A Micromachined Vibration-Induced Power Generator For Low Power Sensors Of Robotic Systems

This paper presents the design, analysis, and experimental results of a vibration-induced power generator with total volume of -1 cm3 that uses laser-micromachined springs as resonating structures. The goal of our research is to create a minimally sized electric power generator capable of producing enough voltage to drive low-power IC circuit systems or micro sensors for robotic and automation applications where mechanical vibrations are present. Potential applications for the generator may also include mobile phone and heart-pacers where human motions can be used as a source of mechanical energy. Thus far, we have produced a generator capable of producing 2V DC with 64Hz input frequency with <200pm input vibration amplitude.