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J. Renewable Sustainable Energy 1, 062701 (2009); doi:10.1063/1.3255465 (14 pages)

Wearable electronics self-powered by using human body heat: The state of the art and the perspective

Vladimir Leonov 1
and Ruud Vullers 2

1 Smart Systems and Energy Technology Unit, Interuniversity Microelectronics Center (IMEC), Kapeldreef 75, 3001 Leuven, Belgium Map This map
2 Smart Systems and Energy Technology Unit, IMEC/Holst Centre, High Tech Campus 31, Eindhoven 5656 AE, The Netherlands Map This map

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In this paper, we present our vision of what kind of wearable devices and how they can be powered by the heat of human beings and by using ambient light. The basic principles of designing body-powered devices and ways of their hybridizing with photovoltaic cells are discussed. The mechanisms of thermoregulation in humans and the laws of thermodynamics enable placing a distinct boarder between realistic targets and the science fiction. These allow prediction of application areas for wearable energy harvesters accounting for competitive batteries with long service life. The existing family of body-powered wearable devices and new technologies for thermopiles are discussed. The theory and practice point at the necessity of using microelectronic and microelectromechanical system technologies for the target application area. These technologies for thermopiles offer the possibility of reduced production cost. Therefore, autonomous systems powered thermoelectrically could be successfully marketed. The related aspects of design and fabrication are discussed.

© 2009 American Institute of Physics

ACKNOWLEDGMENTS

The authors gratefully acknowledge the designers of low-power electronic circuits and modules, T. Torfs, R. F. Yazicioglu, and I. Doms as well as the whole enthusiastic research team of IMEC and Holst Centre working on energy harvesters, photovoltaic cells, and wireless systems. Special thanks are due to C. Chan (SEMICON Singapore) for the invitation to present our research (Ref. 25), which has made it easier to summarize the work in this paper.

Article Outline

  1. WHAT IS AN ENERGY HARVESTER
  2. THE HISTORY OF ENERGY HARVESTING FOR POWERING DEVICES
  3. THEORETICAL BASES OF BODY-POWERED ELECTRONICS
  4. WEARABLE DEVICES POWERED BY THE USER’S BODY
  5. BODY-POWERED SYSTEMS IN CLOTHING
  6. MODERN TECHNOLOGIES FOR WEARABLE THERMOPILES
  7. CONCLUSION

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KEYWORDS and PACS

Keywords

energy harvesting, photovoltaic cells, thermopiles

PACS

ARTICLE DATA

History
Received 29 July 2009
Accepted 6 October 2009
Published 6 November 2009
Permalink
http://link.aip.org/link/JRSEBH/v1/i6/p062701/s1

PUBLICATION DATA

ISSN:

19417012 (print)  
19417012 (online)

Publisher:

