Abstract
An exclusive reliance on batteries for miniature sensors has created the need for a self-sustained energy harvester to enable permanent power. This work introduces a pendulum-based energy harvester that is capable of harnessing kinetic energy from rotating structures to generate electric power through electromagnetic transduction. A computational model of the energy harvesting device is developed on Simscape to compute, analyze and compare the power generation capacities of the single, double and Rott’s pendulum systems. Simulation results are validated against their experimental counterparts reported in the literature. Results show an increase in the output voltage in a specific range of rotational speed for all three pendulum harvesters. The double pendulum exhibits the highest power generation potential among the simulated pendulum arrangements. A parametric study revealed that increasing the damping of the harvester decreased its output power, whereas an increase in mass and length of the harvester is observed to increase the output power and shift the optimal power generation subrange.