frequency-controllable vibrator to measure the output characteristics. The measured results were compared with results of the simulation, and the results pointed to the practicality of the design.

• The Transactions of The Korean Institute of Electrical Engineers
• /
• v.66 no.7
• /
• pp.1059-1065
• /
• 2017

In this paper, the energy harvester with a piezoelectric materials is modeled as the electric equivalent circuit, and performances of a standard DC method and a Parallel-SSHI method are verified through experiment under variable force and load conditions. Piezoelectric generator consists of mass, damper and spring constant, and it is modeled by electrical equivalent circuit with RLC components. Standard DC and Parallel-SSHI are used as power conversion methods, and standard DC consists of full-bridge rectifier and smoothing capacitor. Parallel-SSHI method is composed of L-C resonant circuit, zero-crossing detector and full-bridge rectifier. In case of simulation under $100k{\Omega}$ load condition, the harvested power is $500{\mu}W$ in Standard DC and $670{\mu}W$ in Parallel-SSHI, respectively. In experiment, the harvested power under $100k{\Omega}$ load condition is $420{\mu}W$ in standard DC and $602{\mu}W$ in Parallel-SSHI. Harvested power of Parallel-SSHI is improved by approximately 40% more than that of standard DC method.

• Proceedings of the Korean Institute of Electrical and Electronic Material Engineers Conference
• /
• 2008.11a
• /
• pp.193-193
• /
• 2008

Wearable and ubiquitous micro systems will be greatly growing and their related devices should be self-powered in order to avoid the replacement of finite power sources, for example, by scavenging energy from the environment. With ever reducing power requirements of both analog and digital circuits, power scavenging approaches are becoming increasingly realistic. One approach is to drive an electromechanical converter from ambient motion or vibration. Vibration-driven generators based on electromagnetic, electrostatic and piezoelectric technologies have been demonstrated. Among various generator types proposed so far, piezoelectric generator possesses considerable potential in micro system. To overcome low mechanical-to-electric energy conversion, the piezoelectric device should activate in resonance mode in response to external vibration. Normally, the external vibration excretes at low frequency ranging 0.1 to 200 Hz, whereas the resonant frequencies of the devices are fixed as constant. Therefore, keeping their resonant mode in varying external vibration can be one of important points in enhancing the conversion efficiency. We investigated the possibility of use of multi-bender type piezoelectric devices. To match the external vibration frequency with the device resonant frequency, the various devices with different resonant frequency were chosen.

• Proceedings of the Korean Institute of Electrical and Electronic Material Engineers Conference
• /
• 2007.11a
• /
• pp.261-261
• /
• 2007

Wearable and ubiquitous micro systems will be greatly growing and their related devices should be self-powered in order to avoid the replacement of finite power sources, for example, by scavenging energy from the environment. With ever reducing power requirements of both analog and digital circuits, power scavenging approaches are becoming increasingly realistic. One approach is to drive an electromechanical converter from ambient motion or vibration. Vibration-driven generators based on electromagnetic, electrostatic and piezoelectric technologies have been demonstrated. Among various generator types proposed so far, piezoelectric generator possesses considerable potential in micro system. To overcome low mechanical-to- electric energy conversion, the piezoelectric device should activate in resonance mode in response to external vibration. Normally, the external vibration excretes at low frequency ranging 0.1 to 200 Hz, whereas the resonant frequencies of the devices are fixed as constant. Therefore, keeping their resonant mode in varying external vibration can be one of important points in enhancing the conversion efficiency. We investigated the possibility of use of multi-bender type piezoelectric devices. To match the external vibration frequency with the device resonant frequency, the various devices with different resonant frequency were chosen. Under an external vibration acceleration of 0.1G at 120 Hz, the device exhibited a peak-to-peak voltage of 2.8 V and a power of 0.5 mw in resonance mode.

• Proceedings of the KSME Conference
• /
• 2007.05a
• /
• pp.741-745
• /
• 2007

Supplying power to microsystems that have no physical connection to the outside is difficult, and using batteries is not always appropriate. This paper discusses how to generate electricity from mechanical energy when vibrated in a cantilever beam. A model for the system predicts that the output power of the system is maximized when the mechanical damping in the system is minimized. Furthermore, to cover a wide frequency range and to be useful in a number of applications, a system of beams with different resonant frequencies has been designed and optimized. This information makes it possible to determine what design alternatives are feasible for the creation of a micro power supply for any specific application of MEMS.

