Development of Self-Powered e-Gear Selector Based on Single-Electrode Triboelectric Nanogenerator (TENG) Technology

A novel e-Gear selector single-electrode-based triboelectric nanogenerator (TENG) was successfully designed, fabricated, and tested on flexible substrates. The proposed device consists of four TENG sensors representing the traditional gear shift selector (P, R, N, and D). Leather, cotton, paper, and thermoplastic polyurethane (TPU) were selected as bottom triboelectric layers for TENGs 1–4, respectively. Silver (Ag) ink was screen-printed on the backside of each layer representing the single electrode. Human skin was chosen as the top triboelectric layer. Based on the selection of the materials, each TENG device generates different output voltages, enabling the selection of the intended gear mode without the need for a complex control algorithm. The TENG device was characterized in terms of open-circuit voltage (<inline-formula xmlns:mml="http://www.w3.org/1998/Math/MathML" xmlns:xlink="http://www.w3.org/1999/xlink"> <tex-math notation="LaTeX">${V} _{\text {oc}}$ </tex-math></inline-formula>) and short-circuit current (<inline-formula xmlns:mml="http://www.w3.org/1998/Math/MathML" xmlns:xlink="http://www.w3.org/1999/xlink"> <tex-math notation="LaTeX">${I} _{\text {sc}}$ </tex-math></inline-formula>). The repeatability and reproducibility of the TENG device were evaluated by fabricating three samples of each TENG device and by testing each TENG device three times. An average <inline-formula xmlns:mml="http://www.w3.org/1998/Math/MathML" xmlns:xlink="http://www.w3.org/1999/xlink"> <tex-math notation="LaTeX">${V} _{\text {oc}}$ </tex-math></inline-formula> of <inline-formula xmlns:mml="http://www.w3.org/1998/Math/MathML" xmlns:xlink="http://www.w3.org/1999/xlink"> <tex-math notation="LaTeX">$4.27~\pm ~0.36$ </tex-math></inline-formula>, <inline-formula xmlns:mml="http://www.w3.org/1998/Math/MathML" xmlns:xlink="http://www.w3.org/1999/xlink"> <tex-math notation="LaTeX">$7~\pm ~0.31$ </tex-math></inline-formula>, <inline-formula xmlns:mml="http://www.w3.org/1998/Math/MathML" xmlns:xlink="http://www.w3.org/1999/xlink"> <tex-math notation="LaTeX">$9.05~\pm ~0.21$ </tex-math></inline-formula>, and <inline-formula xmlns:mml="http://www.w3.org/1998/Math/MathML" xmlns:xlink="http://www.w3.org/1999/xlink"> <tex-math notation="LaTeX">$12.38~\pm ~0.34$ </tex-math></inline-formula> Vpp, resulted in a power density of <inline-formula xmlns:mml="http://www.w3.org/1998/Math/MathML" xmlns:xlink="http://www.w3.org/1999/xlink"> <tex-math notation="LaTeX">$0.37~\pm ~0.05$ </tex-math></inline-formula>, <inline-formula xmlns:mml="http://www.w3.org/1998/Math/MathML" xmlns:xlink="http://www.w3.org/1999/xlink"> <tex-math notation="LaTeX">$0.72~\pm ~0.09$ </tex-math></inline-formula>, <inline-formula xmlns:mml="http://www.w3.org/1998/Math/MathML" xmlns:xlink="http://www.w3.org/1999/xlink"> <tex-math notation="LaTeX">$0.95~\pm ~0.07$ </tex-math></inline-formula>, and <inline-formula xmlns:mml="http://www.w3.org/1998/Math/MathML" xmlns:xlink="http://www.w3.org/1999/xlink"> <tex-math notation="LaTeX">$1.74~\pm ~0.10~\mu $ </tex-math></inline-formula>W/cm2, was measured for TENGs 1–4, respectively. The performance of the e-Gear selector showcased the potential of the TENG energy harvesting method for integration into the automotive industry, aligning with the rapid advancements in electric vehicle (EV) applications. This technology is particularly promising for future gear selector designs, as it eliminates the need for external power supplies, reduces cost, minimizes wiring, and offers greater flexibility in positioning within the vehicle.