Electromagnetic energy harvesting from vibrations of multiple frequencies

A novel multi-frequency energy harvester has been designed and fabricated, which consists of three permanent magnets, three sets of two-layer copper coils and a supported beam of acrylic, while these coils are made of thin fire resistant 4 (FR4) substrates using a standard printed circuit board. The energy under the first, second and third resonant modes can be harvested, corresponding to the resonant frequencies of 369 Hz, 938 Hz and 1184 Hz, respectively. The maximum output voltage and power of the first and second vibration modes are 1.38 mV, 0.6 µW and 3.2 mV, 3.2 µW for a 14 µm exciting vibration amplitude and a 0.4 mm gap between the magnet and coils, respectively. The feasibility study results are in good agreement with the theoretical calculations and show promising application potentials.