Use of Magnetomechanical Effect for Energy Harvesting and Data Transfer

Sensors (Basel). 2022 Apr 26;22(9):3304. doi: 10.3390/s22093304.

Abstract

The presented paper describes a method where, with the use of a dedicated SMART Ultrasonic Resonant Power System (SURPS) developed by the authors, a power and data transfer between two devices can be performed at the same time. The proposed solution allows power to be supplied to the sensor, located in a hardly accessible place, with simultaneous data transfer in a half-duplex way (e.g., "question-response"). The power transmission mechanism is based on the excitation of a construction with a sinusoidal wave, with an actuator transforming this wave into useful, electrical power through a harvester device. Data transfer is achieved with the use of the F2F (Frequency Double Frequency) procedure, which is a kind of frequency modulation. To receive optimized parameters for each construction, an original software is developed, which allows the selection of the proper type of actuator, modulation, and frequency.

Keywords: Terfenol-D; magnetostriction; smart materials; ultrasonic system; wireless sensors.