Multimodal Multidirectional Piezoelectric Vibration Energy Harvester by U-Shaped Structure with Cross-Connected Beams

This paper proposes a multidirectional piezoelectric vibration energy harvester based on an improved U-shaped structure with cross-connected beams. Benefitting from the bi-directional capacity of U-shaped beam and additional bending mode induced by cross-connected configuration, the proposed structure can well capture the vibrations in 3D space at the frequencies lower than 15 Hz. These features are further validated by finite element analyses and theorical formulas. The prototype is fabricated and the experiments under different conditions are carried out. The results show that the proposed harvester can generate favorable voltage and power under multidirectional vibrations at a low operating frequency. Practical applications of charging capacitors and powering a wireless sensor node demonstrate the feasibility of this energy harvester in supplying power for engineering devices.