Spring Powered Cars

[markdansie]

Leonardo Da Vinci designed the first one, many later day model makers inspires the imagination.


Have some fun with this


http://revolution-green.com/spring-powered-car/


Kind Regards
Mark

[conradelektro]

There is a fairly good science fiction story featuring "spring powered machines" (no, not the girl):

http://windupstories.com/books/windup-girl/    The Windup Girl, by Paolo Bacigalupi.    The "spring powered machines" are not the main plot but appear several times in the background narrative.

In the 1950-ies there where a lot of spring powered toys because batteries where too expensive. As a kid I had a clockwork motor for a metal construction set. And I still have a rather big and heavy flash light which can be "wound up".

There are also "crank radios" available: http://crank-radio-review.toptenreviews.com/ But the best "crank radios" now also have a little solar panel. (Note, not all "crank radios" have a spring.)

And you could build your own hand cranked power station: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qec_qsDseCY (Well, do not expect too much power, 0.8 Watt for modest needs. And there is no spring.)

By turning a crank (best with your feet pedalling) an ordinary person could create 50 Watt per hour. A very strong person could create 500 Watt for an hour (and then being exhausted). So, do not plan to wind up a big "spring power generator" yourself.

Greetings, Conrad

[ramset]

Conrad
quote
By turning a crank (best with your feet pedalling) an ordinary person could create 50 Watt per hour. A very strong person could create 500 Watt for an hour (and then being exhausted). So, do not plan to wind up a big "spring power generator" yourself.
end quote

Never mind the wind mill ...Make an exercise bike or gym equipment that can tally output
as well as feed back into the grid through all these gridtie solar systems we are paying for across the country.
every Grandma would want one [saving money and feeling useful/good as well as strong]and every Kid should have one running his video game so he doesn't turn into a blob[stop pedaling and the game quits].

a Monstrous market in my opinion,   work and Pay [paydown the electric bill]
beats the heck outa peddling for friction/stupid....

On topic for Mark D would be the automobile shock absorber power recovery system for the bumps in the road
and could also be used in an excersize stepping machine.[Or retrofit on Tom Reed's Trike for more energy harvesting  ]

Chet K

[conradelektro]

Conrad

a Monstrous market in my opinion,   work and Pay [paydown the electric bill]
beats the heck outa peddling for friction/stupid....

Chet K

In principle it is a very good idea, the exercise bike or exercise machine (like a stepper) which generates power.

I have watched several enterprises trying to market such an exercise bike or stepper in the last thirty years (I think that a "stepper" is better than a bike). For many reasons it always failed. The major reason was cost. The "generator exercise machines" I found where all very expensive, between 1500.-- and 3000.-- Euros, and quickly disappeared from the market or never came to market.

Why is it expensive:

- needs very good and sturdy construction to make it save for the general public (a stand for an ordinary bike is nonsense, much to dangerous for the consumer market)
- needs a rather big battery as an energy storage to make it useful
- needs good and save electronics (battery charger, converter) to make it fit for the consumer market
- has to look nice and trendy because people want to put it in the living space of their home

All this together leads to a very expensive exercise machine. In principle the technology is known and feasible, but not cheaply, as many imagine. Yes, it can be done, but needs very good engineering, trendy design and heavy marketing. It will never be a cheap thing, like all good exercise machines.

Greetings, Conrad

[ramset]

Conrad
Quote
1]  needs a rather big battery as an energy storage to make it useful

2}needs good and save electronics (battery charger, converter) to make it fit for the consumer market
end quote

Conrad the world has changed, the above components are already in place in government funded solar projects around the globe
here in the US every 2 minutes they are selling them [solar panel installs]

A little wire running into the wall to go down to the inverter
is all you need now.

also retrofitting existing excersize bikes ,or even making one of those
pedals on a pedestal that Mom uses while she watches the TV.[sits on the floor in front of the Barko lounger].

its a ready made market just waiting for the right product that
hooks right up to these new taxpayer funded solar arrays.
With an aging population [like never before] that NEEDS to excersize
to diminish heath risk ,its a perfect fit.

Chet K