多方向压电振动能量收集装置及其优化设计

摘要：为实现对不同方向环境振动能量的收集,提出了一种新颖的多方向振动能量收集装置的设计结构,装置的换能部分采用了一种Rainbow型压电结构。为提高多方向振动能量收集装置收集能量的效果,以多方向振动能量收集装置输出的总电能为目标函数,综合考虑金属弹性基片的强度、装置振动的固有频率及装置的尺寸空间要求等多种因素,采用序列二次规划法对能量收集装置的结构参数进行了优化。该多方向振动能量收集装置经过优化后,在Y向激励时,其输出的总电能为37.146μJ,比优化前提高了30.82%,当沿装置体对角线方向激励时,结构装置输出的总电能为58.715μJ,比优化前提高了29.24%,装置的能量收集效果得到了明显提高。分析结果为多方向振动能量收集装置的设计、制造及应用提供了技术依据。     

Theoretical modeling and equivalent electric circuit of a bimorph piezoelectric micromachined ultrasonic transducer

An electric circuit model for a circular bimorph piezoelectric micromachined ultrasonic transducer (PMUT) was developed for the first time. The model was made up of an electric mesh, which was coupled to a mechanical mesh via a transformer element. The bimorph PMUT consisted of two piezoelectric layers of the same material, having equal thicknesses, and sandwiched between three thin electrodes. The piezoelectric layers, having the same poling axis, were biased with electric potentials of the same magnitude but opposite polarity. The strain mismatches between the two layers created by the converse piezoelectric effect caused the membrane to vibrate and, hence, transmit a pressure wave. Upon receiving the echo of the acoustic wave, the membrane deformation led to the generation of electric charges as a result of the direct piezoelectric phenomenon. The membrane angular velocity and electric current were related to the applied electric field, the impinging acoustic pressure, and the moment at the edge of the membrane using two canonical equations. The transduction coefficients from the electrical to the mechanical domain and vice-versa were shown to be bilateral and the system was shown to be reversible. The circuit parameters of the derived model were extracted, including the transformer ratio, the clamped electric impedance, the spring-softening impedance, and the open-circuit mechanical impedance. The theoretical model was fully examined by generating the electrical input impedance and average plate displacement curves versus frequency under both air and water loading conditions. A PMUT composed of piezoelectric material with a lossy dielectric was also investigated and the maximum possible electroacoustical conversion efficiency was calculated.     

A flex-compressive-mode piezoelectric transducer for mechanical vibration/strain energy harvesting

A piezoelectric transducer for harvesting energy from ambient mechanical vibrations/strains under pressure condition was developed. The proposed transducer was made of two ring-type piezoelectric stacks, one pair of bow-shaped elastic plates, and one shaft that pre-compresses them. This transducer works in flex-compressive (F-C) mode, which is different from a conventional flex-tensional (F-T) one, to transfer a transversely applied force F into an amplified longitudinal force N pressing against the two piezo-stacks via the two bowshaped elastic plates, generating a large electric voltage output via piezoelectric effect. Our experimental results show that without an electric load, an F-C mode piezo-transducer could generate a maximum electric voltage output of up to 110 Vpp, and with an electric load of 40 κΩ, it a maximum power output of 14.6 mW under an acceleration excitation of 1 g peak-peak at the resonance frequency of 87 Hz.     

Transmitting electric energy through a closed elastic wall by acoustic waves and piezoelectric transducers

Transmission of electric energy through a closed elastic wall by piezoelectric transducers and acoustic waves is studied based on the linear theory of piezoelectricity and elasticity. A theoretical analysis is performed. For the structure and motion considered, the 3-D equations of linear piezoelectricity reduce to a 1-D mathematical problem. An exact solution is obtained. Transmitted voltage, current, power, efficiency and stress distribution are obtained. Their dependence on various parameters is examined. The model and results of this paper are closer to real situations compared with those in a previous analysis.     

Performance of a piezoelectric harvester in thickness-stretch mode of a plate

We studied mechanical-to-electrical power conversion of a piezoelectric plate driven mechanically into thickness-stretch vibrations. We have derived an analytical solution from the three-dimensional equations of linear piezoelectricity that shows the role of each of the physical parameters in determining the performance of such a piezoelectric device, usually measured by the output power density, the power efficiency, or both. Numerical results are included for illustrating the dependence of the device performance upon these physical parameters.     

