Development and optimization of an energy harvesting circuit for multiple piezoelectric elements integrated into a smart air spring

This paper presents the design of an energy harvesting interface for multiple piezoelectric elements. The latter is targeted to be integrated in an air spring to convert the mechanical energy in electrical one usable to power a wireless sensor node. Modelling of the energy harvesting electronic circuit has been performed to optimize the management of the multiple signals provided by the piezoelectric elements in function of a variable electrical load. An experimental activity has been conducted to validate the circuit design and the tests results demonstrate a good agreement with the numerical ones, confirming the effectiveness of the proposed interface.