Method of harvesting/storing/converting energy for charging system of vehicle, involves locking storage element in modified condition and converting stored energy to work by not exposing element to signal and unlocking the element

摘要

The method involves exposing an active material storage element (12) e.g. shape memory alloy and shape memory polymer, to an activation signal produced by the energy source. The energy from the source is harvested by changing the element, after the exposure to the signal, so as to obtain a modified condition. The energy is stored by mechanically locking the element in modified condition and the stored energy is converted to work by not exposing the element to the signal and unlocking the element.