AbstractsComputer Science

Harvesting energy from previously unemployed ambient sources can play an important role in saving energy and reducing the dependency to primary energy sources (AC power or battery) of an electronic system. In this work, we investigate harvesting thermo-electric energy from wasted heat in a microprocessor and propose a generic rule-based framework for energy management. We develop an analytical model to accurately estimate the recycled energy considering the non-uniformity of temperature distribution on the die surface. Further, we propose a possible arrangement for using the TEG on a processor and provide measurement results on the amount of harvested energy. Next, a rule-based energy management system is proposed for managing the acquisition, mixing, delivery and storage of energy for any collection of electrical energy sources and electrical appliances, which have different energy generation and consumption parameters. The proposed energy management system is easily scalable, to cater to a variety of applications with different requirements, while improving the energy utilization and operational lifetime of energy sources.