Applied Energy 255 (2019) 113871

Contents lists available at ScienceDirect

Applied Energy
journal homepage: www.elsevier.com/locate/apenergy

Mechanical modulations for enhancing energy harvesting: Principles, T

methods and applications
⁎
Hong-Xiang Zoua,b, Lin-Chuan Zhaob, Qiu-Hua Gaob, Lei Zuoc, , Feng-Rui Liub, Ting Tanb,
⁎
Ke-Xiang Weia, Wen-Ming Zhangb,
a
Hunan Provincial Key Laboratory of Vehicle Power and Transmission System, Hunan Institution of Engineering, 88 Fuxing East Road, Xiangtan 411104, China
b
State Key Laboratory of Mechanical System and Vibration, School of Mechanical Engineering, Shanghai Jiao Tong University, 800 Dongchuan Road, Shanghai 200240,
China
c
Department of Mechanical Engineering, Virginia Tech, Blacksburg, VA 24061, USA

H I GH L IG H T S

• The concept of mechanical modulation energy harvesting is classified.

• The methods and principles of mechanical modulation energy harvesting are summarized.
• The applications of mechanical modulations to energy harvesting systems are reviewed.
• The prospects of the research on mechanical modulation energy harvesting are presented.

A R T I C LE I N FO A B S T R A C T

Keywords: Mechanical kinetic energy harvesting, which converts the mechanical motions and vibrations that are commonly
Energy harvesting available in the surrounding environment to electrical energy, can realize self-power sensing, control and ac-
Piezoelectric tuation, with the advantages of convenience, energy saving, ecofriendliness and sustainability. It has broad
Electromagnetic application prospects in the fields of aerospace, biomedical engineering, environmental monitoring and military
Mechanical modulation
engineering. The forms of mechanical energy in the ambient are various and may be time-varying, and its direct
Amplification
conversion to electrical energy may result in low output power, low conversion efficiency, and even damage to
the device. In order to improve the performance of energy harvester, the mechanical energy can be mechanically
modulated and then be converted to electrical energy. In this paper, the key roles of mechanical modulations for
energy harvesting are emphasized. The methods and principles of mechanical modulations and their applications
to energy harvesting systems are reviewed and classified into three categories: excitation type conversions,
frequency up-conversions, force/motion amplifications. The prospects of the research on mechanical modulation
based energy harvesting are also presented.

1. Introduction
Microelectronic devices are widely used in industry, military,
aerospace, biomedicine, environmental monitoring, consumer electro-
nics and many others fields [1,2]. At present, these devices are mainly
powered by chemical batteries, which have a limited life time and
hazardous environmental effect [3,4]. With the rapid development of
science and technology, the energy consumption required for micro-
electronic devices has been reduced significantly, which allows various
forms of energy to be harvested from the surrounding environment,
replacing conventional batteries or extending the traditional battery life
to power microelectronic devices [5]. The energy that exists in the
ambient environment includes solar energy, thermal energy, and me-
chanical/kinetic energy [6,7]. Among them, mechanical energy har-
vesting has the advantages of cleanliness, stability, and small size [8].
Mechanical energy is one of the most widely distributed energy sources
in the surrounding environment, almost everywhere [9,10]. Mechanical
energy can be obtained from mechanical equipment [11], automotive
[12], human motion [13] and fluid [14,15]. The conversion of me-
chanical energy into electrical energy is not only sustainable, energy-
saving and environmental friendly, but also enables many self-powered
automation functions, which are convenient and reliable.

⁎
Corresponding authors.
E-mail addresses: leizuo@vt.edu (L. Zuo), wenmingz@sjtu.edu.cn (W.-M. Zhang).

