Structural control with tuned inertial mass electromagnetic transducers

This paper investigates the validity of the tuned inertial mass electromagnetic transducer (TIMET) applied to building structures subjected to seismic motions. The TIMET is a device inspired by two innovative structural control devices proposed recently, that is, tuned viscous mass damper and electromagnetic transducer. The TIMET consists of a spring, an inertial mass produced by a ball screw mechanism, and an electromagnetic transducer part composed of a motor and an electrical circuit. The stiffness of the spring is tuned such that the inertial mass resonates with the vibrating building. This makes the motor installed in parallel with the inertial mass run up in an efficient way, and the vibration energy is converted to electrical energy effectively. As a result, vibration of the building decays fast and electrical energy is stored. This generated energy that is reusable for the self-powered control systems, structural health monitoring, emergency power source, and so on. In this paper, through numerical simulation studies employing the scaled three-story building model proposed for benchmark studies, the vibration reduction and energy harvesting capabilities of the TIMET is explored and the application potentiality to civil structures is discussed.