A harmonic cancellation technique for an ultrasound transducer excited by a switched-mode power converter

The aim of this study is to evaluate the feasibility of using harmonic cancellation for a therapeutic ultrasound transducer excited by a switched-mode power converter without an additional output filter. A switching waveform without the third harmonic was created by cascading two switched-mode power inverter modules at which their output waveforms were pi/3 phase shifted from each other. A PSPICE simulation model for the power converter output stage was developed. The simulated results were in good agreement with the measurement. The waveform and harmonic contents of the acoustic pressure generated by a 1-MHz, self-focused piezoelectric transducer with and without harmonic cancellation have been evaluated. Measured results indicated that the acoustic third harmonicto- fundamental ratio at the focus was small (-48 dB) with harmonic cancellation, compared to that without harmonic cancellation (-20 dB). The measured acoustic levels of the fifth harmonic for both cases with and without harmonic cancellation also were small (-46 dB) compared to the fundamental. This study shows that it is viable to drive a piezoelectric ultrasound transducer using a switched-mode power converter without the requirement of an additional output filter in many high-intensity focused ultrasound (HIFU) applications.     

Design of ultrasonic array elements for acoustic power considerations

In sound-transmitting applications such as therapeutic ultrasound, the acoustic power at a particular operating frequency is a critical figure of merit for transducer/array design. A design methodology for enhancing the acoustic power radiated from fluid-loaded piezoelectric array elements at a fixed frequency is developed in this paper. A gradient-based optimization algorithm is integrated within the finite element framework to guide the determination of the two design variables, the piezoelectric element thickness and the matching layer thickness, to optimize the acoustic power output. A method for avoiding explicit remeshing in the optimization iteration is presented. Optimized designs are determined numerically, and the effectiveness of the design method is confirmed by experimental measurements. The validated numerical analysis also shows that conventional design strategies using one-dimensional transducer analysis and rule-of-thumb matching layer or protection layer sizing rules may not give the best design for array elements in acoustic power applications     

基于拓扑优化的压电分流阻尼抑振实验研究

将结构拓扑优化引入压电分流振动抑制中,以压电元件的分布面积为设计变量,压电元件产生的电荷最大化为优化目标,对压电元件的拓扑进行了优化以获得最佳抑振效果。针对悬臂梁结构,得到了对不同的结构模态进行抑制时的压电元件最优拓扑构型。建立了带有压电分流阻尼系统的悬臂梁振动控制实验模型,将压电元件拓扑优化后的压电分流阻尼系统应用于悬臂梁多阶弯曲模态的振动响应抑制实验,并对比分析了带最优拓扑和非优拓扑压电元件的悬臂梁压电分流阻尼抑振效果。结果表明,对压电元件进行拓扑优化可以明显提高压电分流阻尼系统的抑振效果。     

An exact analysis of a rectangular plate piezoelectric generator

We study thickness-twist vibration of a finite, piezoelectric plate of polarized ceramics or 6-mm crystals driven by surface mechanical loads. An exact solution from the three-dimensional equations of piezoelectricity is obtained. The plate is properly electroded and connected to a circuit such that an electric output is generated. The structure analyzed represents a piezoelectric generator for converting mechanical energy to electrical energy. Analytical expressions for the output voltage, current, power, efficiency, and power density are given. The basic behaviors of the generator are shown by numerical results.     

Nonintrusive sensing techniques for the discrimination of energizedelectric cables

The implementation of a piezoelectric acoustic sensor for nonintrusive detection of the energization status of 3-φ electric power cables is presented. Simultaneous excitation of a piezoelectric crystal by acoustic vibrations and electric field may occur. The Fourier spectral analysis of the sensor's output signal is used to determine the current loading status of the cable. Test results are included for both shielded and nonshielded 3-φ cables. Also, the possible use of an optical fiber interferometer for acoustic wave detection is discussed     

