Development of magnetic induction energy harvesting for condition monitoring

Condition monitoring can play an important supporting role in the supply of electrical power. Autonomous wireless condition monitoring sensors have the potential to ensure reliability, at lower cost, as the power supply system complexity increases. This paper explores the practical issues surrounding the use of magnetic induction to power sensors, from which design drivers are developed. The relationship between available output power and energy harvester volume is analysed and verified by experiment. The impact of core shape and core material choice is demonstrated by the results, and a design approach is presented to benchmark and optimise volume efficiency. These results are used to show how the harvester could be scaled to suit different combinations of conductor current and output power.