https://doi.org/10.1016/j.apenergy.2019.113871
Received 7 February 2019; Received in revised form 4 September 2019; Accepted 6 September 2019
0306-2619/ © 2019 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.
H.-X. Zou, et al.
There are three main types of electromechanical energy conver-
sions: piezoelectric, electromagnetic and electrostatic [16,17]. Elec-
tromagnetic energy harvesting converts mechanical energy into elec-
trical energy through electromagnetic induction of the coils and
magnets. Electrostatic way converts mechanical energy into electrical
energy through the relative motion of two capacitive plates that have
already been charged [18]. When the external excitation drives the two
capacitive plates to move relatively to each other, the voltage between
the two capacitive plates changes or a charge flows, thereby converting
mechanical energy into electrical energy. Piezoelectric materials can
generate electricity because the central symmetry of the crystal struc-
ture is broken under the action of the external force, forming a piezo-
electric potential. Piezoelectric energy harvesting has a high power
density and is particularly flexible in design. Therefore, piezoelectric
energy harvesting has become one of the main ways to convert me-
chanical energy into electricity [19].
At present, mechanical energy harvesting has attracted widespread
attention in industry and academia, but the low output power, low
efficiency, poor environmental adaptability and low reliability are the
key issues that restrict its practical applications. The forms of me-
chanical energy are in the forms of fluid, vibration, and motion in the
surrounding environment, most of which are not suitable for direct
conversion to electricity because the excitation may be too weak and
the transducer may not work effectively, or the excitation frequency is
far from the resonance of the transducer, or high impact force may
damage the transducer. Therefore, the mechanical energy from the
surrounding environment often needs to be appropriately processed in
the mechanical domain, that is, mechanical modulation, and then be
converted to electrical energy by common electromechanical energy
transducers. Although a lot of methods and techniques have been re-
ported to improve the performance of mechanical energy harvesting
[20,21], there has not been a survey of them from the mechanism of
electromechanical conversion. This paper emphasizes the key role of
mechanical modulations, which serve as a bridge between energy
sources and electromechanical energy transducers for energy har-
vesting. It summarizes the principles of mechanical modulations and
the applications to energy harvesting systems from three categories:
excitation type conversion, frequency up-conversion, and force/motion
amplification. The representative designs of each category are dis-
cussed. Based on the existing research findings and the needs of self-
powered devices in complex environments, the future research on
mechanical modulations for energy harvesting is prospected.
2. Principle of mechanical modulations
Fig. 1 shows the vibration and motion energy sources available in
the surrounding environment for mechanical energy harvesting and
corresponding applications [22–29]. Most of these energy forms are not
suitable for direct electromechanical conversion. Mechanical motion or
vibration generated by human or wind is generally weak and low in
frequency, so the excitation force and frequency may need to be am-
plified through a mechanical mechanism to increase the output power.
Large reciprocating motion, such as vehicle suspension vibration, can
be mechanically converted to other forms of motion for electro-
mechanical conversion, which not only increases energy density, but
also increases design flexibility for energy harvesting integration into
the original system. In order to improve the robustness of the energy
harvesting system, that is, the system is strong enough to withstand
poor working conditions, complex excitation needs to be mechanically
converted to make the excitation force more controllable and reduce
damage to critical components. Mechanical energy in the surrounding
environment can be harvested more easily and more efficiently for
specific electromechanical conversion methods by mechanical conver-
sion, which can be called mechanical modulation, including excitation
type conversion, frequency up-conversion, force/motion amplification,
as shown in Table 1. The excitation type conversion may also amplify
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Applied Energy 255 (2019) 113871
the frequency or the force. Mechanical modulation methods have a
great potential in improving the overall performance of energy har-
vesting devices, thus promoting the effective use of energy harvesters in
applications, such as blue energy [23,28], wireless sensors [26,30],
wearable, biomedical, and portable devices [27,31,32], smart devices
[33,34], smart cities [35], structural condition monitoring [29,36,37]
and so on.
Fig. 2(a) shows a mechanically modulated energy harvesting
system. There are multi-step mechanical-mechanical-electrical energy
conversions, that is, one form of mechanical energy is converted into
another form of mechanical energy and then converted into electrical
energy, as shown in Fig. 2(b). Mechanical modulation makes the energy
harvesting system more efficient for the operating environment and
electromechanical conversion methods so that more mechanical energy
can be harvested and converted into electrical energy. The reliability of
the device can be improved as well. The mechanical modulation can
sometimes be compared to electrical rectification, as shown in Fig. 2(c).
For example, the irregular reciprocating vibration can be mechanically
converted to the unidirectional rotation that producing a more regular
voltage and reducing the energy loss of the circuit processing [38]. The
energy conversion efficiency of the system ηs can be given by
ηs = ηm ηt ηe (1)
where ηm is the mechanical modulation efficiency, ηt is the transducer
conversion efficiency, and ηe is the electrical circuit efficiency. Al-
though there is energy loss during mechanical conversion, mechanical
modulation can make electromechanical conversion and circuit pro-
cessing easier, thereby increasing overall efficiency.
3. Excitation type conversions
Some forms of energy may not be suitable for direct conversion to
electrical energy through general electromechanical conversion
methods, or the energy density may be too low. By converting the ex-
citation into a more suitable type for electromechanical conversion
through mechanical conversion, the energy can be harvested more ea-
sily, and the reliability and service life of the device can be increased.
3.1. Fluid conversion to mechanical motion
In general, fluid energy harvesting requires converting hydro-
dynamics into rotational motion or vibration, and then generating
electricity via electromagnetic induction, piezoelectric, etc. The output
power P of the fluid energy harvesting system is related to the flow
speed U, the mechanical conversion structure, and the electro-
mechanical conversion mechanism.
P ∝ U3ϑ Mechanical ϑElectromechanical (2)
where ϑ Mechanical and ϑElectromechanical are the coupling coefficients asso-
ciated with the mechanical conversion structure and the electro-
mechanical transducer, respectively. Because of the complexity of fluid-
structure coupling, the mechanical conversion structure in fluid energy
harvesting has a key influence [39]. As shown in Fig. 3(a) and (b), there
are two main modes: blade rotation or beam vibration driven by flow
[40]. The blades can be driven by fluid to rotate and then drive the
electromagnetic generator to generate electricity [41]. Zhao et al. [42]
designed a magnetically coupled piezoelectric-electromagnetic hybrid
wind energy harvester. When the wind drives the top blade to rotate,
the rotating magnets rotate accordingly, generating a variable magnetic
force acting on the flextensional transducers and causing a change in
the magnetic flux passing through the coils. The output voltage fre-
quency of the harvester has a good linear relationship with the wind
speed and can be used for self-powered wind speed sensing. Wang et al.
[43] proposed a triboelectric-electromagnetic hybrid nanogenerator for
rotation energy harvesting and self-powered wind speed sensor.
Blades rotation can also drive piezoelectric beam vibration through
H.-X. Zou, et al.
Irregular, unstable, shock, low frequency,
weak ...
Environment: ocean waves, wind [23], etc
Human :walking [24], joint motion, etc
Shock
absorber
Machine: tires, shock absorbers [12], motors, etc
Structures: bridges, roads [25], etc
Fig. 1. Energy sources available in the surrounding environment for mechanical energy harvesting and corresponding applications.
further mechanical conversion [44]. In addition, a number of piezo-
electric energy harvesters have been designed to harvest energy from
flow-induced vibrations such as flutter [45], vortex-induced vibration
[46], galloping [47,48] and wake galloping [49]. A T-shaped piezo-
electric cantilever (100 × 60 × 30 mm3) can flutter at low wind speeds,
and generated a 4 mW peak power at 4 m/s wind speed [45]. A wind
energy harvester with an equilateral triangular prism was designed by
Sirohi et al. [50], which firstly converted the wind into a triangular
prism swing and then converted swing into piezoelectric beam vibra-
tion to generate electricity. A prototype of size approximately
160 × 250 mm was tested in a wind tunnel, and the maximum output
power is 53 mW at a wind speed of 5.2 m/s. Yang et al. [51] studied the
small-scale wind energy harvester with different cross-section tip body
(square, rectangle, triangle, and D) in a wind tunnel. It is recommended
to use a square cross-section for small-scale wind energy harvesting.
Tan et al. [52] provided a theoretical design and optimization proce-
dure for galloping-based piezoelectric energy harvesters. These me-
chanical structures based on aerodynamic phenomena make it easier to
convert fluid energy into electric energy, opening up new opportunities
for self-powered devices that uses ambient wind energy with fluctu-
ating conditions and low speed regimes (Fig. 3(c)) [53]. However, the
design and optimization of mechanical structures need to be considered
for realistic loadings.
3.2. Motion conversion to the controllable force
The beam has a low resonant frequency and it is easily to be excited
Applied Energy 255 (2019) 113871
Mechanical conversion
• Type conversion Blue energy, wireless sensors [26], etc
• Frequency up
• Amplification
Mechanical
modulation
Wearable, biomedical, and portable devices [27]
+
Transducer
Electromechanical conversion Regenerative energy [28], smart absorber, etc
• Electromagnetic
• Piezoelectric
• Electrostatic
• Triboelectric
Self-power sensing, control and actuation
Monitoring [29], smart city, etc
by the vibration source in the ambient environment [54]. Beam bonded
with one piezoelectric layer or two piezoelectric layers is a commonly
used structure in vibration energy harvesting [55,56]. However, the
piezoelectric ceramics are vulnerable to dynamic bending loads and the
range of deformation is limited in bending mode [57]. Therefore, re-
searchers explored the designs of converting beam vibration into force
action on the piezoelectric transducers, and the force is more con-
trollable. The cantilever beam has a larger stress at the fixed end, which
can be used to convert vibration into force. Fig. 4(a) shows a barbell-
shaped piezoelectric energy harvester which converts vibration into
tensile force or compressive force on piezoelectric ceramics [58]. The
open circuit voltage can be expressed as
d33
Vopen = F (w )
Cp (3)
where d33 is piezoelectric coefficient, Cp is capacitor, F(w) is the force
applied to the piezoelectric ceramics in the thickness direction and is a
function of the generalized vibration displacement w. The vibration of
the beam can be converted into the force acting on the flextensional
transducer by magnetic coupling [59], as shown in Fig. 4(b). The vi-
bration is transmitted to the tip displacement, and the distance between
the tip of the beam and the flextensional transducer varies periodically.
The magnetic force on the flextensional transducer can be written ap-
proximately as follows [59]:
Fx = −ax + bx y 2 (4)
where ax and bx are polynomial coefficients and y is tip displacement.
3
H.-X. Zou, et al. Applied Energy 255 (2019) 113871

