Seminar: Harnessing Bistable Structural Dynamics for Vibration Energy Harvesting

Abstract

Bistable structures exhibit two statically stable configurations and the transition from one configuration to another -- an energetic phenomenon referred to as snap-through -- has recently been recognized as an innovative and effective means to empower novel functionality and advanced performance in a variety of engineered systems. Given that many classical studies of bistability focused on avoiding snap-through due to its historical association with failure, the framework of understanding the favorable large amplitude, snap-through dynamics of bistable structures is not well established and the development of methods to harness them requires new theoretical and experimental emphases. This talk will describe comprehensive efforts made to elucidate effective means for leveraging bistability for vibration energy harvesting. In such contexts, the intelligently exploited snap-through dynamics of electromechanical bistable devices are shown to generate significant electrical power, thus providing a framework from which to realize future generations of self-sustaining sensors/transducers, portable electronics, and adaptive structural systems. The talk will also describe how exploiting the large differences amongst nonlinear dynamic regimes lays a firm foundation for ongoing and future research in the fields of sensing, vibration/noise control, and structural properties adaptation.

Biography

Dr. Ryan L. Harne is currently a Research Fellow in the Department of Mechanical Engineering at the University of Michigan, Ann Arbor. He received his Ph.D. degree in mechanical engineering from Virginia Tech in 2012. His research interests include vibration energy harvesting, control, and mitigation; adaptive systems and smart structures; sensing, sensors, and detection strategies for structures representing scales from nano- to macro; and elucidating and harnessing the rich vibrations, dynamics, and acoustics of multiscale and multifield systems spanning disciplines including engineering, physics, and biology. Dr. Harne is an active member of the ASME Design Engineering Division Technical Committee on Vibration and Sound, and the ASME Aerospace Division Adaptive Structures and Material Systems Branch Technical Committee on Energy Harvesting. He was the recipient of the 2011 Acoustical Society of America Royster Award and the 2011 NASA-Virginia Space Grant Consortium Research Fellowship. He recently served as Guest Associate Editor for a Special Issue of the ASME Journal of Vibration and Acoustics.

Hosted by Professor Marcelo Dapino