STUDY OF PASSIVE SELF-TUNING RESONATOR FOR BROADBAND POWER HARVESTING

The concept of passive self-tuning resonator for broadband power harvesting is described. A self- tuning resonant power harvester adapts its internal degrees of freedom to stay in resonance with the drive in a wide range of frequencies. This will enable energy harvesting from a variety of vibration sources that have different and sometimes variable resonant frequency. A mechanical resonator with a mass that is free to move along its length is analyzed, and the potential energy analysis of the system confirms that it adapts its resonant frequency to the drive as the mass moves to find the potential minimum. The parameter requirements for the existence of the self-tuning behavior and the expressions for the tuning range are derived. The experiments designed to demonstrate this effect are described and experimental challenges are discussed.