Efficiency of excitation of piezoceramic transducers at antiresonance frequency

The efficiency of piezoceramic transducers excited at both the resonance and antiresonance frequency was investigated. Losses in piezoceramics are phenomenologically considered to have three coupled mechanisms: dielectric, mechanical, and piezoelectric losses. Expressions for the resonance and antiresonance quality factors, which ultimately determine transducer efficiency, have been received on the basis of complex material constants for both stiffened and unstiffened vibration modes. Comparison of electric and mechanical fields, thermal and electrical losses of power supply, and their distribution in the transducer volume have been made. For a given constant mechanical displacement of the transducer top, the required electric voltage applied to the transducer at the antiresonance frequency is proportional to the resonance quality factor, but the changes in the intrinsic electric and mechanical field characteristics in the common case are not too essential. The requirements on the piezoceramic parameters, types of transducer vibration, and especially on the factor of piezoelectric losses in a range of physically valid values were established to provide maximal quality factors at the antiresonance frequency.     

A spiral-shaped harvester with an improved harvesting element and an adaptive storage circuit

A piezoelectric energy harvester consists of a spiral-shaped piezoelectric bimorph to transfer mechanical energy into electric energy, an electrochemical battery to store the scavenged electric energy, and a rectifier together with a step-down dc-dc converter to connect the two components as an integrated system. A spiral-shaped harvesting structure is studied in this paper because it is very useful in the microminiaturization of advanced sensing technology. The aim of employing a step-down dc-dc converter in the storage circuit is to match the optimal output voltage of the piezoelectric bimorph with the battery voltage for efficient charging. In order to raise the output power density of a harvesting element, moreover, we apply a synchronized switch harvesting on inductor (SSHI) in parallel with the piezoelectric bimorph to artificially extend the closed-circuit interval of the rectifier. Numerical results show that the introduction of a dc-dc converter in the storage circuit or a SSHI in the harvesting structure can raise the charging efficiency several times higher than a harvester without a dc-dc converter or an SSHI.     

Time and frequency domain analysis of piezoelectric energy harvesters by monolithic finite element modeling

The successful design of piezoelectric energy harvesting devices relies upon the identification of optimal geometrical and material configurations to maximize the power output for a specific band of excitation frequencies. Extendable predictive models and associated approximate solution methods are essential for analysis of a wide variety of future advanced energy harvesting devices involving more complex geometries and material distributions. Based on a holistic continuum mechanics modeling approach to the multi‐physics energy harvesting problem, this article proposes a monolithic numerical solution scheme using a mixed‐hybrid 3‐dimensional finite element formulation of the coupled governing equations for analysis in time and frequency domain. The weak form of the electromechanical/circuit system uses velocities and potential rate within the piezoelectric structure, free boundary charge on the electrodes, and potential at the level of the generic electric circuit as global degrees of freedom. The approximation of stress and dielectric displacement follows the work by Pian, Sze, and Pan. Results obtained with the proposed model are compared with analytical results for the reduced‐order model of a cantilevered bimorph harvester with tip mass reported in the literature. The flexibility of the method is demonstrated by studying the influence of partial electrode coverage on the generated power output.     

Electromechanical analysis of piezoelectric bimorph actuator in static state considering the nonlinearity at high electric field

This article contains electromechanical analysis of a piezoelectric bimorph actuator at high electric field by incorporating second-order constitutive equations of piezoelectric material. Tip deflection, block force, block moment, block load, output strain energy, output energy density, input electrical energy, and energy efficiency are analytically derived for the actuator at high electric field. The analysis shows that output energy and energy density increase more rapidly at high electric field, compared to the prediction by the linear model. The analysis shows energy efficiency depends on electric field. Some analytical results are validated with the published experimental results.     

Effect of subgrade on piezoelectric energy harvesting under traffic loads

Piezoelectric energy harvesting in roads generated by traffic loads was theoretically and experimentally investigated, and an indoor model of a layered road for piezoelectric transformation was developed using the traffic load model groove. Elastic double-layer beams resting on the subgrade soil were used to consider piezoelectric energy harvesting under traffic loads. Based on the vibration differential equations of elastic double-layer beams, the electromechanical equation was obtained using the Fourier transform. The experimental results of the piezoelectric energy harvesting were close to the theoretical ones, which indicated that the proposed method was useful in predicting piezoelectric energy harvesting from roads under traffic loads. The results also show that the influence of the transducer position on the output voltage and power should be considered, and that the thickness of the concrete panel and the condition of the subgrade soil can affect the output voltage and output power of the piezoelectric transducer. Moreover, the electrical energy was proportional to the vibration frequency and the excitation load.     

