A Passive Wireless Sensing Method Based on Magnetic Resonance Coupling and Bulk Acoustic Wave Device

In this article, we propose a passive wireless strain sensing system with magnetic resonance coupling and bulk acoustic wave (BAW) strain sensor to evaluate the structural safety of megastructures. The BAW sensor provides a high quality factor, and the magnetic resonance coupling enhances the transmitter’s gain at the system’s operational frequency. The experimental and analytical methods are investigated to characterize the effect of different parameters on this system. The results show that the sensing system can detect the resonant frequency of the receiver when the coupling coefficient is less than 0.01. Experimental demonstrations show that a prototype sensing system had a strain measurement range of
$500\,\mu \varepsilon $
and a resolution of 4 Hz/
$\mu \varepsilon $
when the separation distance between coils was 10 cm. Compared with conventional passive wireless sensing systems, the change of coupling coefficient has little effect on the resonant frequency of the receiver. We envision that this system has the potential to realize noncontact strain measurement, while the measurement device is in an unsteady movement mode. In the future, this sensing system can be integrated into an unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) to measure the strain in megastructures.