Inductively Coupled CMOS Power Receiver For Embedded Microsensors

Inductively coupled power transfer can extend the lifetime of embedded microsensors that save costs, energy, and lives. To expand the microsensors' functionality, the transferred power needs to be maximized. Plus, the power receiver needs to handle wide coupling variations in real applications. Therefore, the objective of this research is to design a power receiver that outputs the highest power for the widest coupling range. This research proposes a switched resonant half-bridge power stage that adjusts both energy transfer frequency and duration so the output power is maximally high. A maximum power point (MPP) theory is also developed to predict the optimal settings of the power stage with 98.6% accuracy. Finally, this research addresses the system integration challenges such as synchronization and over-voltage protection. The fabricated self-synchronized prototype outputs up to 89% of the available power across 0.067%~7.9% coupling range. The output power (in percentage of available power) and coupling range are 1.3× and 13× higher than the comparable state of the arts.Ph.D

Next Generation Bike Sharing Design Concept using axiomatic design theory

Bike sharing systems have been in use since the 1960’s, from the modest beginning to one of the fastest spreading services today. Each generation of bike sharing systems had its challenges, but the advancement in technology was and is a key factor in eliminating any short comings or problem facing it as well as opening new opportunities for enhancing the service and the user experience. The main focus of this thesis is to propose a new design concept of bike sharing system using axiomatic design theory, the concept consist of a modified bike sharing model that can help solve some of the challenges faced by the traditional models while meeting the customer’s needs and the basic functional requirements of a traditional bake sharing program. Axiomatic design theory provides a method for the design of products, it makes it possible to design structure and decompose function at the same time. Utilizing currently available technologies such as electrical components and global positioning systems, the new system will include a new design for the bike, the docking station, central control station, and payment systems.fi=Opinnäytetyö kokotekstinä PDF-muodossa.|en=Thesis fulltext in PDF format.|sv=Lärdomsprov tillgängligt som fulltext i PDF-format

Next Generation Bike Sharing Design Concept using axiomatic design theory

Bike sharing systems have been in use since the 1960’s, from the modest beginning to one of the fastest spreading services today. Each generation of bike sharing systems had its challenges, but the advancement in technology was and is a key factor in eliminating any short comings or problem facing it as well as opening new opportunities for enhancing the service and the user experience. The main focus of this thesis is to propose a new design concept of bike sharing system using axiomatic design theory, the concept consist of a modified bike sharing model that can help solve some of the challenges faced by the traditional models while meeting the customer’s needs and the basic functional requirements of a traditional bake sharing program. Axiomatic design theory provides a method for the design of products, it makes it possible to design structure and decompose function at the same time. Utilizing currently available technologies such as electrical components and global positioning systems, the new system will include a new design for the bike, the docking station, central control station, and payment systems.fi=Opinnäytetyö kokotekstinä PDF-muodossa.|en=Thesis fulltext in PDF format.|sv=Lärdomsprov tillgängligt som fulltext i PDF-format

Fast-waking and low-voltage thermoelectric and photovoltaic CMOS chargers for energy-harvesting wireless microsensors

The small size of wireless microsystems allows them to be deployed within larger systems to sense and monitor various indicators throughout many applications. However, their small size restricts the amount of energy that can be stored in the system. Current microscale battery technologies do not store enough energy to power the microsystems for more than a few months without recharging. Harvesting ambient energy to replenish the on-board battery extend the lifetime of the microsystem. Although light and thermal energy are more practical in some applications than other forms of ambient energy, they nevertheless suffer from long energy droughts. Additionally, due to the very limited space available in the microsystem, the system cannot store enough energy to continue operation throughout these energy droughts. Therefore, the microsystem must reliably wake from these energy droughts, even if the on-board battery has been depleted. The challenge here is waking a microsystem directly from an ambient source transducer whose voltage and power levels are limited due to their small size. Starter circuits must be used to ensure the system wakes regardless of the state of charge of the energy storage device. The purpose of the presented research is to develop, design, simulate, fabricate, test and evaluate CMOS integrated circuits that can reliably wake from no energy conditions and quickly recharge a depleted battery. Since the battery is depleted during startup, the system must use the low voltage produced by the energy harvesting transducer to transfer energy. The presented system has the fastest normalized wake time while reusing the inductor already present in the battery charger for startup, therefore, minimizing the overall footprint of the system.Ph.D

New trends in electrical vehicle powertrains

The electric vehicle and plug-in hybrid electric vehicle play a fundamental role in the forthcoming new paradigms of mobility and energy models. The electrification of the transport sector would lead to advantages in terms of energy efficiency and reduction of greenhouse gas emissions, but would also be a great opportunity for the introduction of renewable sources in the electricity sector. The chapters in this book show a diversity of current and new developments in the electrification of the transport sector seen from the electric vehicle point of view: first, the related technologies with design, control and supervision, second, the powertrain electric motor efficiency and reliability and, third, the deployment issues regarding renewable sources integration and charging facilities. This is precisely the purpose of this book, that is, to contribute to the literature about current research and development activities related to new trends in electric vehicle power trains.Peer ReviewedPostprint (author's final draft