Table 1
Comparison of mechanical modulation approaches.
Mechanical Conversion Excitation Methods (+) Advantages/(−) Examples
modulation Disadvantages

Excitation type Fluid to motion Wind, water Turbine (Rotation) (+) Increase the utilization rate of
conversion Flow induced energy
vibration (-) Sensitive to the flow direction

Motion to controllable Vibration, rotation Contact (+) Increase the energy density
force and impact Magnetic coupling (+) Increase the reliability of the
device
(−) Reaction force may affect
motion Magnets

Reciprocating motion Large amplitude Rack and pinion (+) Increase the energy density
to rotation/rolling reciprocating motion mechanism (+) Increase the flexibility of Rack
Ball screw and lead design Gear
screw mechanisms (-) Friction, not suitable for weak
Rolling excitation
Rotation/rolling Rotation/rolling Gravity field (+) Increase the energy density
conversion to vibration Contact
Magnetic coupling (+) Increase the flexibility of
design
(−) Vulnerable to the change of Magnets
excitation
Frequency up- Array excitation Low frequency Contact (+) Increase the out power
conversion vibration Magnetic coupling (−) Increase the structural
Rotation complexity
(−) Increase the device size

Magnets
Multi-DOF system Low frequency Contact (+) Increase the energy density
resonance vibration Magnetic coupling (+) Increase the reliability of the
Rotation device
(−) Increase the structural
complexity
(−) Increase the device size
Amplification of Flextensional Force and motion Flextensional (+) Increase the energy density
force/motion amplification structures
(+) Increase the reliability of the
device
(−) Increase the structural
complexity
(−) Increase the device size
(−) Further conversion is needed
to work under weak excitation
Transmission Force and motion Lever mechanism (+) Increase the energy density Gear
mechanism Pinion and rack
amplification mechanism (+) Increase the reliability of the
Ball screw and lead device
screw mechanisms (−) Increase the structural
complexity
(−) Increase the device size
(−) Friction, not suitable for weak
excitation
Amplification of Dynamics motion Motion Dynamic magnifier (+) Increase the out power
force/motion amplification
(+) Increase the operating
Spring
bandwidth
(−) Reasonable parameter design
and precision manufacturing are
needed
(−) Increase the structural
complexity
(−) Increase the device size

The magnetic force is amplified and transmitted to the piezoelectric
layer via the flextensional structure. Finally, the voltage can be gener-
ated due to the piezoelectric effect. This vibration energy harvesting
method has the advantages of flextensional amplification and nonlinear
broadband. The equivalent piezoelectric coefficient can be amplified
tens or hundreds of times under weak vibration, and the harvester has
higher power potential and reliability. Further, an electromechanical
coupling dynamic model for magnetically coupled flextensional vibra-
tion energy harvesting was established and experimentally verified by
Zou et al. [60]. The established model can be easily generalized to

4
H.-X. Zou, et al.
Fig. 2. (a) A mechanically modulated energy harvesting system, (b) Multi-step mechanical-mechanical-electrical energy conversions, (c) An example of mechanical
modulation: motion rectifier for oscillating motion.
different permanent magnet arrangements. The piezoelectric ceramics
are more robust under tensile force or compressive force than dynamic
bending stress. This design not only facilitates the efficient operation of
the energy harvester under low frequency weak excitation, but also
enables the reliable use of the energy harvester when the operating
conditions change.
Rotational motion is easily obtained from the ambient environment
[61]. Converting rotational motion to force on piezoelectric transducers
may increase energy density and reliability. The rotating magnets can
excite the magnetically coupled piezoelectric disks to generate elec-
tricity in 33 mode [62], as shown in Fig. 5(a). Zou et al. [63] proposed a
magnetically coupled flextensional rotation energy harvesting method,
as shown in Fig. 5(b). Because of the rotation, a varying magnetic force
is applied to the flextensional transducer. The force of a rotating magnet
on the excited magnet can be expressed as [63]
Fx
[Rsin2 ϕ − 3(R − R cos ϕ + d ) cos ϕ]
= Mm ⎧ 2 2 2 5/2
⎨
⎩ [(R − R cos ϕ + d ) + R sin ϕ]
5(R − R cos ϕ + d )2 [−Rsin2 ϕ + (R − R cos ϕ + d ) cos ϕ] ⎫
+ system. For example, the reaction force of an energy harvester driven
[(R − R cos ϕ + d )2 + R2sin2 ϕ]7/2 ⎬
⎭ (5)
where Mm is the coefficient associated with the rotating magnet and the
excited magnet, R is the rotation radius, d is the minimum center dis-
tance between the rotating magnet and the excited magnet, φ is the
angular displacement. The magnetic force is amplified and transmitted
to the piezoelectric layer by the flextensional structure. This design has
Fig. 3. Fluid energy harvesting, (a) Rotation mode, (b) Vibration mode, (c) Self-powered devices that uses ambient wind energy with fluctuating conditions and low
speed regimes [53].
5
Applied Energy 255 (2019) 113871
a higher energy density and higher reliability.
In addition, the impact can be converted into a relatively gentle
force through a metal mechanical structure and then act on the elec-
tromechanical transducer to generate electricity, thereby the robustness
of device can be increased in harsh environments. Yan et al. [64] pre-
sented an energy harvester with cap amplifier that can be used safely
under high impact of 20–30 MPa. The irregular large amplitude re-
ciprocating motion can be converted to a certain amplitude magnetic
force through magnets array [65], as shown in Fig. 6. This conversion
will make the excitation on the piezoelectric transducer more con-
trollable.
The conversion of vibration, rotation, and shock into force may
make the excitation more controllable. The maximum force can be
controlled by design parameters and is insensitive to complex and time-
varying conditions. Thus, the energy harvesting device of this design
can be applied to ambient environments, such as self-powered sensors
on the vehicles, self-powered devices in industrial environments, self-
powered bridge health monitoring and so on. However, it is necessary
to consider whether the converted force is large enough to work ef-
fectively and the effect of the reaction force on the motion of the
by a machine should not affect the regular operation of the machine.
3.3. Reciprocating motion conversion to rotation/rolling
Large-amplitude reciprocating motion, such as vehicle suspension
vibration and wave, usually has low frequency and may be irregular.
H.-X. Zou, et al.
Fig. 4. The harvesters that convert vibration into force, (a) A barbell-shaped piezoelectric energy harvester [58], (b) A magnetically coupled flextensional vibration
energy harvester [59].
Large-amplitude reciprocating motion is not suitable for small scale
energy harvesting.
Rack and pinion, ball screw or lead screw mechanisms can be used
to convert reciprocating motion into rotational motion. Bernitsas et al.
[66] used a rack and two different size gears to convert vortex-induced
vibration into rotational motion. The results show that even at low
speeds where watermills and turbines cannot work effectively, the de-
vice can effectively convert mechanical energy into electrical energy. Li
et al. [67] designed a rack-pinion-based regenerative shock absorber
which converted the vibration into rotational motion to generate
electricity. Then, an improved design was proposed to convert irregular
reciprocating vibration into a regular unidirectional rotation that can
directly generate a DC voltage with a mechanical motion rectification
(MMR) function, as shown in Fig. 7(a), which is beneficial to the use of
electrical energy [38]. The prototype was verified by road tests and
15.4 W power was obtained at 15 mph on a smooth paved road. Fur-
ther, the MMR mechanism was used for railway energy harvesting, as
shown in Fig. 7(b), which can be used to support many rail-side elec-
trical devices and as an alternative energy source to improve railway
operation safety [68]. Zhang et al. [28] also designed the rack and
pinion mechanism to convert the reciprocating motion generated by the
vibration of the vehicle suspension into a unidirectional rotational
motion. As shown in Fig. 7(c), the regenerative energy of the shock
absorber can be stored in a supercapacitor and then applied to improve
Fig. 5. The harvesters that convert rotation into force, (a) a piezo-disk energy harvester excited by rotary magnets [62], (b) a magnetically coupled flextensional
rotation energy harvester [63].
6
Applied Energy 255 (2019) 113871
the cruising range of the electric vehicle. In simulation and bench tests,
the efficiency was up to 54.98%, with an average of 44.24%. Liu et al.
[69] proposed a mechanical-motion-rectifier-based energy harvesting
shock absorber using a ball-screw mechanism and two one-way clut-
ches, which can convert reciprocating vibration into unidirectional
rotation of a generator. The ball-screw mechanism further increases
transmission durability and efficiency of the energy harvesting shock
absorber.
The hydraulic rectifier consists of four check valves can be used to
modulate bidirectional oscillation of the shock and the vibration into
unidirectional rotation for energy harvesting. Li et al. [70] presented an
energy-harvesting shock absorber with a hydraulic rectifier to convert
the oscillatory shock to a unidirectional rotation for an electromagnetic
generator. A maximum of 114.1 W average power and a maximum of
38.81% energy harvesting efficiency has been achieved under a har-
monic excitation of 2 Hz frequency and 8 mm amplitude. Guo et al. [71]
presented a hydraulic electromagnetic energy-harvesting shock ab-
sorber and the prototype produced an average power of 220 W under a
harmonic excitation of 3 Hz frequency and 7 mm amplitude.
As shown in Fig. 8, Zou et al. [72] converted the irregular re-
ciprocating motion into rolling to produce a unidirectional stable
rolling force, increasing frequency and amplifying force. The results
show that under the vibration input of different amplitudes and dif-
ferent frequencies, a unidirectional and amplitude-stabilized voltage is
H.-X. Zou, et al. Applied Energy 255 (2019) 113871

