Realisation and Implementation of a TEG-Harvester

Introduction

A key aspect for the design of WSNs is the energy source and therefore the amount of energy available. Conventional energy sources like batteries have the implication of a limited lifetime of a node and thefore the entire network. Energy harvesting can help to prolong the lifetime and reduce the need for maintenance. A popular approach to energy harvesting is the use of solar panels, which offer a comparably large power output. However, our experiments have shown, that this approach might not always be feasible for some applications, as the performance of solar panels might be reduced over time, for instance by dust.

The use of a Thermoelectric Generator (TEG), as evaluated in [1], might offer advantages for a variety of WSN applications. While the use of TEGs in WSN-nodes is a known approach, the feasibility of using the heat gradient between the layers of soil should be evaluated in experiments by comparing different harvesting setups. As the typical power output of TEGs in this scenario is expected to be comparatively low, the feasibility of powering a WSN node should be analyzed.

Skills

The following skills are helpful for the execution of this thesis (not all of them are required!):

• C

Links

• Contiki-NG
• RIOT
• Hinweise zur Durchführung von studentischen Arbeiten am IBR

Literature

1. [Pullwitt:2018:FSE:3277883.3277886]