Abstract Summary
This paper investigates energy harvesting on railway bridges. The electromechanical behaviour of a cantilever-based energy harvester is represented by an analytical model for the estimation of the energy harvested from train-induced bridge vibrations. A genetic algorithm constrained to geometry and structural integrity is studied to solve the design optimisation problem of 3D printed energy harvesters tuned to the fundamental frequency of the bridge. Additive manufacturing by 3D printing of the substructure of the harvester is implemented to maximise the design flexibility and energy performance. The design and manufacture procedure of an optimal device prototype with PLA substructure is presented for a real bridge in an is service High-Speed line. The optimal design prototype is experimentally validated under laboratory conditions. Finally, the performance of energy harvesting is evaluated from experimental data measured by the authors.
