A new magnetmotor idea for you to evaluate.

[Low-Q]

Hi Vidar, The sea-saw will just come to rest where the most amount of magnetism interacts with the chain.
The rotating bed the saw is on will be attracted to the magnet ,then just stop.
Just my opinion

artv

That is what I think too. Conservative forces cannot do work, so somewhere along the cycle this rotor will stop.
First, I build a seesaw with one loop of magnetic chain. I make a small gap first, then approach the magnet and see what happens. Then make a big gap and approach the magnet, and see what happens.
I assume that the small gap will widen when I approach a magnet.


Vidar

[Low-Q]

Attached I have illustrated 3 figures. Figure 1 illustrates that I pull the tight chain towards left.
It seems unreasonable that the seesaw will do anything. Maybe something different with a magnetic field due to the magnetic influence on the horizontal part of the chain.
Figure 2 is how a chain shapes when I approach it to a magnet. It gets pointy close to the magnet.
Figure 3 is not what is happening when I approach a magnet.


I will test the seesaw when I come home from work.


Vidar

[Low-Q]

I finally got to test the seesaw. The rods used through the pulleys are stainless steel, and not ferromagnetic at all.
What I can say, is that the chain got more tension when the seesaw is in parallell. An engineering problem that can be solved.
Maybe a common fulcrum as this isn't the way to do it. I think I need two separate fulcrums in the center of each seesaw. That will make an instable seesaw that will collapse, but I'll try to find a way to fix that problem with some guides/tracks.

That said, I did some tests you can watch in this video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7QACX7U-bDg


What I found is that nothing happens to the seesaw wether the narrow or wide part face the magnet, or if I pull the chain with my finger. What I expected was that the narrow end opens up in order to expose more magnetic chain when it's facing a magnet, but absolutely nothing happens. Not even a tiny bit.
The only thing that happens is that there is more attraction when the seesaws wide end (more chain) is facing the magnet. It seems to me that no effort is necessary to change magnetic attraction from weak to strong, or from strong to weak, but there is some friction that most probably is bugging the experiment. I would however expect a little reaction to the narrow gap when the magnet approaches - as mentioned before, the magnet will seek the most magnetic attraction, meaning that the seesaw SHOULD open the side that is facing the magnet - at least a tiny bit. But no. Nothing happens.


I am printing some new pulleys with a little wider holes so they turn more easily. Because a couple of them does not turn around, but the chain just slides over them. I also need to find a better arrangement to the seesaw so the chain can sustain its tension regardless of the seesaws positions. Not much tension, but enough for the chain to not jump over the edges of the pulleys.


Think a little about this experiment while I'm printing new parts. Next experiment will not be untill tomorrow or friday - hopefully with less friction, and proper tension to the seesaw.


Vidar

[Low-Q]

This is the new seesaw. It should be correct design.


Vidar

[Low-Q]

Hi there,


Do you have any idea where I can buy small conveyor belts or track links? I'm looking for plastic/non magnetic belts similar to what you'll find in LEGO machines, but something stronger.
I need to do something with the chain I am supposed to use. The chain I got, is getting stiff near a magnetic field. Each link stick together and creates friction. Even ballbearings is hard to turn near a magnetic field.


What I plan to do instead, is using a plastic belt, and glue on tiny magnets - lots of them. In this way I can make a rotor with a permanentmagnetic belt that is actually attracting or repelling the stator magnet. So I can use two stator magnets that attract on one side and repel on the other side. Using the "mass gradient" in the rotor (due to the alignment of the wheels, this might provide some interesting results - most impertantly something to learn from.


Vidar