I was investigating Bruce Depalmas N machine and I don't know if this idea has been put forward yet but a self energizing machine would do away with expensive cumbersome magnets, and its output can be regulated by the speed of the machine.
basically it is using two homo pole gens to energize the main magnets at speed should produce a very large magnetic field if coils are matched to the output of the two separate homo pole gens or they can be stacked for more voltage to drive magnets.
One patent explaining plasma brushes for the pickup is US20130229086
One question i have for someone that knows about plasma brushes is can the plasma be modulated to produce an AC output ?