Novel energy harvester with low friction losses

Currently energy batteries are used for the energy supply of mobile electronic systems and devices. This solution, however, involves expensive maintenance and raises the question regarding final recovery and disposal. One possible alternative to overcome these problems could be to harvest the required energy from the environment. In this paper we focus on harvesting mechanical energy particularly from vibrations of cargo containers. In the literature many miniaturized energy harvesters up to 1 mW output power are discussed. Furthermore, we will report the essential theory as the base for the final design of our energy harvester and a verification of a simulation model (Matlab/Simulink) by real measurement results. The energy harvester presented below gains an electrical power of 15 mW on a power matched ohmic load of 25 Omega. Further characteristics of the harvester are a resonance frequency of 4.5 Hz, a seismic mass of 2.2 kg and an oscillation amplitude of the seismic mass relative to container frame (base) of 6 mm.