• Journal of Institute of Control, Robotics and Systems
• /
• v.22 no.7
• /
• pp.513-518
• /
• 2016

The piezoelectric actuating device is known for its large power density and simple structure. It can generate a larger force than a conventional actuator and has also wide bandwidth with fast response in a compact size. To control the piezoelectric actuator, we need an analog signal conditioning circuit as well as digital microcontrollers. Conventional microcontrollers are not equipped with an analog part and need digital-to-analog converters, which makes the system bulky compared with the small size of piezoelectric devices. To overcome these weaknesses, we are developing a single-chip controller that can handle analog and digital signals simultaneously using mixed-signal FPGA technology. This gives more flexibility than traditional fixed-function microcontrollers, and the control speed can be increased greatly due to the parallel processing characteristics of the FPGA. In this paper, we developed a floating-point multiplier, PWM generator, 80-kHz power control loop, and 1-kHz position feedback control loop using a single mixed-signal FPGA. It takes only 50 ns for single floating-point multiplication. The PWM generator gives two outputs to control the charging and discharging of the high-voltage output capacitor. Through experimentation and simulation, it is demonstrated that the designed control loops work properly in a real environment.

• Korean Journal of Materials Research
• /
• v.34 no.4
• /
• pp.215-222
• /
• 2024

Because collagen is inherently piezoelectric, research is being actively conducted to utilize it to harvest energy. In this study, a collagen solution was prepared using edible low-molecular-weight peptide collagen powder, and collagen films were fabricated using a dip coating method. The collagen films prepared by dip coating showed a smooth surface without defects such as pinholes or cracks. Dehydrothermal treatment of the collagen films was performed to induce a stable molecular structure through cross-linking. The collagen film subjected to dehydrothermal treatment at 110 ℃ for 24 h showed a thickness reduction rate of 19 %. Analysis of the collagen films showed that the crystallinity of the collagen film improved by about 7.9 % after dehydrothermal treatment. A collagen film-based piezoelectric nanogenerator showed output characteristics of approximately 13.7 V and 1.4 ㎂ in a pressure test of 120 N. The generator showed a maximum power density of about 2.91 mW/m² and an output voltage of about 8~19 V during various human body movements such as finger tapping. The collagen film-based piezoelectric generator showed improved output performance with improved crystallinity and piezoelectricity after dehydrothermal treatment.

• Journal of the Korean Institute of Electrical and Electronic Material Engineers
• /
• v.24 no.11
• /
• pp.865-869
• /
• 2011

A cantilever-type piezoelectric generator has advantages of simple structure, ease of fabrication and large displacement by transverse vibration of a beam. It is easy to control the natural frequency, and also possible to increase the output power by changing the length, width, and thickness of the generator. In particular, the length increases, the natural frequency sharply decreases, and vice versa. Hence, the natural frequency can widely be controlled by using change in the length of elastic body. In this paper, the generator was designed and fabricated to change natural frequency using the slides of the case. In addition, the generating characteristics were confirmed through finite element analyses and vibration experiment. As a result, the maximum output characteristics could be generated due to resonance phenomenon although any frequency of external force was applied.

• Journal of the Korean Solar Energy Society
• /
• v.39 no.1
• /
• pp.51-58
• /
• 2019

This paper deals with the operation of a hybrid power generation system made with photovoltaic cells and piezoelectric materials. The system can produce power from the wind as well as from the sun subject to their availability. Irrespective of the largeness of their power production, the power developed by both generators (i.e., phtovoltaic cells and piezoelectric cells) were combined and stored before it was applied to a load. Especially, the AC power (current) developed from each piezoelectric generator was converted by a full wave bridge rectifier and then combined prior to its storage in a capacitor. It was observed that the system can produce a maximum output power of 6.49 mW at loading resistance of $100{\Omega}$.

• Journal of the Korean Institute of Electrical and Electronic Material Engineers
• /
• v.31 no.7
• /
• pp.462-468
• /
• 2018

The piezoelectric energy harvesting characteristics of a trapezoidal cantilever generator with lead zirconate titanate (PZT) laminate were investigated with various Ag inner electrodes. The piezoelectric mode of operation was a transverse mode by using a planar electrode pattern. The piezoelectric cantilever generator was fabricated using trapezoidal cofired-PZT/Ag laminates by five specimens of 2, 3, 4, 7, and 13 layers of Ag. As the number of Ag electrodes increased, impedance and output voltage at resonant frequency significantly decreased, and capacitance and output current showed an increasing tendency. A maximum output power density of $7.60mW/cm^3$ was realized for the specimen with seven Ag layers in the optimal condition of acceleration (1.2 g) and resistive load ($600{\Omega}$), which corresponds to a normalized power factor of $5.28mW/g^2{\cdot}cm^3$.