Romero E, Warrington R O, Neuman M R
Department of Mechanical Engineering, University of Turabo, Gurabo, PR 00778, USA.
Physiol Meas. 2009 Sep;30(9):R35-62. doi: 10.1088/0967-3334/30/9/R01. Epub 2009 Aug 17.
Energy scavenging has increasingly become an interesting option for powering electronic devices because of the almost infinite lifetime and the non-dependence on fuels for energy generation. Moreover, the rise of wireless technologies promises new applications in medical monitoring systems, but these still face limitations due to battery lifetime and size. A trade-off of these two factors has typically governed the size, useful life and capabilities of an autonomous system. Energy generation from sources such as motion, light and temperature gradients has been established as commercially viable alternatives to batteries for human-powered flashlights, solar calculators, radio receivers and thermal-powered wristwatches, among others. Research on energy harvesting from human activities has also addressed the feasibility of powering wearable or implantable systems. Biomedical sensors can take advantage of human-based activities as the energy source for energy scavengers. This review describes the state of the art of energy scavenging technologies for powering sensors and instrumentation of physiological variables. After a short description of the human power and the energy generation limits, the different transduction mechanisms, recent developments and challenges faced are reviewed and discussed.
由于几乎无限的使用寿命以及不依赖燃料来产生能量，能量采集越来越成为为电子设备供电的一个有趣选择。此外，无线技术的兴起为医疗监测系统带来了新的应用前景，但由于电池寿命和尺寸的限制，这些应用仍然面临挑战。这两个因素之间的权衡通常决定了自主系统的尺寸、使用寿命和功能。从运动、光和温度梯度等来源产生能量，已成为为人力手电筒、太阳能计算器、无线电接收器和热动力手表等设备供电的商业可行替代电池的方案。对从人类活动中收集能量的研究也探讨了为可穿戴或植入式系统供电的可行性。生物医学传感器可以利用基于人类的活动作为能量采集器的能源。本综述描述了为生理变量传感器和仪器供电的能量采集技术的现状。在简要描述了人体能量和能量产生限制之后，对不同的转换机制、最新进展和面临的挑战进行了综述和讨论。
