Power transfer maximization method of a heat recovery system based on thermoelectric generator (TEG) patches using peak trapping or peak bracketing and scanning-based maximum power point tracing (MPPT) algorithms is presented in this paper. The MPPT algorithms operate based on perturb-and-observe (P&O) methodology. An electronic control unit (ECU), in which the MPPT algorithm will be embedded, perturbs an electronic switch (a transistor) in a switched-mode DC-DC converter with pulse signals

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... variable duty ratio. The MPPT unit will control the pulse duty-ratio based on the observations of the converter output power until finding a certain duty-ratio, which drives the system such that it operates its peak or maximum power point (MPP). By decrementing the duty-ratio step-size and changing the step-number for each scanningstep iteration, the proposed MPPT algorithm can trap the maximum power points. Five types of the MPPT algorithms are proposed, designed and verified through simulations. Appropriate selections of the variable step size can potentially improve the convergence speed of the algorithms. The peak-bracketing (peak trapping) MPPT algorithm, can reach the MPP after 19 P&O-steps and outperforms the other types of the proposed scanningbased MPPT algorithms. The implementation of the algorithms will not require multiplication and division operations, resulting in a very low computing energy and complexity.