You might be thinking of the Fisher and Paykel smartdrive motor. This is a four phase permanent magnet step motor used in washing machines and is common in this part of the world.
This involves metalworking...
Ive gotten a wild hair to build a wind generator. I believe I either have most of the stuff...or can scrounge it up easily enough.
Im NOT doing this to go off the grid...with my power needs..Id have to cover the back 40 with windmills. This is simply something Fun to do.
Im pretty sure all those 110vt DC tread mill motors Ive got..aint going to work very well unfortunatley...getting one up to 3600 rpm in the variable winds I have here..often gusty dust devil winds in the summer time..slight breeze to 70mph winter storms.
Ive been doing some web searching..and the verticle types that use lift look interesting..and I can mount one easily enough on the shop. Though a prop job looks doable also.
Ive got to be able to build this thing using off the shelf, scroungable Stuff, build it in a reasonable amount of time (no life long projects) and charge some batteries. The more the better of course.
Ive got a very high end 5500 watt inverter/charger that came out of a brand new land yacht that burned..but didnt touch the inverter (and it works) to use to give me true sine wave 110vts if I want to add it to the system after its done.
Chuckle..and frankly..Im tired of making stuff in the shop that is used to simply fix other machines..I want to make Something!
Gunner
"A prudent man foresees the difficulties ahead and prepares for them; the simpleton goes blindly on and suffers the consequences."
- Proverbs 22:3
Gunner, You might find
This involves metalworking...
Ive gotten a wild hair to build a wind generator. I believe I either have most of the stuff...or can scrounge it up easily enough.
Im NOT doing this to go off the grid...with my power needs..Id have to cover the back 40 with windmills. This is simply something Fun to do.
Im pretty sure all those 110vt DC tread mill motors Ive got..aint going to work very well unfortunatley...getting one up to 3600 rpm in the variable winds I have here..often gusty dust devil winds in the summer time..slight breeze to 70mph winter storms.
Ive been doing some web searching..and the verticle types that use lift look interesting..and I can mount one easily enough on the shop. Though a prop job looks doable also.
Ive got to be able to build this thing using off the shelf, scroungable Stuff, build it in a reasonable amount of time (no life long projects) and charge some batteries. The more the better of course.
Ive got a very high end 5500 watt inverter/charger that came out of a brand new land yacht that burned..but didnt touch the inverter (and it works) to use to give me true sine wave 110vts if I want to add it to the system after its done.
Chuckle..and frankly..Im tired of making stuff in the shop that is used to simply fix other machines..I want to make Something!
Gunner
"A prudent man foresees the difficulties ahead and prepares for them; the simpleton goes blindly on and suffers the consequences."
- Proverbs 22:3
Ayup. Ive never seen such a beasty here in the States.
Gunner
"A prudent man foresees the difficulties ahead and prepares for them; the simpleton goes blindly on and suffers the consequences."
- Proverbs 22:3
Advantage (aside from you already have them) - you don't need to get them up to 3600 rpm - they are DC, you want DC, and since you don't need
110V DC (I'm guessing based on the inverter you are looking at 12, or perhaps 24V max for the battery). The variable speed is a problem for ANY type of wind generator (Hmm, go whack one of those little cars with a CVT?). If you want efficient you futz with a converter that will make more amps at the voltage you happen to be getting from the generator, if not you ignore that.Otherpower has tips for making generators from Volvo brake disks (and magnets).
One downside the the VAWT's you mention is that the classic lift version is not self-starting. Some variations that have been worked on over time are, by various means. Experientially, the reason that most of the ones you see now are horizontal axis is that those generally live longer, or at least have as implemented up to now.
I can't find the site right now, but there are some nice pictures of elegant, counterbalanced, hydraulic tilting, self-supporting towers welded up from drill casing or similar tube out there somewhere - same guy also was doing some ambitious machining for the prop units (HAWT). Big advantage there is not having to climb the tower to futz with the turbine - just bring it down to you.
Here is one commercial (which seems to be better thought out than some others I've seen) VAWT of the self-starting Savonius flavor (drag, not lift) - there are plenty of MUCH lower-tech versions of that flavor easily found by searching.
The 3600 RPM rating is at 110 volts. If those are permanent magnet motors, they will probably produce 12 volts at about 400 RPM. DCPM motor exhibit speed that is about linearly proportional to voltage -- and produce voltage proportional to speed when driven as generators. Current rating is determined by the wire in the windings, regardless of operating speed. A 110 volt 1 HP motor will only be good for about 75 watts at 12 volts.
You might come across some good-sized DCPM servomotors in your machine tool travels. I would think that they might work very nicely as DC generators.
Keep your eye peeled for burned-out VFD's. They will contain ferrite transformers from which you can scrounge the cores to make switchmode power converters to change DC voltage. The magnetics are always the hard part to come up with. The elex aren't hard at all working at below 24 volts. I could help with that part if you like. I have lots of 55-amp 60-volt power MOSFETs in my goodiebox, could spare a couple.
google "Hugh Piggott" of Scotland.
The treadmill motors might be your best bet, given that you don't want to spend much time. The RPM needed to get 12-15 volts will probably be reasonable. Cut your blades from 4" PVC pipe, or just buy a set of carbon-fiber ones from hydrogenappliances.com. This will get you generating in a minimum amount of time, then you can decide if you want to get into generating in a bigger way.
