Thermal energy harvesting optimisation with bistable elements and collaborative behavior
US9735707B2 · kind B2 · utility
Assignees
Inventors
Key dates
| Filing date | Nov 8, 2012 |
| Grant date | Aug 15, 2017 |
| Priority date | — |
| Expiry date | May 29, 2034 |
Classification
- Technology area (CPC Y)Emerging Cross-Sectional Technologies
- CPC primaryY10T29/42
- WIPO fieldElectrical machinery, apparatus, energy
- WIPO sectorElectrical engineering
Abstract
System for converting thermal energy into electrical energy (S1) intended to be arranged between a hot source (SC) and a cold source (SF), comprising means for converting thermal energy into mechanical energy (6) and a piezoelectric material, with the means for converting thermal energy into mechanical energy (6) comprising groups (G1, G2) of at least three bimetallic strips (9, 11, 13) linked mechanically together by their longitudinal ends and suspended above a substrate (12), each bimetallic strip (9, 11, 13) comprising two stable states wherein it has in each of the states a curvature, with two directly adjacent bimetallic strips (9, 11, 13) having for a given temperature opposite curvatures, with the switching from one stable state of the bimetallic strips (9, 11, 13) to the other causing the deformation of a piezoelectric material.
Source: USPTO / EPO open patent data. Objective bibliographic and citation counts.