$abstract.society.value is a Member of CrossRef American Institute of Physics

  1. V. Leonov and R. Vullers, Proceedings of the Fifth European Conference on Thermoelectrics (ECT `07), Odessa, Ukraine, 10–12 September 2007, pp. 47–52.
  2. Heat Loss from Animals and Man, edited by J. Monteith and L. Mount (Butterworths, London, 1974).
  3. V. Leonov, B. Gyselinckx, C. Van Hoof, T. Torfs, R. Yazicioglu, R. Vullers, and P. Fiorini, in Proceedings of the Second European Conference on Smart Systems Integration (SSI '08), Barcelona, Spain, 9 and 10 April 2008, edited by T. Gessner (VDE, Berlin, 2008), pp. 217–224.
  4. V. Leonov and P. Fiorini, Proceedings of the Fifth European Conference on Thermoelectrics (ICT '07), Odessa, Ukraine, 10–12 September 2007, pp. 129–133.
  5. V. Leonov and R. J. M. Vullers, J. Electron. Mater. 38, 1491 (2009).
  6. T. Torfs, V. Leonov, and R. J. M. Vullers, Sensors & Transducers J. 80, 1230 (2007).
  7. T. Torfs, V. Leonov, C. Van Hoof, and B. Gyselinckx, Proceedings of the Fifth IEEE International Conference on Sensors, Daegu, Korea, 22–25 October 2006, pp. 427–430.
  8. T. Torfs, V. Leonov, R. F. Yazicioglu, R. J. M. Vullers, P. Fiorini, B. Gyselinckx, and C. Van Hoof, Proceedings of the Seventh IEEE International Conference on Sensors, Lecce, Italy, 26–29 October 2008, pp. 1269–1272.
  9. M. Van Bavel, V. Leonov, R. F. Yazicioglu, T. Torfs, C. Van Hoof, N. E. Posthuma, and R. J. M. Vullers, Sensors & Transducers J. 94, 103 (2008).
  10. R. F. Yazicioglu, P. Merken, B. Puers, and C. Van Hoof, IEEE J. Solid-State Circuits 42, 1100 (2007).
  11. N. de Vicq, F. Robert, J. Penders, B. Gyselinckx, and T. Torfs, Proceedings of IEEE Biomedical Circuits and Systems Conference (BIOCAS '07), Montreal, Canada, 27–30 November 2007, pp. 163–166.
  12. R. F. Yazicioglu, P. Merken, R. Puers, and C. Van Hoof, IEEE J. Solid-State Circuits 43, 3025 (2008). [Inspec]
  13. I. Doms, P. Merken, R. Mertens, and C. Van Hoof, Digest of Technical Papers IEEE International Solid-State Circuits Conference (ISSCC), San Francisco, CA, 7–11 February 2009, pp. 300–301a.
  14. V. Leonov, J. Electron. Mater. 38, 1483 (2009).
  15. V. Leonov, Z. Wang, P. Fiorini, and C. Van Hoof, Sensors and Transducers J. 103, 29 (2009).
  16. V. Z. Wang, V. Leonov, P. Fiorini, and C. Van Hoof, “Realization of wearable miniaturized thermoelectric generator for human body applications,” Sens. Actuators, A (in press).
  17. V. Leonov, Z. Wang, R. Pellens, C. Gui, R. Vullers, and J. Su, Proceedings of the Fifth International Energy Conversion Engineering Conference (IECEC), St. Louis, MO, 25–27 June 2007, AIAA Paper No. 2007-4782-754.
  18. J. Su, R. Vullers, M. Goedbloed, Y. van Andel, R. Pellens, C. Gui, V. Leonov, and Z. Wang, Proceedings of the Seventh Power MEMS Workshop, Freiburg, Germany, 28 and 29 November 2007, pp. 153–156.
  19. J. Su, M. Goedbloed, R. J. M. Vullers, Y. van Andel, V. Leonov, and Z. Wang, Proceedings of the 35th International Conference on Micro & Nano Engineering, Ghent, Belgium, September 28–October 1 2009, [“Thermoelectric energy harvester fabricated by stepper,” special issue of Microelectron. Eng. (in press)].
  20. H. Böttner, Proceedings of the 21st International Conference on Thermoelectrics (ICT '02), Long Beach, CA, 25–29 August 2002, pp. 511–518.
  21. G. Snyder, J. Lim, C. -K. Huang, and J. -P. Fleurial, Nature Mater. 2, 528 (2003). [ISI] [MEDLINE]
  22. S. Sedky, A. Kamal, M. Yomn, H. Bakr, R. Ghannam, V. Leonov, and P. Fiorini, Proceedings of the 15th IEEE International Conference on Solid-State Sensors, Actuators and Microsystems (Transducers '09), Denver, CO, 21–25 June 2009, pp. 1035–1038.
  23. I. Stark, Proceedings of the Third IEEE International Workshop on Wearable and Implantable Body Sensor Networks (BSN '06), Boston, MA, 3–5 April 2006.
  24. V. Leonov, R. Vullers, M. Goedbloed, and Y. van Andel, Proceedings of the Sixth European Conference on Thermoelectrics (ECT '08), Paris, 2–4 July 2008, pp. O17-1–4.
  25. V. Leonov and R. J. M. Vullers, SEMICON Singapore, 20–22 May 2009, “Wearable electronics self-powered from the human body: State of the art and perspectives,” http://www.semiconsingapore.org/ProgrammesandEvents/cms/groups/public/documents/web_content/ctr_029926.pdf.

Figures (10) Tables (4)

Figures (click on thumbnails to view enlargements)

FIG. 1
Body-powered wireless pulse oximeter.
FIG. 1 View Enlargement | Download High Resolution Image (.zip file)
FIG. 2
Power consumption pie of pulse oximeter at an update rate of 15 s.
FIG. 2 View Enlargement | Download High Resolution Image (.zip file)
FIG. 3
Body-powered ECG headband: (1) is a TEG and (2) is an electronic module.
FIG. 3 View Enlargement | Download High Resolution Image (.zip file)
FIG. 4
Wireless EEG system with hybrid thermoelectric-PV power supply.
FIG. 4 View Enlargement | Download High Resolution Image (.zip file)
FIG. 5
Power consumption pie of self-powered battery-free EEG systems.
FIG. 5 View Enlargement | Download High Resolution Image (.zip file)
FIG. 6
Wireless ECG shirt powered by a hybrid thermoelectric-PV power supply: three thermoelectric modules, one of which intentionally colored in pink (1), and amorphous PV cells (2).
FIG. 6 View Enlargement | Download High Resolution Image (.zip file)
FIG. 7
Electronic module of the EEG shirt upon its waterproof encapsulation.
FIG. 7 View Enlargement | Download High Resolution Image (.zip file)
FIG. 8
Scaling of a thermopile at its constant thermal resistance. While thermopiles on the market require high aspect ratio l/w (left), their miniaturized microelectronic counterparts need much lower aspect ratio (right).
FIG. 8 View Enlargement | Download High Resolution Image (.zip file)
FIG. 9
Micromachined polycrystalline SiGe thermopile: (a) Design of a thermocouple with a 2.5 μm deep trench, (a) and (b) are hot and cold thermocouple junctions, respectively; (b) SEM picture of three thermocouple bridges over a trench; (c) a corner of the rim filled with thermocouples; (d) the design of a thermopile on a silicon rim (not in scale); (e) the design of a thermoelectric generator, wherein the thermopile die is flip-chip bonded to the heat sink (top) die; and [(f) and (g)] two wrist TEGs with a micromachined thermopile inside.
FIG. 9 View Enlargement | Download High Resolution Image (.zip file)
FIG. 10
Design of arcade thermocouples (left: three thermocouples are shown) (modify from Ref. 17), and a SEM picture of self-supported 6 μm tall released thermocouples with a critical dimension of 3 μm reported in Ref. 19.
FIG. 10 View Enlargement | Download High Resolution Image (.zip file)

Tables

Table I. Pulse oximeter features at 22 °C, typically.
Table II. EEG headband features.
Table III. Features of the battery-free electroencephalorgaphy diadem with hybrid power supply at daytime, typically.
Table IV. Some features of the ECG shirt with hybrid power supply (preliminary data).

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