Energy Harvesting. Energy harvesting with prosthetic feet

Abstract

This thesis reviews the principles and state-of-art of miniature energy harvesting systems and how they can be a suitable application for powering low-power wireless electronic devices used in prosthetic legs by the company Össur. There is an expansion in wireless sensors networks and the development of low power consumption devices has created a field for researching micro-generators converting ambient energy into electricity to replace batteries that require costly maintenance. By harvesting ambient energy to supply low power devices it appears to be a key technology to develop compact, lightweight, and energy autonomous devices. Batteries have been a primary solution but the unwanted maintenance burden of replacing or recharging them is the main problem of this thesis. Alternative power sources from the mechanical properties of prosthetic legs were used to overcome these limitations.