Patent Application
20180090028
This disclosure generally relates to a demonstration generator.
Various techniques are used in classrooms to teach electrical power generation. Electricity may be generated from the physical separation and transport of a charge, induction, or from kinetic energy, for example. However, tools used to demonstrate electrical generation are often difficult for students to see or difficult for instructors to use.
The following presents a simplified summary of the disclosure to provide a basic understanding to the reader. This summary is not an extensive overview of the disclosure, nor does it identify key or critical elements of the claimed subject matter or define its scope. Its sole purpose is to present some concepts disclosed in a simplified form as a precursor to the more detailed description that is later presented.
The instant application discloses, among other things, a demonstration generator which may be used to illustrate electrical generation. A demonstration generator may be a spinning top, a yo-yo, or a gyroscope, for example. A yo-yo demonstration generator may consist of an axle connected to two disks, and a string wrapped around the axle, resembling a conventional yo-yo. Another example of a demonstration generator may be a gyroscope, consisting of a wheel mounted on an axle, where the wheel and axle spin freely while secured in a frame. The rotor of a gyroscope may be spun using a string or manually. One having skill in the art will recognize that many different shapes may be used for a demonstration generator.
A demonstration generator shaped like a top may have a magnet or a set of magnets fixed to the edges of the broad width of the top, with the poles perpendicular to an axis of spin. Each magnet may create a magnetic field, which may be configured perpendicular to a spin axis of a spinning top, for example. A spinning top may sit on a centering surface made of non-magnetic, non-conductive material with a concave surface where demonstration generator may spin. The centering surface may have an embedded coil of electrically conductive wire. The greater the flux density of the magnet, and the more wraps on the coil, the more powerful the electric current may be.
In a yo-yo-based demonstration generator, a coil may be embedded in a mount, or otherwise located in a position allowing the yo-yo to be snapped down and spun in place in close proximity to the coil. In another embodiment, the axle may allow one side to spin independently of the other. One side may have a coil, while the other side provides a magnetic field.
A demonstration generator may resemble a gyroscope. Here, the conductor may be inside a frame that surrounds a rotor, or it may be inside a mount, such as a stationary surface with an embedded coil of electricity conducting wire. This may also serve as a portable electric generator.
The spin velocity, magnetic flux density, and wire size and number of wraps of a coil may all affect the output of electric current produced by a demonstration generator. A demonstration generator may generate sufficient electric current to power an electrical sink. Examples of electric sinks are light bulbs, LEDs, and buzzers. A demonstration generator may be used as an independent electricity generator or as a tool for teaching complex laws of the electromagnetic induction process and the flow of electric current.
Rotating Spinning Top 100 in a proper orientation and in close proximity of Coil 120 may induce an electrical current in Coil 120. The electrical current may be sufficient to provide electricity to an Electrical Sink 150, which may be, for example, a buzzer, an incandescent light bulb, an LED, a calculator, or other objects operable by electricity. The current flow generated may be alternating current (AC), switching directions as the north and south magnet poles move past Coil 120. A rectifier may be used to provide direct current (DC). Alternatively, multiple LEDs may be coupled in parallel with different polarity, so that at least one is lit when the current flows in one direction, and at least one is lit when the current is reversed.
Current flow may depend on how densely Coil 120 is wrapped and the strength of the magnetic fields from Magnet 130 for Coil 120. The closer Magnet 130, and more densely wrapped Coil 120, the greater the electric current may be.
As current increases, induced magnetism may increase, which may then cause Spinning Top 100 to become unstable. To counter this effect, additional rotating mass may be used for Spinning Top 100. Making sections of Spinning Top 100 from, for example, steel, copper, or other denser materials rather than plastic, aluminum, or other light materials may help reduce instability issues. For example, making a portion of Spinning Top 100 out of materials with higher densities, 7.85 g/cm3 for mild steel or 8.96 7.85 g/cm3, for example, may allow Spinning Top 100 to remain more stable than making it out of aluminum, which may have a density of 2.7 g/cm3.
Rotating Spinning Top 200 in a proper orientation and in close proximity of Magnet 230 may induce an electrical current in Coil 220. The electrical current may be sufficient to provide electricity to an Electrical Sink 250, which may be, for example, a buzzer, an incandescent light bulb, an LED, a calculator, or other objects operable by electricity.
Current flow may depend on how densely Coil 220 is wrapped and the strength of the magnetic fields from Magnet 230 for Coil 220. The closer Magnet 230, and more densely wrapped Coil 220, the greater the electric current may be.
As current increases, induced magnetism may increase, which may then cause Spinning Top 200 to become unstable. To counter this effect, additional rotating mass may be used for Spinning Top 200. Making sections of Spinning Top 200 from, for example, steel, copper, or other denser materials rather than plastic, aluminum, or other light materials may help reduce instability issues.
Regardless of the type of demonstration generator, the velocity of the spin must be sufficient to generate an electric current so it may be enough to power Electric Sink 150, which may be, for example, a buzzer, an incandescent light bulb, an LED, a calculator, or other objects operable by electricity. Spin velocity, magnetic flux density, and coil density may affect the strength of the electric current.
The foregoing description of various embodiments of the invention has been presented for the purposes of illustration and description. It is not intended to be exhaustive or to limit the invention to the precise form disclosed. It is intended that the scope of the invention be limited not by this detailed description, but rather by the claims appended hereto. The above specification, examples, and data provide a complete description of the manufacture and use of the invention. Since many embodiments of the invention can be made without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention, the invention resides in the claims hereinafter appended.
