Design and performance of a cantilever piezoelectric power generation device for real-time road safety warnings

Abstract This paper presents a batch-processable cantilever piezoelectric device suitable for road traffic conditions, and the power it converts can provide a real-time safety warning for automobiles in hazardous areas. Based on road traffic characteristics, environment characteristics and construction convenience, a multilayer vertical butterfly array piezoelectric device with high sensitivity is designed. Furthermore, to verify the reliability of the device for the early warning in the laboratory stage, the power generation rules under different traffic conditions are studied systematically, and the applicable situations in different combinations of automobile types and speeds are clarified. Finally, the effects of instantaneous safety warning are verified, and the installation measure of device is determined. The results indicate that the power effect of the device first increases and then decreases with the increase in the speed (Corresponding to the vibration frequency generated by the axles of automobile). The power effect of a single device is optimal when simulating a light traffic conventional speed of 50–90 km/h (7–11 Hz), the maximum electrical output is 26 V-22.09 mW; while the power under heavy traffic is relatively poor, which is 20.8 V-7.84 mW. Moreover, the flashing effect of warning sign powered by a single device is better under the speeds, and the devices will be installed in front of the hidden section in piece-by-piece. The clean electric energy converted by the piezoelectric device will be helpful for real-time road safety early warning, reduce power loss for long-distance transmission of power grids, and promote the process of intelligent transportation applications.