Analyses of vibration-based piezoelectric power generator in discontinuous operation mode

Vibration energy can be converted into electrical energy using piezoelectric power generator. The electrical energy is usually collected in a storage capacitor. The storage capacitor discharges to the load only when enough energy is harvested for the required operation. The time interval between successive required operations depends on several parameters: characteristics of piezoelectric power generator and vibration magnitude, energy requirement and voltage interval, and value of the storage capacitor. In this paper, theoretical and experimental analyses of these parameters are performed to choose appropriate values of the voltage interval and storage capacitor to minimize the time interval. Theoretical analyses are well conformed by the experimental results. Analysis results are instructive for applications of both macro and MEMS-based piezoelectric power generator.