Buckled beam PZT Magnet S pole Magnet N pole

j-1 j+1
i-1 i i+1

Reciprocating motion

Fig. 6. Reciprocating motion is converted to magnetic force [65].

generated, which has a mechanical rectification function. Rolling vi-

bration energy harvesting can be easily integrated into the shock ab-
sorber without increasing the length of the shock absorber to realize
self-powered semi-active vibration control.
The irregular, large-amplitude, low-frequency reciprocating motion
can be converted into rotation or rolling by these mechanical me-
chanisms. The converted excitation can be controlled or partially con-
trolled via design, such as the direction of the rotation or the rolling
pressure, the magnitude of the rolling pressure, the frequency of rota-
tion or rolling excitation. Moreover, this conversion makes the design
more flexible. It helps to improve the performance of the energy har-
vester and integrate the energy harvester into other electromechanical
systems. However, these mechanical mechanisms have large friction or
damping forces and are generally not suitable for weak excitation si-
tuations.
Fig. 8. The harvester that converts reciprocating motion into rolling [72].

Fig. 7. The harvesters that convert reciprocating motion into rotation. (a) A mechanical motion rectification (MMR) performing bidirectional to unidirectional
motion conversion [38], (b) Railway energy harvesting using MMR [68], (c) a energy regenerative shock absorber [28].