Martin
These are 2.5hp
I indeed have some pretty good sized servo motors. There is one out there that has a 3/4" shaft on it. Ill have to pull it out and see what it is, though its likely an AC servo..but Ill check. Hitachi I think. got a bunch of smaller ones..smaller being relative..must weight about 50 lbs. All are new..though now a bit rusty from weather exposure. I believe they have outputs for tach etc..tru servos. I couldnt sell the damned things..was considering tossing em.
Im so weak on basic electronics to be foot shuffling blushingly embaressed, compared to even the meanest whiz bang guy here. Not something Ive ever needed in my various lines of work..basic electrical yes..but not electronics.
Im sure Ill indeed need some assistance on "switchmode power converters" etc etc (what ever they are)
I can scrounge Stuff pretty good..and even find a use for a lot of Stuff..mostly electro or mechanical..but the fancy stuff is simply a unit..not a collection of parts, to me.
How do I tell if a servo is a DC permanant magnet type? Most of these have screw on Cannon or amphenal type connectors. Most are Reliance electric..so I could do a web search........
hummmmmmmmmmmm
Gunner
"A prudent man foresees the difficulties ahead and prepares for them; the simpleton goes blindly on and suffers the consequences."
- Proverbs 22:3
So far, Ive read most of his online stuff.
Gunner
"A prudent man foresees the difficulties ahead and prepares for them; the simpleton goes blindly on and suffers the consequences."
- Proverbs 22:3
I've got his "brake-drum windmill" book, it's a gen or three behind his current now but there's nothing wrong with or unbuildable about his plans. And blade carving hasn't changed unless something has changed in the laws of physics...all that is different, I expect, is the generator itself.
Before you ask - the blades are made and I never got to the rotor, lacking a 3/4 ton pickup as a source of those parts.
They are sold there. See
and click on "store locator". I'm not suggesting you buy one new but you may be able to obtain a 2nd hand motor from the back door of the service department ;-)
Actually, not only are they sold in the US but they are also manufactured there in Clyde, Ohio. Shipping large but light weight appliances across the Pacific is expensive so F&P have moved some production there.
-- Regards Malcolm Remove sharp objects to get a valid e-mail address
A 500 watt "printmotor" servo from an old welding robot puts out about
15 volts at 600 RPM. It is rated at 84 volts and 2500 rpm. SO, as a motor it puts out 29.75 RPM per volt, and as a generator, about 2.5 volts per 100 RPM.The 42 volt 3000 RPM (200 watt) unit puts out almost exactly half.
*** Free account sponsored by SecureIX.com *** *** Encrypt your Internet usage with a free VPN account fromHere's a new VAWT being produced in Holland that looks interesting. It seems to be self starting and is being pushed for mounting on building roofs in an urban setting:
They're just efficient electronics that can change DC power from one voltage to another and regulate voltage and/or current. Nearly all power supplies in electronic stuff (like 'puters) are switchers these days. Instead of having big 60Hz power xfmrs they rectify line voltage to DC, then chop (switch) it with transistors (MOSFET, bipolor or IGBT) at a high frequency so the transformers and inductors can be quite small. "Inverter" welders, and plasma cutters and VFD's are switchers too. In addition to being small, lightweight, and cheap if made in volume, they can be very efficient. And, by the way, good Luxeon LED flashlights use little switchers too. (Still have the Luxeonized MX991\U on my ta-do list!)
Switchers can be kinda complex and hairy in general, but they can also be quite simple for low DC voltages and modest currents like a few amps.
I could get interested in this too because the wind never stops blowing at the lake. There are a lot of wind farms in SW MN.
Some but not all DCPM motors "cog" a little when you turn the shaft.
See if they have brushes. If they do, they're very likely DCPM motors.
Yeah, see if you can find some schematics or specsheets. That could help a lot. If they are brushless DCPM motors they might need a bit of surgery to be used as generators. No rewinding or anything, just bypass the internal elex to connect direct to the windings.
I am no expert on servomotors in particular, but I know a little about motors in general.
A DCPM motor will have brushes and two large power connections. A brushless (AC) servo will have three power leads or connections, some smaller connections for the commutation sensors, and no (surprise ) brushes. This is in addition to the encoder/tacho/resolver or whatever the motor uses for position/velocity feedback.
Since a brushless servo motor is essentially a synchronous three phase PM motor, I expect it'd make a dandy alternator. Rectify the output if you want DC to power an inverter.
Ned Simmons
Too bad you are so far from me - I'd love to scavenge your pile!!
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The beuaty of the printed circuit armature on a PrintMotor servo is there is NO COGGING because there is no iron in the rotor. There is also no sparking at the brushes, because the commutator is skewed so it is "slotless" and there is no inductance, because there is no iron.
The prushes are a bit smaller than they would have to be on an iron core PMDC motor.
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Road Trip!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Im at the point now..if anyone wants to scrounge my stuff...donations are accepted, but not manditory.
I have a 3/4 ton Chevy van parked out there..some where...I can see it..but I cant get to it. Id love to have my yard back
Gunner
"A prudent man foresees the difficulties ahead and prepares for them; the simpleton goes blindly on and suffers the consequences."
- Proverbs 22:3
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