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Design optimization of piezoelectric energy harvester subject to tip excitation

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Abstract

This research proposes a new design for a cantilever-type piezoelectric energy harvester in which a free tip is excited by any rotary motion of mechanical devices. A coupled field finite element model for the harvester is constructed using ANSYS and verification study is performed. Design optimization on the shape of the harvester is done to maximize output power. The design optimization result shows excellent performance when compared to a simple rectangular cantilever or the well-known tapered cantilever. The design results are prototyped and their improved performances are experimentally attested.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Mechanical Engineering, Korea Advanced Institute of Science and Technology, Daejeon, 305-701, Korea

    Juil Park & Byung Man Kwak

  2. Department of Aerospace and Mechanical Engineering, University of Notre Dame, Notre Dame, 46556, USA

    Soobum Lee

Authors
  1. Juil Park
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  2. Soobum Lee
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  3. Byung Man Kwak
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Corresponding author

Correspondence to Soobum Lee.

Additional information

This paper was recommended for publication in revised form by Associate Editor Jeong Sam Han

Juil Park received his B.S. in Mechanical Engineering from Hanyang University, Korea, in 2006, and M.S. in Mechanical Engineering from Korea Advanced Institute of Science and Technology (KAIST), Korea, in 2008. His interests are strength and fatigue analysis of structure and energy harvester design

Soobum Lee received his Ph.D in Mechanical Engineering from Korea Advanced Institute of Science and Technology (KAIST), Korea, in 2007. Currently he is a research assistant professor at the department of Aerospace and Mechanical Engineering in the University of Notre Dame, USA. His main research interests include energy harvester design, topology optimization, robust design, and reliability based design optimization. His recent research on piezoelectric energy harvesting has been awarded as a 2009 highlight of collections by smart materials and structures (IOP publishing) and acknowledged by several science news websites including PhysOrg.com and EETweb.com.

Byung Man Kwak received his B.S. in Mechanical Engineering from Seoul National University in 1967, and Ph.D in 1974 from the University of Iowa. Professor Kwak is currently Samsung Chair Professor in the Department of Mechanical Engineering of KAIST and Director of KAIST Mobile Harbor Project. His areas of interest are optimal design and applications. He is former President of the Korean Society of Mechanical Engineers, a fellow of the American Society of Mechanical Engineers, member of the Korean Academy of Science and Technology and the National Academy of Engineering of Korea. He was awarded the Korea Engineering Prize in 2005, a presidential award.

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Park, J., Lee, S. & Kwak, B.M. Design optimization of piezoelectric energy harvester subject to tip excitation. J Mech Sci Technol 26, 137–143 (2012). https://doi.org/10.1007/s12206-011-0910-1

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s12206-011-0910-1

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