7
H.-X. Zou, et al.
Fig. 9. Converting rotational motion to vibration via gravity field, (a) A rotating piezoelectric energy harvester, (b) An impact harvester with frequency self-tuning
[78], (c) A tire-embedded piezoelectric energy harvester using coupled linear resonating structure [81], (d) A magnetically coupled energy harvester using two
inverted piezoelectric cantilever beams for rotational motion [75].
3.4. Rotation/rolling conversion to vibration
In order to harvest rotational motion energy through electro-
mechanical conversion structures such as piezoelectric beams, many
researchers convert rotational motion into vibration. Converting rota-
tional motion to vibration is common in three ways: (1) gravity field;
(2) contact excitation; (3) magnetic coupling.
(1) Gravity field
When the cantilever beam rotates in a non-horizontal plane, the
cantilever beam is subjected to continuous vibration excitation due to
gravity [73]. As shown in Fig. 9(a), the piezoelectric beam is fixed to
the body rotating in the gravity field, the gravity of tip mass drives the
piezoelectric beam vibration to generate electricity. The electro-
mechanical coupling dynamics can be approximated as [74,75]
Mδ¨ + Cδ ̇ + Kδ + ΘV = −Mg cos(ωt )
V
Cp V̇ + R + Θδ ̇ = 0
where M, C, K are the equivalent mass, equivalent damping and
equivalent stiffness, δ is the displacement of the cantilever beam, Θ is
the electromechanical coupling coefficient, Cp, R is the capacitance and
load resistance, V is the voltage, and ω is the rotation speed. Gravity
excitation is consistent with base excitation and excitation frequency is
equal to rotation frequency.
The centrifugal force of the rotating motion is proportional to the
square of the rotating speed. The centrifugal force can be used to
change the resonant frequency of the piezoelectric beam to match the
excitation frequency, thereby improving the power output [76,77].
Fig. 9(b) shows an impact self-tuning rotary energy harvester designed
by Gu and Livermore [78], which consists of a rigid piezoelectric beam
and a flexible drive beam. The piezoelectric beam is repeatedly im-
pacted by the mass of the flexible beam to generate electricity. The
flexible beam is hardened by the centrifugal force, and the degree of
hardening is related to the rotation speed. The optimized design of the
parameters enables the resonant frequency of the flexible beam to
match the rotational frequency, thereby increasing the power output.
The piezoelectric vibration energy harvesting can be used for rotation
energy harvesting in automotive wheels. The operational bandwidth of
the system can be improved by the nonlinear restoring force [79,80]. A
piezoelectric energy harvester embedded in a tire that uses a coupled
Applied Energy 255 (2019) 113871
linear resonant structure to increase the operating frequency range
[81], as shown in Fig. 9(c), which has the potential to effectively har-
vest the rotational energy of the tire over a wide range of speeds. Kim
et al. [82,83] presented an electromagnetic energy harvester for smart
tires with the advantage of self-tuning stochastic resonance via a cen-
trifugal stiffening effect. The free end of the piezoelectric beam is close
to the axis of rotation that can reduce the adverse effects of centrifugal
force [84]. Zou et al. [75] designed a magnetically coupled two-degree-
of-freedom bistable vibration energy harvester for rotational motion, as
shown in Fig. 9(d). The rotational motion was converted into the vi-
bration of two magnetically coupled inverted piezoelectric beams due
to gravity, and rotational energy can be harvested over a wide range of
speed.
The rotation is converted into vibration through the gravitational
field, without the energy loss and the influence of the permanent
magnet, which is suitable for harvesting the rotational motion energy in
the vertical plane. However, the rotation motion in the horizontal plane
cannot be excited by the gravitational field. Moreover, the excitation
(6)
frequency is equal to the rotation frequency and cannot be increased.
(2) Contact excitation
The commonly used method of converting rotational motion into
vibration is to touch the piezoelectric beam through the convex parts of
the rotating body. Wind drives the blade to rotate, and the teeth around
the disc connected to the blade moves the piezoelectric beams to gen-
erate electricity [85]. Pozzi and Zhu [86] designed a knee energy
harvester, as shown in Fig. 10(a). The piezoelectric beam is excited at a
higher frequency by the convex pieces of the circumferential array. A
rotating gear tooth was used to move an atomic-force-microscope-like
piezoelectric cantilever to vibrate and generate electricity [87], as
shown in Fig. 10(b).
A novel impact piezoelectric energy harvesting was proposed by
Yang et al. [88]. The elastic balls are placed inside the polygon, and
when the wind drives device to rotate, the balls hit the piezoelectric
cantilever beams to generate electricity. The prototype of the impact
piezoelectric energy harvester with an inscribed circle diameter of
31 mm was manufactured, as shown in Fig. 10(c), and the output power
was 613 μW at 200 r/min. These small wind harvesters with high power
density can be used to power remote wireless sensor systems.
Mechanical transmission mechanism can be used to convert rota-
tional motion into reciprocating motion [89]. A cam-based triboelectric
8
H.-X. Zou, et al.
Fig. 10. Converting rotational motion to vibration via contact, (a) a knee-joint
piezoelectric harvester [86], (b) a gear piezoelectric energy harvester [87], (c) a
rotational piezoelectric wind energy harvester using impact-induced resonance
[88].
nanogenerator was designed by Lee et al. [90]. The cam converts the
rotational motion into a linear motion and realizes reliable and high-
performance contact friction power generation. The prototype can
produce a uniform high output voltage (~350 V) at 400 rpm for a long
time (more than 210,000 cycles).
Rotational motion is converted into vibration by means of contact,
which is simple, not limited by the layout, does not need to consider the
influence of magnetic field, and can increase the excitation frequency
through multiple contact points. However, there are more energy loss
and the device is easier to wear and damage in mechanical conversion
through contact.
(3) Magnetic coupling
Magnetic coupling is a non-contact mechanical transmission me-
chanism that can easily convert rotational motion into beam vibration
[91].
Since wind is more likely to drive blade rotation and piezoelectric is
more efficient than electromagnetic at smaller scales, many researchers
use blade to convert wind power into rotational motion, and then the
rotation is converted into vibration of the piezoelectric beam by mag-
netic coupling, thereby generating electricity [92,93]. As shown in
(b)
Permanent
Magnet (PM)
(a)
Fig. 11. Converting rotational motion to vibration via magnetic coupling. (a) A piezoelectric wind energy harvester [94]. (b) A piezoelectric knee-joint energy
harvester [102].
9
Applied Energy 255 (2019) 113871
Fig. 11(a), a wind energy harvester is suitable for low wind speeds using
the rotating magnets to excite the piezoelectric cantilever beams
[94,95]. Fu and Yeatman [96,97] studied low-speed broadband rota-
tional energy harvesting using magnetically coupled piezoelectric
beams and designed a piezoelectric wind energy harvester with self-
adjusting function. The centrifugal force generated by rotation changes
the relative position of permanent magnets. The device is capable of
starting at a low wind speed and can increase the output power when
the wind speed is high.
Due to the low energy conversion efficiency of low frequency ex-
citation, there is a challenge for the harvesting of human motion en-
ergy. The human motion can be firstly converted into a low-frequency
rotational motion and then be converted into a high-frequency vibra-
tion of the piezoelectric beam by the magnetic coupling [98,99]. This
conversion makes the human motion energy easy to be harvested and
suitable for the operating frequency of the piezoelectric beam. Under
low-frequency excitation, the metal cylinder is more likely to roll [100].
Pillatsch et al. [101] converted the impulse excitation generated by the
human motion into the rolling of a metal cylinder and then converted
into the vibration of the piezoelectric beam by magnetic force. This
method can harvest energy more efficiently. The maximum power
output is 2.1 mW under the excitation of 2.7 m/s2 acceleration and 2 Hz
frequency. Kuang et al. [102] theoretically and experimentally studied
the rotation energy harvesting of human knee joints. As shown in
Fig. 11(b), the magnets at the free ends of piezoelectric beams are ex-
cited by circumferential arrays of permanent magnets and the average
output power is 5.8 mW at 0.9 Hz knee motion. Due to the high power
and long service life, the harvester can be used to provide wearable
devices for real applications.
Rotational motion is converted into vibration by magnetic coupling,
the design is flexible, the energy loss is small, and the excitation fre-
