Low power-energy storage system for energy harvesting applications

The emergence of low power wireless devices has created a strong need for power supply systems capable of storing energy harvested from the local environment and providing a regulated output to applications. Common problems with harvested energy include the inconsistency of available energy sources and the efficiency of conversion and regulation. Using high efficiency CMOS components for DC-DC conversions, ultra-capacitors for storage, and a novel method of energy management using variable hysteresis, we have developed an energy supply with sufficient capabilities to operate many of the low power wireless products in today´s market. In our paper we present and discuss the overall design of our system while quantifying its operational parameters with data and analysis, finishing with a discussion of the results of extensive testing and validation.