| Topic: |
Science > Physics |
| User: |
" Doug Goncz " |
| Date: |
30 Nov 2003 05:48:00 PM |
| Object: |
Power, Energy, and a Bicycle |
The ultracapacitors are currently off my bicycle. I'd mentioned them here.
I have a 4 inch diameter, 5 inch long, 6 pound Ametek servo motor chain driven
from the rear wheel 6 times faster than the wheel turns. An optional chain
connects it to the cranks.
I have two backlit DMMs with 0-20 V, 0-200 V, and 0-10 A ranges serving as
voltmeter and ammeter for the generator.
I have a 150 watt 110 VAC Samlex sine wave inverter.
I have a Luxor 110 VAC dimmer with indicator LEDs offering repeatable 100, 75,
50, 25, and 0 (off) percent settings. Percent of exactly what, I wonder...
I have two Minoura Space Bars riveted together with an internal sleeve, two
cigarette lighter sockets mounted to them, and a piece of a blue plastic outlet
box between them, holding the dimmer and a plywood faceplate that in turn holds
the DMMs with Velcro. I need to get Heli-Coils installed in the outlet box
since I've assembled the whole thing too many times. It just fits.
I have two lamp sockets with rotary switches mounted in their small clip-on
lamp shades which are in turn riveted to the ends of the Space Bars and
filleted with caulk to damp the vibration that would destroy the rivets.
I have two zip cord wires run sneakily from the socket through the inside of
the Space Bars.
I have two 15 watt _dimmable_ fluorescent bulbs roughly equivalent to 120 watts
of incandescent lighting, or your car's headlights. They completely flood the
area in front of the bicycle with an even wash of light.
I have a bicycle speedometer, odometer, clock. I never wear a watch. I need a
backlit version.
I have an inclinometer, coming, and probably nowhere to mount it, the dashboard
is so crowded. I even had to take off the bell.
Don't you wish you had all this stuff? You probably don't, because I haven't
yet wrired the lamps, gone out for a ride, and seen how it all works. I have
nothing to motivate you.
When I return the ultracapacitors to the system I'll have a stable source and
can use my light meter to see what the light output is at the four settings. Or
I can use my truck battery.
When I look at the light meter readings and apply the inverse square law for
radiation, I can compute the proportions between the safe speed associated with
each of the four settings. By picking a single speed and setting, I can compute
the other three.
When I coast down Upton Hill I can read the inclinometer and speedometer,
compute my rate of loss of potential energy, and determine how much power
(physics content) is being dissipated by wind drag, any load I apply in the
system, and the generation of heat.
When I climb illegally in Upton Hill Park after dark, I can see whether the
lowest setting can be powered by pedaling alone to provide enough light to
navigate the underused singletrack without giving me a heart attack. It
shouldn't be hard since the inverter idles 6 W and the load would probably be
7.5 W. I expect generator efficiency will be 80-90 percent.
When I ride the nearly level, unlit, open, C&O canal path at night, I can try
to find the forward speed that stabilizes the generator voltage at, say, 12 V,
at each of the four loads. I can then compare those speeds to the computed safe
speeds.
If I ever get around to any of this, I'll let you know.
For now, I'm just tired from mounting the inverter to the rack rails,
adjusting, riveting, and tightening the Space Bars, trimming the ears off of
the dimmer and the cigarette lighter sockets, and making the required
rectangular hole in the plywood dashboard, so I felt like writing about it.
Let me know if you think there's anything else I should add to this system,
toward the goal of collecting some interesting scientific data.
To read about my senior project at ODU,
Go to Google Groups and enter
dgoncz
along with any or some of these words:
ultracapacitor electric bicycle motor generator fluorescent energy display
.
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| User: " Doug Goncz " |
|
| Title: Re: Power, Energy, and a Bicycle |
01 Dec 2003 07:42:02 AM |
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Good morning. After a late night dose of a mild narcotic I find myself
refreshed.
Here's the way I translated the connections that must be made into the wiring
positions on the joiner. It comes from Radio Shack. Later, a bit of plywood or
plastic with labeled wire positions will be added. It screws on with three
screws.
A Lamp Neutral
A Lamp Neutral
A Inverter Neutral
B Inverter Hot
B Dimmer In
C Dimmer Out
C Lamp Hot
C Lamp Hot
A Lamp Neutral
C Lamp Hot
A Lamp Neutral
C Lamp Hot
A Inverter Neutral
B Inverter Hot
B Dimmer In
C Dimmer Out
So that's what I've gotta do today, and then I should be ready to ride. The
lamps are pointed a bit "up" now. While I was adjusting the Space Bars I put
them in the most convenient position, rather than the most useful. The beam is
so broad it won't matter, and for overgrown trail use, "up" lighting is useful.
The ground in that environment is more predictable than the twigs that lash,
the leaves that bite, the branches that bite your sight through the night.
I can't read spr! Help!
To read about my senior project at ODU,
Go to Google Groups and enter
dgoncz
along with any or some of these words:
ultracapacitor electric bicycle motor generator fluorescent energy display
.
|
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| User: " Doug Goncz " |
|
| Title: Re: Power, Energy, and a Bicycle |
01 Dec 2003 08:02:15 AM |
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Yipee!
Even though I don't have the connector in hand (I'm at Teri's on cable) I
looked it up in my Radio Shack catalog.
Connector Pitch, 10 mm.
That would be 28.3 point type single spaced. How to do?
Call Teri!
The word is Word.
Open Word. Paste text. Open Help. Type in Line Spacing. Click Show Me. Select
Text. Watch mouse pointer go to Format Paragraph. Use drop down box. Select
Exactly. Enter "28.3 pt" in adjacent box. Observe results. Print on card stock.
Easy!
To read about my senior project at ODU,
Go to Google Groups and enter
dgoncz
along with any or some of these words:
ultracapacitor electric bicycle motor generator fluorescent energy display
.
|
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| User: " Doug Goncz " |
|
| Title: Re: Power, Energy, and a Bicycle |
01 Dec 2003 06:22:51 PM |
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Ok, I got a triple gang outlet cover at Home Depot and some #8 sheet metal
screws. I filed notches in the tip of one screw and tapped the box fittings
with that screw. Stupid box make included machine screws. They don't hold in
plastic.
Screwed on the faceplate, mounted the DMMs.
Stripped the end of each wire, fastened them safely into the bridge block.
Connected the other side, from one to another, with 22 gage. Later upgrade.
Fired it up. Wouldn't start. Finally realized inverter had to be on and then
you have to press full power to light the cathodes. After that you can dim
them.
The source, an Interstate truck battery, is in such poor condition that a solid
estimate of voltage and current was impossible.
I'll put one bank of eight ultracaps in the rack trunk after I wire it for
parallel/series with relays, for regenerative braking.
I do have the world's brightest bike light. But what to do with it?
I'm swapping tomorrow to an analog toggle dimmer and a three gang _metal_ cover
plate, with a little Velcro like this one to hold the meters. That should be
indestructible. I'll get some shorter screws, too. One blocks the handlbar
clamp on the stem.
To read about my senior project at ODU,
Go to Google Groups and enter
dgoncz
along with any or some of these words:
ultracapacitor electric bicycle motor generator fluorescent energy display
.
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