quency can be increased by a plurality of permanent magnet cir-
cumferential arrays. But the magnetic coupling cannot be used in some
special occasions to avoid adverse effects.
3.5. Multi-directional energy harvesting based on motion conversion
The directions of excitation in the ambient environment are various
and may be time-varying. The unidirectional energy harvesting is used
in a specific environment and has many limitations. Motion conversion
is a possible way to break these limitations. As shown in Fig. 12(a), a
nonlinear piezoelectric energy harvester includes a metal ball that rolls
and excites piezoelectric beams via magnetic force to generate elec-
tricity [103]. Because the metal ball can be excited in any direction, this
energy harvester is suitable for different types of excitation. A multi-
directional vibration energy harvester based on internal resonance was
designed by Xu et al. [104], as shown in Fig. 12(b). The pendulum at
the end of the piezoelectric beam is excited by the excitation in multiple
(b)
H.-X. Zou, et al.
Fig. 12. (a) A nonlinear piezoelectric energy harvester for various mechanical motions [103]. (b) A multi-directional energy harvester based on internal resonance
[104]. (c) A multi-directional magnetic coupled piezoelectric energy harvester [105].
Fig. 13. The maximum average power of the arbitrary-directional broadband vibration energy harvester under excitation of 0.8 g from 5 Hz to 30 Hz in different
directions [106].
directions, and then converted into the vibration of the piezoelectric
beam via internal resonance, so that the energy of vibration in multiple
directions can be harvested. Lin et al. [105] designed a piezoelectric
vibration energy harvester with a permanent magnet suspended by
three springs, as shown in Fig. 12(c). The results show that this design
can harvest external broadband arbitrary vibration energy. Recently,
Zhao et al. [106] proposed an arbitrary-directional broadband vibration
energy harvester, which consists of a cantilever rod with tip magnet and
two symmetrical magnetically coupled flextensional transducers. Vi-
bration in any direction can be converted to variable magnetic force,
then the magnetic force is amplified and transmitted to the piezoelectric
layer through the flextensional structure. The results indicate that the
proposed harvester is capable of harvesting energy from vibration
sources in arbitrary direction, as shown in Fig. 13. Thus, this design is
suitable for an environment where the excitation direction is uncertain,
the excitation direction is time-varying, or has multiple directions of
excitation. Wu et al. [107] presented a piezoelectric spring architecture
based on a common binder clip structure. The proposed harvester can
effectively harvest ultra-low frequency and multi-directional vibration
energy due to the basic characteristics of the spring pendulum, which
had good application prospects in wearable devices and ocean buoys.
Although there are a few studies on multi-directional vibration en-
ergy harvesting based on motion conversion, most of them only con-
sider multi-directional base excitations.
10
Applied Energy 255 (2019) 113871
4. Frequency up-conversions
Generally, mechanical motion (vibration or rotation) that can be
obtained directly from the ambient environment is generally low in
frequency, while most transducers require a higher excitation frequency
for efficient operation. In order to harvest low-frequency energy more
effectively, the excitation frequency can be increased by mechanical
conversion.
4.1. Array excitation
Reciprocating motion or rotational motion can be converted into
multiple excitation acting on the transducer via array excitation with
frequency up-conversion, as shown in Fig. 14. A comb array can be used
to convert low frequency ambient vibration into high frequency ex-
citation to piezoelectric beam [108]. Lin et al. [109] designed a wave
energy harvester with a comb array, as shown in Fig. 14(d). This fre-
quency up-conversion compensates for the wave frequency (0.03–1 Hz)
and the transducer operating frequency (a few hundred Hz), so that the
wave energy can be effectively harvested. Frequency up-conversion
through an array of multiple magnets can increase power by 300%
under broadband random excitation [110]. Rotational motion fre-
quency can be amplified to piezoelectric beam by a circular array of
permanent magnets, and the output power can be increased by 10 times
[111].
H.-X. Zou, et al.
PZT Magnet S pole Magnet N pole
Reciprocating motion
Rotational
motion
(a) (b)
Fig. 14. (a) Linear array, (b) Circumferential array, (c) Schematics of array excitation with frequency up, (d) Frequency up-conversion for wave energy harvesting
[109].
Fig. 15. Frequency up by multi-DOF system resonance. (a) A two degrees of freedom electromagnetic vibration harvester [114]. (b) An electromagnetic vibration
harvester using impact approach [115].
4.2. Multi-DOF system resonance
Mechanical energy can be harvested from the ambient environment
by low frequency oscillator and then transmitted to high frequency
oscillator to generate electricity [112,113]. As shown in Fig. 15(a), the
low-frequency vibration energy is absorbed by the low-frequency re-
sonator and then pumped to the high-frequency resonator in pulses
[114]. Yuksek et al. [115] designed a broadband electromagnetic en-
ergy harvester that includes a cantilever beam with a higher resonant
frequency and two cantilever beams with lower resonant frequencies
(25 Hz and 50 Hz, respectively). As shown in Fig. 15(b), during low
frequency vibration excitation, the two low frequency cantilever beams
resonate, and their end masses repeatedly impact the cantilever beam
with a higher resonant frequency, resulting in a high frequency output.
In reference [116], the low frequency hand motion was converted into
the rolling of a ball and then the rolling of the ball was converted into
high frequency vibration to generate electricity. The maximum output
power is 103.55 μW under periodic hand sway excitation with an ac-
celeration peak of 2 g and a frequency of 5.8 Hz.
These mechanical structures increase the excitation frequency,
correspondingly increase the electromechanical conversion efficiency
and output power. They also increase the complexity of the structure
and the size of the device. At this stage, improving power output is one
of the most critical issues in promoting the practical application of
energy harvesting technology. While vibration or rotation is mainly low
frequency in the real environment, the frequency up techniques are
very important for energy harvesting applications.
5. Amplifications of force or motion
5.1. Flextensional amplification
(1) Amplification mechanism of flextensional structure
Applied Energy 255 (2019) 113871
2 Primitive excitation
Excitation with frequency up
1
0
-1
Frequency amplification=Array number
-2
0 0.5 1
(c) (d)
To increase the output power density, the researchers amplified the
external excitation to the transducer. The flextensional structure is a
classic structure that can amplify displacement or force and increase the
load capacity of the transducer [117,118]. The amplification and re-
sonance characteristics of the flextensional transducer are closely re-
lated to the structural size and material properties [119,120]. There are
mainly circular and rectangular flextensional piezoelectric transducers.
The rectangular flextensional transducer is taken as an example to il-
lustrate the amplification mechanism of the flextensional structure.
As shown in Fig. 16, from left to right, the length of the bonding
surface, the length of the inclined plate and the length of the upper
plate are l1, l2, l3, respectively, the inclination angle of the inclined plate
is θ, the length and width of the piezoelectric layer are l and b, re-
spectively, the thickness of the metal layer is tm, the thickness of the
piezoelectric layer is tp. The force acting on the flextensional piezo-
electric unit can be equivalent to a concentrated force N. The compo-
nents of the 3-direction and the 1-direction of the force from the upper
plate to the inclined plate are F1 and F2, respectively. The components
of the 3-direction and the 1-direction of the force from one inclined
plate to one end of the piezoelectric layer are F3 and F4, respectively.
For convenience of description, the length of the cavity is
lc = 2l2 cos θ + l3 , the total length of the bonding surface is lb = 2l1. The
amplified equivalent piezoelectric coefficient deff , which reflects the
relationship between force and voltage, can be calculated as
− d33 + (l 23 lc sin θ cos θ / tp l 23sin2 θ + 3s11 Dlc ) d31. The equivalent stiffness
of the flextensional piezoelectric unit K eff , which reflects the relation-
ship between force and displacement, can be calculated as
lb b (l 23 tp bsin2 θ + 3s11 Dlc b)/[s11 lb lc l 23 bcos2 θ . Under continuous excita-
+ s33 tp (l 23 tp bsin2 θ + 3s11 Dlc b)]
tion, the electromechanical coupling dynamics equation of the flex-
tensional piezoelectric unit can be obtained as:
11
H.-X. Zou, et al. Applied Energy 255 (2019) 113871

