ENERGY HARVESTING DEVICES FOR LOW FREQUENCY APPLICATIONS
First Claim
1. An energy harvesting device, comprising:
- a buckling member having a longitudinal axis and configured to exhibit a snap-through event in response to a force applied axially thereto, where the buckling member is constrained laterally in relation to the longitudinal axis; and
at least one cantilever having one end coupled to the buckling member and a mass disposed at an opposing end thereof, the cantilever extends outwardly from the buckling member and includes a piezoelectric material disposed on a surface thereof.
1 Assignment
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Accused Products
Abstract
An energy harvesting device has been developed for low frequency applications. The energy harvesting device is comprised of a buckling member having a longitudinal axis and configured to exhibit multiple snap-through events in response to a deformation applied axially thereto, where the buckling member is constrained laterally in relation to the longitudinal axis; and at least one cantilever extends outwardly from the buckling member. The cantilever(s) is coated with a piezoelectric material and supports a mass disposed at an opposing end from which it is attached to the buckling member. In this arrangement, the buckling member is able to respond to axial deformations occurring at a frequency less than one Hertz.
7 Citations
21 Claims
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1. An energy harvesting device, comprising:
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a buckling member having a longitudinal axis and configured to exhibit a snap-through event in response to a force applied axially thereto, where the buckling member is constrained laterally in relation to the longitudinal axis; and at least one cantilever having one end coupled to the buckling member and a mass disposed at an opposing end thereof, the cantilever extends outwardly from the buckling member and includes a piezoelectric material disposed on a surface thereof. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9)
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10. An energy harvesting device, comprising:
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a strip defining a longitudinal axis and having two opposing planar surfaces substantially larger than remaining surfaces of the strip; at least one cantilever having one end coupled to the strip and a mass disposed at an opposing end of cantilever, wherein the cantilever extends outwardly from the strip; a piezoelectric material disposed on at least one surface of the cantilever; a first wall disposed adjacent to one of the planar surfaces of the strip and a second wall disposed adjacent to the other of the planar surface of the strip, wherein the strip exhibits a snap-through event in response to a force applied axially thereto and the first and second walls laterally constrain the snap-through event of the strip. - View Dependent Claims (11, 12, 13, 14, 15)
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16. An energy harvesting device, comprising:
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a hollow cylinder configured to exhibit a snap-through event in response to a force applied axially thereto, where the snap-through event is constrained laterally by curvature of the cylinder; at least one cantilever having one end coupled to a curved surface of the cylinder and a mass disposed at an opposing end of cantilever; and a piezoelectric material disposed on a surface of the cantilever. - View Dependent Claims (17, 18, 19, 20, 21)
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Specification