Piezoelectric Energy Harvesting Floor Mat

The purpose of our project is to create a device that harvests ambient energy sources into usable electrical energy. We have decided to create a floor mat that will absorb the mechanical energy of people walking across it in order to create electrical energy. This can be accomplished by placing piezoelectric materials inside the mat, or in conjunction with the mat. For this project, we are required to create a prototype that proves the concept of energy harvesting devices. Our goal is to generate enough energy with our mat to power a PIC Microcontroller that can display how much energy is harvested per period of time. Our purpose is more educational in order to see how efficient our floor mat is and see what type of electronics can be powered based on how efficient our floor mat is.
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