N 1
l
l3 3
l2
l1
F2
b
tm
tp
F1
F4
F3
+ F3
F3
- +

F3 -

F3
2F4 +

- 2F4

Fig. 16. Schematic diagram of the flextensional transducer.

⎧ mu¨ + cu̇ + ku − d eff K eff V = 0 harmonic excitation of 600 N and 4 Hz, the maximum output power can
V
⎨Cp V̇ + R − d eff K eff u̇ = 0 reach 17.8 mW. The flextensional compliant mechanism also can be
⎩ (7) used to amplify the vibration displacement for piezoelectric or elec-
tromagnetic energy harvesting to increase output power [130,131].
where m is the equivalent mass, c is the equivalent damping coefficient,
Shin et al. [25] presented a high-power piezoelectric module installed
k is the equivalent stiffness, u is the tip displacement, Cp is the open-
on a local highway, as shown in Fig. 17(d). The module has a bridge-
circuit capacitance of the piezoelectric layer, R is the load resistance,
type displacement amplification unit that converts a 2.5 mm vertical
and V is the load voltage. The inner cavity length and the tilt angle are
displacement into a 13 mm horizontal deformation for an uninterrupted
the key parameters affecting the equivalent piezoelectric coefficient.
driving experience. The output power scales approximately linearly
The longer the inner cavity length and the smaller the tilt angle, the
with the vehicle speed and weight, which may be used as a self-pow-
higher the equivalent piezoelectric coefficient. However, it is also ne-
ered speed sensor.
cessary to consider the issues whether the bonding is firm and the vo-
lume of the device. The resonant frequency of the flextensional piezo-
(3) Applications of flextensional transducer under weak excitation
electric unit is much higher than the excitation frequency in the
ambient environment, so it is generally not necessary to consider the
Generally, flextensional transducers are used in the environments
resonant behavior of the flextensional piezoelectric unit.
with large loads. Researchers have designed structures that allow
flextensional transducers to be used in weak excitation environments
(2) Applications of flextensional transducer under strong excitation
and improve power output. The performance comparison of energy
harvesters using piezoelectric beam and flextensional transducer is
The cymbal is a typical flextensional structure, as shown in
shown in Table 2.
Fig. 17(a). Kim et al [120–123] conducted a series of studies on energy
As shown in Fig. 18(a), a design that consists of a cantilever beam
harvesting using piezoelectric cymbal transducers. The equivalent pie-
and two cymbal transducers can improve the performance of the vi-
zoelectric coefficient is magnified tens of times, and the cymbal struc-
bration energy harvester in a weak excitation environment [138,139].
ture improves the tolerance and robustness of the piezoelectric ceramic.
A bistable vibration energy harvester including two flextensional
Zhao et al. [124] performed a finite element analysis on a cymbal
transducers and an intermediate mass was proposed by Liu et al
piezoelectric transducer. For a 32 mm diameter cymbal transducer, the
[140–142], as shown in Fig. 18(b). Yang et al [143–146] also designed
maximum possible output power is 1.2 mW under a vehicle load of
a bistable vibration energy harvester based on flextensional structure,
20 Hz. Mo et al. [125] bonded the piezoelectric layer to the metal layer,
as shown in Fig. 18(c), including two beams and an intermediate
further improving the ability of the cymbal transducer to withstand
flextensional transducer. This flextensional bistable vibration energy
high loads. Experimental results show that this structure can withstand
harvester can effectively harvest energy in a wide frequency range
at least 1940 N load. Moure et al. [126] embedded a cymbal transducer
under weak excitation and can significantly increase energy output. Li
on the road surface to harvest the energy generated by the rolling of the
et al. [147] theoretically and experimentally studied the output of such
car, as shown in Fig. 17(b).
a flextensional bistable vibration energy harvester under random ex-
As shown in Fig. 17(c), a multi-stage magnified flextensional
citation. Zou et al. [59,60] used the flextensional transducers under
structure with a larger amplification range and higher frequency re-
weak excitation through magnetic coupling, which has higher power
sponse was designed by Ling et al. [127]. Li et al. [128] presented a
potential and reliability.
compression mode piezoelectric energy harvester, which is different
from the cymbal structure. This design enlarged the lateral force into a
longitudinal force by a pair of arch structures, and then applied to the 5.2. Transmission mechanism amplification
prestressed piezoelectric stack at both ends. Experimental results show
that an open-circuit peak voltage of 110 V can be generated. Wang et al. In addition, the force and motion can be amplified by the conven-
[129] designed a compliant compression mode piezoelectric energy tional mechanical mechanisms, such as lever mechanism, scissor
harvesting unit with large load capacity and the force transfer coeffi- linkage mechanism, double rack and pinion mechanism, and piston
cient can be adjusted. The load of this design can reach 2.8 kN. At a rack and pinion mechanism [148], as shown in Fig. 19. These

12
H.-X. Zou, et al. Applied Energy 255 (2019) 113871

(a) (b)
Metal end cap

Piezoelectric ceramic

(c)

(d)

Fig. 17. Applications of flextensional transducer under strong excitation. (a) A cymbal transducer. (b) A piezoelectric cymbal transducer for road energy harvesting
[126]. (c) A multistage compliant mechanism [127]. (d) A high-power piezoelectric module installed on a local highway [25].

amplification mechanisms can be applied to mechanical energy har-
vesting. Although there may be some energy loss, it may be possible to
harvest more energy from the environment. Xu et al. [149] compared
the performance of the gear amplification wind energy harvester and
the general transmission wind energy harvester, it has been found that
the gear amplification wind energy harvester has higher output power
when the wind speed is higher. Hua et al. [24] designed an easily in-
tegrated heel charger to efficiently convert kinematic walking energy
into electricity. This design amplified footstep displacement by utilizing
the lever mechanism to gain maximum deformation of multilayer

Table 2
Performance comparison of energy harvesters using piezoelectric beam and flextensional transducer.
−2
Structure Material Excitation (g = 9.8 ms ) Frequency (Hz) Piezo Size (mm3) RMS Power (mW) Power Density (mW cm−3) Ref.

Beam PZT 1.0 g ~14 50.67 ~0.36 7.1 [132]

Beam PZT-5A 0.26 g 109.5 924 ~0.53 0.57 [133]
Beam MFC 0.29 g 27.8 59 1.43 24.3 [134]
Beam MFC Wind 7 59 1.6 27.1 [135]
Flextensional structure PZT 7.8 N 100 660.2 14.5 22 [120]
Flextensional structure Piezo stack 1.0 g 87 3141 7.3 2.3 [128]
Flextensional structure PZT 0.3 g 26.5 – ~8 – [136]
Flextensional structure PZT-5H 0.3 g 22.7 300 15 50.0 [137]

13
H.-X. Zou, et al. Applied Energy 255 (2019) 113871

piezoelectric patches. The experimental results showed that the proto-

type had a top performance of 13.6 mW, which had the feasibility of
charging wearable devices. Wang et al. [150] designed a vibrational
energy harvester for swaying cables, which consisted of a mechanical
transmission system and electric energy storage system. The random
vibrations of the cable were converted into three one-way rotary mo-
tions and were amplified through the gear transmission module, im-
proving the energy conversion efficiency. As shown in Fig. 19(e), this
design provided a promising prospect for powering far-end wireless
monitoring equipment of the cableways in remote mountainous areas.

