Vibration energy harvester in AA battery form factor
This technology is a compact energy harvester roughly the size of an AA battery that converts ambient mechanical vibrations into electricity using two complementary mechanisms simultaneously. The first mechanism works like a miniature generator: a floating magnet oscillates inside a coil when the device vibrates, producing current through electromagnetic induction. The second mechanism uses a special material that generates voltage when physically stressed or deformed by vibration. Combining both approaches in one package captures more energy across a wider range of vibration frequencies than either method alone could achieve.
What you could build
A drop-in AA-battery-form-factor power module for wireless sensor nodes in industrial machinery, structural health monitoring, or military equipment, sold to IoT hardware manufacturers or defense systems integrators who need maintenance-free power in high-vibration environments.
Who in Virginia should care
Defense primes and government contractors in Northern Virginia and the Hampton Roads corridor — particularly those supplying sensor systems for naval or ground vehicle platforms — would have direct application interest.
Readiness: Lab validated
Concept — described but not yet demonstrated. Lab validated — supported by experimental results in the patent. Prototype likely — the text describes a built, working embodiment.
Readiness is inferred from the patent text, not from a lab visit.
The record
- Inventors
- Anthony Marin, Shashank Priya
- Granted
- December 9, 2014
- Status
- Granted patent
- Patent number
- 8907506
Ready to talk?
Virginia Tech Intellectual Properties handles licensing for this technology.
Prosim summaries are generated from public patent text and are not legal advice.