Mode shape combination in a two-dimensional vibration energy harvester through mass loading structural modification
- Center for Energy Harvesting Materials and Systems (CEHMS), Virginia Tech, Blacksburg, Virginia 24061 (United States)
- Department of Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering, New Mexico State University, Las Cruces, New Mexico 88003 (United States)
Mode shapes in the design of mechanical energy harvesters, as a means of performance increase, have been largely overlooked. Currently, the vast majority of energy harvester designs employ some variation of a single-degree-of-freedom cantilever, and the mode shapes of such beams are well known. This is especially true for the first bending mode, which is almost exclusively the chosen vibration mode for energy harvesting. Two-dimensional beam shapes (those which curve, meander, spiral, etc., in a plane) have recently gained research interest, as they offer freedom to modify the vibration characteristics of the harvester beam for achieving higher power density. In this study, the second bending mode shape of the “Elephant” two-dimensional beam shape is examined, and its interaction with the first bending mode is evaluated. A combinatory mode shape created by using mass loading structural modification to lower the second bending modal frequency was found to interact with the first bending mode. This is possible since the first two bending modes do not share common areas of displacement. The combined mode shape is shown to produce the most power of any of the considered mode shapes.
- OSTI ID:
- 22594484
- Journal Information:
- Applied Physics Letters, Vol. 109, Issue 3; Other Information: (c) 2016 Author(s); Country of input: International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA); ISSN 0003-6951
- Country of Publication:
- United States
- Language:
- English
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