5.3. Dynamics motion amplification

Moreover, dynamic magnifier, which is generally equivalent to a

Fig. 18. Applications of flextensional transducer under weak excitation. (a) A
low frequency energy harvester consisting of one cantilever beam and two
cymbal transducers [138]. (b) A bistable energy harvester consisting of one
mass and two cymbal transducers [136]. (c) A multi-directional compression-
mode bistable vibration energy harvester [144].
spring mass system between the transducer and the base, has been
applied to magnify the motion to improve the performance of the en-
ergy harvester. Zhou et al. [151] proposed a multi-mode intermediate
beam with a tip mass. Based on reasonable parameter design, the mo-
tion can be magnified virtually in all the resonance frequencies of the
energy harvester. The experimental results show that 25.5 times more
energy can be harvested over a wide frequency range 3–300 Hz due to
the addition of a dynamic magnifier. The performance of energy har-
vesting can be further enhanced by using the series of mechanical dy-
namic magnifier and the electrical resonator [152]. Aldraihem et al.
[153,154] provided a dynamic magnifier consisting of a spring-mass
system which is placed between the transducer and the base. Through
rational design of the dynamic magnifier, the output power and effec-
tive operating bandwidth of the energy harvester can be enhanced. The
same team further presented the feasibility of the dynamic magnifier as
an effective method for enhancing vibration energy harvesting from
coupled acoustic-structure systems [155]. Wang et al. [156] used a

(a) (b) (c ) (d )

(e)
Vibrational energy harvester

Remote
Cable mountainous
areas

Fig. 19. Transmission mechanism amplification: (a) Simple lever, (b) Scissors linkage, (c) two rack-pinion joints, (d) rack-pinion paired with piston-like motion
[148], (e) a vibration energy harvester for swaying cables [150].

14
H.-X. Zou, et al.
Fig. 20. Schematics of a bistable energy harvester with a dynamic magnifier
[156].
dynamic magnifier to amplify base excitation and provided more ki-
netic energy to the bistable system to overcome potential well barriers,
as shown in Fig. 20. The results showed that the bistable energy har-
vester with a dynamic magnifier could provide higher output over a
broader frequency band at lower excitation levels than a typical bis-
table piezoelectric energy harvester. However, a system with a dynamic
amplifier requires reasonable design parameters to have beneficial ef-
fects, such as mass-stiffness ratio, so that it has higher requirements for
modeling, optimization design, and prototype manufacturing.
6. Conclusions and prospects
Energy harvesting technology is one of the keys to implement in-
telligent sensors and self-powered control, which offer significant ad-
vantages and opportunities to the development and applications of the
Internet of Things. A lot of efforts have been made in energy harvesting
technology in recent years. However, there still exists a considerable
gap between the achieved performance and the expected performance
[157]. Most energy harvesting studies are only tested in the laboratory,
while the environmental adaptability and device reliability have not
been considered. Although some application-oriented energy harvesters
have been tested in field, their reliability, stability and compatibility
have not been well validated in the commercial market.
The design of the system is critical to further improve the perfor-
mance of the energy harvester. Mechanical-to-mechanical conversion
(mechanical modulation) design is easier to implement in applications
and may provide more unachievable advantages than mechanical-to-
electrical conversion. From a literature review, we know that me-
chanical modulation methods can act as a bridge between energy
sources and transducers, and have a great potential in improving the
overall performance of energy harvesting devices, such as power
output, environmental adaptability and device reliability, thus pro-
moting the effective usage of energy harvesters in applications industry,
defense, and everyday life. Many researchers have adopted the me-
chanical modulation methods and achieved good results, but it has not
been clarified as a design methodology. This paper makes a compre-
hensive survey and clarifies the concept of mechanical modulation
energy harvesting with focus on the key roles of mechanical modula-
tions in improving energy output, environmental adaptability and de-
vice reliability. The representative designs are discussed from three
aspects: excitation type conversion, frequency up-conversion, force/
motion amplification. The goal of this review is to emphasize the im-
portant role that mechanical modulation plays in the design of me-
chanical energy harvesting, and to provide methodological references
for the design of energy harvesting in various real environments.
Although most of the design examples discussed in this review are
piezoelectric energy harvesting and electromagnetic energy harvesting,
mechanical modulation can also be used for other electromechanical
15
Applied Energy 255 (2019) 113871
conversion methods, such as electrostatic energy harvesting, tribo-
electric nanogenerator, and others.
There are some aspects of mechanical modulation for energy har-
vesting that are worth exploring:
(i) Mechanical modulation is a mechanical conversion that harmo-
nizes the excitation environment with the electromechanical
transducer. Therefore, mechanical modulation energy harvesting is
generally necessary to consider the specific application environ-
ment for special design. It is hard to find a universal design that
can be applied to various environments. Mechanical modulation
design is a non-standard design. However, the establishment of a
modular design library that is easy to modify may improve the
efficiency and reliability of a new mechanical modulation design.
(ii) The compliant mechanism that transmits the motion, force or en-
ergy through the elastic deformation of the flexible unit has the
advantages of simple, easy manufacture, less friction and wear,
easy assembly, high precision and high reliability, light weight and
miniaturization. The compliant mechanism has the potential in
development of amplification and nonlinear multi-stable mechan-
isms that can be applied to piezoelectric vibration energy har-
vesting. The compliant mechanism can be used for the compact
design of piezoelectric vibration energy harvesting, which facil-
itates integration into portable and wearable devices.
(iii) At present, there are a few studies on mechanical modulation en-
ergy harvesting using traditional mechanical mechanisms. A ty-
pical application is the mechanical motion rectifier, which con-
verts vibration into unidirectional rotation, thereby significantly
improving the performance of the vibration energy harvester
[38,68]. The mechanical motion rectifier can be explored for en-
ergy harvesting in more complex conditions, such as ocean wave
energy harvesting, wind energy harvesting, etc. There are a great
number of mechanical mechanisms, such as linkages, gear me-
chanisms and so on, which can be applied to mechanical energy
harvesting through rational design.
Acknowledgements
The authors gratefully acknowledge the support from the National
Natural Science Foundation of China (Grant Nos. 11802091, and
51728503), US Natural Science Foundation (Grant No. 1530122), the
China Postdoctoral Science Foundation (Grant No. 2018M640386), the
Science and Technology Planning Project of Hunan Province (Grant No.
2019RS2044), the Hunan Province Science and Technology Innovation
Program (Grant No. 2018RS3104), the National Science Fund for
Distinguished Young Scholars (Grant No. 11625208).
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