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Updated: Jun 18, 2026

Determining and Controlling External Power Output During Regular Handrim Wheelchair Propulsion
Published on: February 5, 2020
Body motion for powering biomedical devices
Edwar Romero1, Robert O Warrington, Michael R Neuman
1Mechanical Engineering Department, Michigan Technological University, Houghton, MI 49931, USA. eromero@suagm.edu
Abstract:
Kinetic energy harvesting has been demonstrated as a useful technique for powering portable electronic devices. Body motion can be used to generate energy to power small electronic devices for biomedical applications. These scavengers can recharge batteries, extending their operation lifetime or even replace them. This paper addresses the generation of energy from human activities. An axial flux generator is presented using body motion for powering miniature biomedical devices. This generator presents a gear-shaped planar coil and a multipole NdFeB permanent magnet (PM) ring with an attached eccentric weight. The device generates energy by electromagnetic induction on the planar coil when subject to a changing magnetic flux due to the generator oscillations produced by body motion. A 1.5 cm(3) prototype has generated 3.9 microW of power while walking with the generator placed laterally on the ankle.
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