Recent energy harvesting research has developed dielectric elastomer (DE) energy harvesting devices for use in low frequency applications including waves, wind and human motion. The use of dielectric elastomers for energy harvesting is a growing field, which has great potential from an energy density viewpoint. While DE has shown promise for energy harvesting applications such as walking where the mechanical behavior could affect the user, there has been little investigation into the damping effects induced by DE energy harvesting. As devices capable of harvesting larger amounts of energy are developed harvesting-induced changes in the mechanical behavior of the dielectric must be investigated. This paper investigates the structural damping effects of DE energy harvesting in order to develop a more in-depth understanding of the changes in system response due to increased energy harvesting. Results relating energy harvesting strain and bias voltage to damping provide a framework for developing energy harvesting techniques which improve the overall performance of the system.
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