A hybrid energy harvester inspired by bionic flapping wing structure based on magnetic levitation

Abstract

A hybrid energy harvester based on magnetic levitation is inspired by the structure of the flapping wing, which consists of two parts: one is a flapping wing structure mounted with a piezoelectric sheet, which can achieve piezoelectric energy harvesting; the other is an intermediate muscle unit, which is vertically arranged by three groups of permanent magnets to achieve magnetic levitation electromagnetic energy harvesting. An electromechanical–electromagnetic coupling model of this harvester is established based on electromechanical coupling characteristics. The simulation analysis can evaluate the magnetic field distribution and nonlinear magnetic properties and also analyze its effects on the output performance. Several experiments are designed to verify the effectiveness of the hybrid energy harvesting structure and to check the influence of the number of magnets on the output power. The maximum output power of the proposed structure can generate 13.61 mW at 4.5 Hz excitation.