Device for converting mechanical energy into electrical energy

• US 7,245,062 B2
• Filed: 05/07/2003
• Issued: 07/17/2007
• Est. Priority Date: 05/14/2002
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: EnOcean GmbH
• Original Assignee: EnOcean GmbH
• Inventors: Schmidt, Frank
• Primary Examiner(s): Gonzalez; Julio C.
• Application Number:
  US10/514,323
• Publication Number:
  US 20050253486A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,532 Days
• Field of Search: 310/330, 310/331, 310/337, 310/338, 310/308, 310/309, 310/339, 290/1.R
• US Class Current: 310/330
• CPC Class Codes: H10N 30/306 Cantilevers

Abstract

An apparatus for conversion of mechanical energy to electrical energy having a piezo transducer (1), which is formed from two or more layers, and having a mass/spring system (2, 3, 4), which can oscillate, in a holder (5), which is caused (6) to oscillate mechanically when stimulated, which oscillations periodically deform the piezo transducer such that an alternating voltage occurs on the connecting wires (7) of the transducer.

Claims

1. An apparatus for conversion of mechanical energy to electrical energy, the apparatus comprising:

a mass which can oscillate;

a transmission element for transmission of oscillations;

an elastic element;

an electrovolumetric transducer element arranged to be prestressed in compression by the elastic element, and wherein the elastic element is adapted to continuously stress the electrovolumetric transducer element even during oscillation of said mass;

wherein the electrovolumetric transducer element is in engagement with the transmission element such that any oscillation of the mass is transformed at least partially to a change in the volume of the electrovolumetric transducer element, producing an electrical voltage.

2. The apparatus as claimed in claim 1, in which the transmission element is elastic or is a spring element.

3. The apparatus as claimed in claim 2, in which the transmission element is in the form of a lever.

4. The apparatus as claimed in claim 1, in which the mass is at least part of the transmission element.

5. The apparatus as claimed in claim 1, in which the electrovolumetric transducer element is held by a holder.

6. The apparatus as claimed in claim 1, in which the electrovolumetric transducer element is a piezoelectric element or a magnetostrictive element.

7. A method for conversion of mechanical energy to electrical energy, in which the apparatus as claimed in claim 1 is used, wherein any movement of the mass is transmitted via a first transmission element to an electrovolumetric transducer element, which converts the movement to an electrical voltage.

8. The method as claimed in claim 7, in which the movement of the mass is an oscillation which is picked-up by the first transmission element, and this oscillation is transmitted to the electrovolumetric transducer element.

9. The method as claimed in claim 7, in which the movement of the mass is transmitted via the first transmission element to a second transmission element and to the electrovolumetric transducer element, and the first transmission element and the second transmission element together produce an oscillation which is transmitted to the electrovolumetric transducer element.

10. The apparatus as claimed in claim 1, wherein the engagement between said electrovolumetric transducer element and said transmission element is an attachment.

11. The apparatus as claimed in claim 1, wherein the engagement between said electrovolumetric transducer element and said transmission element is a touching engagement.

12. The apparatus as claimed in claim 2, wherein the transmission element is in the form of a bending beam.