Development and Verification of Novel Dual Plunger Hybrid Kinetic Energy Harvester

This paper presents the development and verification of a novel dual plunger hybrid kinetic energy harvester, which combines piezoelectric and electromagnetic conversion principles to effectively generate electricity from ambient mechanical motion and vibrations.This device utilizes two cantilevered steel plungers forming a parallel mechanism which makes non-arc oscillations, therefore maximizing energy harvesting efficiency.A single degree of freedom model is initially proposed for description, which is later extended to incorporate nonlinear effects with magnets.The paper discusses the optimization of resistance parameters, preliminary experimental measurements on the adhesive type and thickness for piezoelectric patches, as well as the measurement of the damping factor.Additionally, the verification and validation of the model through frequency sweeps for different input acceleration levels are detailed, along with the refinement of the model based on manufactured samples.