SBIR Phase I: Prototype and Manufacture of Small-scale Axial Permanent Magnet Generator

该项目更广泛的影响/商业潜力是解决由于电池技术创新滞后而导致的跨行业便携式电源短缺问题。获得便携式电源是一个普遍问题。可穿戴能量收集设备提供了部分电力解决方案-人体运动在一天内提供了足够的能量，浪费吗能量可以被捕获并转换成足够的可用电能以给各种便携式电子设备供电。可穿戴收割机，比如穿在鞋子里的脚充电器，能无缝集成到用户身上吗？的自然运动，而不会导致用户的任何疲劳。因此，可穿戴能量收集技术适用于各种各样的应用，包括发展中地区，军事/援助组织，消费电子和户外装备。实现机械系统的设备具有高的理论功率重量比，并且产生足够的功率来为小型移动的电子设备充电。为了改进这些设备，有必要对限制功能-PMG -进行额外的优化。这个小型企业创新研究（SBIR）第一阶段项目将减小轴向永磁发电机（PMG）的尺寸并提高其效率，用于能量收集应用。在当前的机械收获应用中使用两种类型的永磁发电机：径向发电机和轴向发电机。两者都能产生多相交流电，可以优化几何形状和重量，并广泛用于大规模的风力涡轮机。由于其相对易于制造，径向件被设计用于小规模的能量产生应用，最常见于手动曲柄产生装置。然而，可穿戴能量收集应用具有非常严格的体积要求。体积优化所需的小而平的外形表明，轴向PMG对于可穿戴设备来说更节省空间。基本上，为了实现更平坦的轮廓，其中以增加直径为代价使整个机构的高度最小化，轴向发电机将产生更多的功率。该项目的目标是验证轴向永磁发电机模拟与物理原型，证明轴向永磁发电机创建一个至少10%的功率增加比径向永磁发电机在现有的商业系统，并评估在规模上制造轴向实施的可行性。

The broader impact/commercial potential of this project is to address the deficit in portable power across sectors due to a lag in innovations in battery technology. Access to portable power is a universal problem. Wearable energy harvesting devices offer part of the power solution - human motion provides enough energy over a day such that ?wasted? energy can be captured and converted to enough usable electrical energy to power a variety of portable electronics. Wearable harvesters, such as a foot charger worn in a shoe, can seamlessly integrate into a user?s natural motion without causing the user any fatigue. Therefore, wearable energy harvesting technology is applicable to a wide variety of applications, including developing regions, military/aid organizations, consumer electronics and outdoor gear. Devices that implement mechanical systems have high theoretical power to weight ratios and produce enough power to charge small mobile electronics. To improve these devices, additional optimization on the limiting feature - the PMG - is necessary.This Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) Phase I project will reduce the size and increase the efficiency of axial permanent magnet generators (PMGs) for energy harvesting applications. There are two types of PMGs used in current mechanical harvesting applications: radial and axial generators. Both produce multi-phase AC power, can be optimized for geometry and weight, and are used extensively in wind turbines on a large scale. Radials, because of their relative ease of manufacture, are designed for small-scale energy generation applications, most popularly in hand-crank generation devices. However, wearable energy harvesting applications have very strict volume requirements. The small, flat profile required for volume optimization suggests that axial PMGs are more space efficient for wearables. Essentially, to achieve a flatter profile in which height of the overall mechanism is minimized at the expense of increasing diameter, an axial generator would produce more power. The objectives of this project are to validate axial PMG simulations with physical prototypes, prove axial PMGs create a power increase of at least 10% over radial PMGs in existing commercial systems, and to evaluate the feasibility of manufacturing axial implementations at scale.