A switched mode Li-ion battery charger with multiple energy harvesting systems simultaneously used as input sources

Energy harvesting is a green source of energy which can help reduce the maintenance cost in the frequent replacement of batteries, reduce pollution, and enable the long term powering of devices in places that are not easily accessible. In recent past, systems have been proposed to use energy harvesting systems to charge energy storage devices. This paper presents a simple but effective solution to combine multiple energy harvesting systems simultaneously for battery charging. This ensures the effective use of environmental energy for the powering of microsystems at all times. The proposed system has a monitoring interface, which monitors the energy harvesting systems´ outputs, combined with a battery charger to charge a Li-ion battery, thereby providing an approach which ensures that the battery can always be charged using green energy. The simulation of the system´s behavior takes into account the variable nature of the different energy harvesting sources to ensure that the presented system is a viable option when dealing with multiple energy harvesting systems and Li-ion battery charging.