This paper describes a novel airflow energy harvester for wireless sensing applications. The energy harvester consists of a wing that is attached to a cantilever spring. A set of permanent magnets is fixed on the wing and a coil is attached to the base of the energy harvester. The wing oscillates when the airflow blows over it, which causes the magnetic flux cutting the coil to change and generates electrical power. The device has dimensions of 14.1cm×10cm×5.5cm. Experimental results have shown that the energy harvester can operate at wind speeds as low as 1.5m•s-1 with a corresponding electrical output power of 20µW. When the airflow speed is between 2 and 4m•s-1, which are typical values measured in the duct of an office building, the output power is between 90 and 573µW, which is sufficient for periodic sensing and wireless transmission.
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