Design and creation of different simulation architectures for hybrid and electric vehicles

PFC del programa Erasmus EPSTreball desenvolupat dins el marc del programa 'European Project Semester'.Development of electric vehicle architectures requires complex analysis and innovative designs in order to produce a highly efficient mode of personal transportation acceptable to the target demographic. Using computer-aided modeling and simulation has been proven to decrease the development time of conventional vehicles while increasing overall success of the product design. Computer-aided automotive development also allows a fast response to the testing and inclusion of developing technologies in individual systems. Therefore, it follows to use this technique in the research and development of electric vehicles for consumer markets. This paper presents a system level model development and simulation for an electric vehicle using the Matlab-Simulink platform and its associated process. The current state of the art technologies for electric and plug-in hybrid electric vehicles are given to provide an introduction into the subject. Following, the project development is briefly described, detailing the specific goals for the project and the methods by which results were achieved. Next the paper discusses the analytical and simulation models for each key component as divided by the following systems: battery, charging, and traction. Model assembly and the development of a graphic user interface follows. Finally, the testing procedures for model validation, along with results, and future project works are provided

Model-based design for self-sustainable sensor nodes

Long-term and maintenance-free operation is a critical feature for large-scale deployed battery-operated sensor nodes. Energy harvesting (EH) is the most promising technology to overcome the energy bottleneck of today’s sensors and to enable the vision of perpetual operation. However, relying on fluctuating environmental energy requires an application-specific analysis of the energy statistics combined with an in-depth characterization of circuits and algorithms, making design and verification complex. This article presents a model-based design (MBD) approach for EH-enabled devices accounting for the dynamic behavior of components in the power generation, conversion, storage, and discharge paths. The extension of existing compact models combined with data-driven statistical modeling of harvesting circuits allows accurate offline analysis, verification, and validation. The presented approach facilitates application-specific optimization during the development phase and reliable long-term evaluation combined with environmental datasets. Experimental results demonstrate the accuracy and flexibility of this approach: the model verification of a solar-powered wireless sensor node shows a determination coefficient () of 0.992, resulting in an energy error of only -1.57 % between measurement and simulation. Compared to state-of-practice methods, the MBD approach attains a reduction of the estimated state-of-charge error of up to 10.2 % in a real-world scenario. MBD offers non-trivial insights on critical design choices: the analysis of the storage element selection reveals a 2–3 times too high self-discharge per capacity ratio for supercapacitors and a peak current constrain for lithium-ion polymer batteries

State-of-the-art assessment of electric and hybrid vehicles

Data are presented that were obtained from the electric and hybrid vehicles tested, information collected from users of electric vehicles, and data and information on electric and hybrid vehicles obtained on a worldwide basis from manufacturers and available literature. The data given include: (1) information and data base (electric and hybrid vehicle systems descriptions, sources of vehicle data and information, and sources of component data); (2) electric vehicles (theoretical background, electric vehicle track tests, user experience, literature data, and summary of electric vehicle status); (3) electric vehicle components (tires, differentials, transmissions, traction motors, controllers, batteries, battery chargers, and component summary); and (4) hybrid vehicles (types of hybrid vehicles, operating modes, hybrid vehicles components, and hybrid vehicles performance characteristics)

Design and development of multifunctional energy harvesting and storage systems for sensor applications

This research focuses on the design and development of multifunctional components intended to provide three basic functions: (i) power generation, (ii) power storage, and (iii) structural support. They are made of composite multi-material systems that include smart materials. By combining various functions into the same component significant performance, weight, space, assembly and packing benefits can be achieved. A major portion of this thesis is devoted to the use of piezoelectric layers in order to generate few milliwatts of power and enhance the utility of electrical mobility products and subsystems while facilitating new venues for implementing such devices. Shoes and pneumatic tires were used to harvest energy from their innate motion and various useful applications of harvested energy have been demonstrated in the form of sensors and power sources for larger devices. Shoe-based power generation can be used for charging Radio Frequency IDentification (RFID) tags, GPS sensors, portable electronics, etc. Tire-based power generation can be used for powering battery-less wireless Tire Pressure Monitoring Systems (TPMS), wireless Vehicle Speed Sensors (VSS), tire health monitoring sensors, etc. Fully functional proof-of-product prototypes of a variety of multifunctional components were developed and subjected to experimentation and testing using custom designed and built lab-scale made experimental machinery. Contrary to the paradigm, the possibility of using piezoelectric materials in automotive tires to produce few watts of power (>2 watts) has been successfully demonstrated with applications ranging from powering more demanding sensors to onboard batteries. An Electronic Vehicle Control System (EVCS) with electronic differential and cruise control capabilities has also been designed, developed and tested on the Extended Range Plug-In Hybrid vehicle previously developed at UOIT