Kinetic Energy Harvesting Using Piezoelectric and Electromagnetic Technologies-State of the Art

This paper presents the latest progress in kinetic energy harvesting for wide applications ranging from implanted devices and wearable electronic devices to mobile electronics and self-powered wireless network nodes. The advances in energy harvesters adopting piezoelectric and electromagnetic transduction mechanisms are presented. Piezoelectric generators convert mechanical strain on the active material to electric charge while electromagnetic generators make use of the relative motion between a conductor and a magnetic flux to induce charge in the conductor. The existent kinetic piezoelectric generators including human-powered and vibration-based devices are comprehensively addressed. In addition, the electromagnetic generators which include resonant, rotational, and "hybrid" devices are reviewed. In the conclusion part of this paper, a comparison between the transduction methods and future application trends is given.