Modeling and fabrication of a piezoelectric vibration‐induced micro power generator

Abstract

In this paper, theoretical and experimental study on a piezoelectric vibration‐induced micro power generator that can convert mechanical vibration energy into electrical energy is presented. The mechanical‐electrical energy conversion mechanism is a voltage between two capacitors, which belong to the mechanical and the piezoelectric equivalent circuits, respectively. To verify the theoretical analysis, two clusters of transducer structures are fabricated. Piezoelectric lead zirconate titanate (PZT) material is chosen to make the energy conversion transducer. The desired shape of the piezoelectric generator with its resonance frequency in accordance with the ambient vibration source is designed by finite element analysis (FEA).

Experimental results show that the maximum output voltages are generated at the first mode resonance frequencies of the structure. The overall conversion efficiency is measured to be 33%. The experimental results coincide with the theoretical analysis.     

Cymbal and BB underwater transducers and arrays

The cymbal is a miniaturized class V flextensional transducer that was developed for use as a shallow water sound projector and receiver. Single elements are characterized by high Q, low efficiency, and medium power output capability. Its low cost and thin profile allow the transducer to be assembled into large flexible arrays. Efforts were made to model both single elements and arrays using the ATILA code and the integral equation formulation (EQI). Millimeter size microprobe hydrophones (BBs) have been designed and fabricated from miniature piezoelectric hollow ceramic spheres for underwater applications such as mapping acoustic fields of projectors, and flow noise sensors for complex underwater structures. Green spheres are prepared from soft lead zirconate titanate powders using a coaxial nozzle slurry process. A compact hydrophone with a radially-poled sphere is investigated using inside and outside electrodes. Characterization of these hydrophones is done through measurement of hydrostatic piezoelectric charge coefficients, free field voltage sensitivities and directivity beam patterns. Electronic Publication     

球面聚焦超声换能器的电声特性和测量方法的研究

研究介绍了圆形孔径的球面聚焦压电换能器的基本电声参数：输出声功率、辐射电导、电声效率、自由场发射电流(电压)响应、自由场电压灵敏度、有效面积、有效孔径、声焦距、声束宽度和阻抗(导纳)等电声特性及其测量方法,详细地论述了基于辐射力天平法和自易校准法的测量原理和方法,讨论了它们的内在联系。给出了换能器自易校准中的衍射修正系数和平均反射系数的公式、计算方法和系列数据图表。试验结果表明了测量原理和方法的合理性和可行性。     

Interface acoustic waves properties in some common crystal cuts

Interface acoustic waves (IAWs), also termed boundary waves, propagate at the interface between two solids. We present two IAW numerical analysis tools, inspired from well established surface acoustic wave (SAW) methods. First, the interface effective permittivity is derived for arbitrary piezoelectric solids and is used to estimate some basic parameters of IAWs. The harmonic admittance for an interface excitation is then derived from the interface effective permittivity, in much the same way the harmonic admittance for surface excitation is obtained from the (surface) effective permittivity. The finite electrode thickness is neglected in this problem analysis. The harmonic admittance is used to model propagation in the case when an infinite periodic interdigital transducer is located at the interface. Simulation results are commented upon for some usual piezoelectric material cuts and the paper outlines a modal selection specific to IAWs as compared with SAWs. The temperature dependence of the resonance frequency is also estimated.     

Analysis of a piezoelectric bimorph plate with a central-attached mass as an energy harvester

This article analyzes the performance of a piezoelectric energy harvester in the flexural mode for scavenging ambient vibration energy. The energy harvester consists of a piezoelectric bimorph plate with a central-attached mass. The linear piezoelectricity theory is applied to evaluate the performance dependence upon the physical and geometrical parameters of the model bimorph plate. The analytical solution for the flexural motion of the piezoelectric bimorph plate energy harvester shows that the output power density increases initially, reaches a maximum, then decreases monotonically with the increasing load impedance, which is normalized by a parameter that is a simple combination of the physical and geometrical parameters of the scavenging structure, the bimorph plate, and the frequency of the ambient vibration, underscoring the importance for the load circuit to have the impedance desirable by the scavenging structure. The numerical results illustrate the considerably enhanced performances by adjusting the physical and geometrical parameters of the scavenging structure.