Bo Andersson built a wind-powered generator just because he wanted one to use as a foundation for more experiments. When people said his idea to use a truck "rear end," or differential, to transmit wind power to a generator on the ground wouldn't work, he went ahead and put it on top of a 30-ft tower. Now Bo puts power back into the grid. And he can truly reap the wild wind.
Bo didn't listen to the nattering negative naysayers and got the job done. The reason it worked is because it's been done successfully many times and beginning years back. Differentials from old junked cars, etc. have been a convenient source for mechanical drives since the Model A. Considering he's been around a few years, Andersson may have even seen such a setup or read about one. Actually seeing or knowing firsthand something works is better than any number of people who think they know why it won't. Good for him!
Andrew Morris designed a circuit that could detect a stroke victim's groan and convert the sound into a signal so caregivers would know when help was needed.
New disc magnet motors fit into the design trend of stepping up to closed loop performance while maintaining the cost advantage of stepper motor technology.
At the Design News webinar on June 27, learn all about aluminum extrusion: designing the right shape so it costs the least, is simplest to manufacture, and best fits the application's structural requirements.
On April 21, NASA launched a novel project, putting into orbit three satellites that employ an off-the-shelf commercial smartphone as the control system.
From Dell / Intel® New Paradigms in Design Work Scott Hamilton, vertical market strategist for Dell Precision workstations, 5/2/2013 5
Early in my career, I worked as a draftsman and remember the days of drawing on vellum with numbered pencils and Mylar with plastic lead. This was a fun experience in the sense that I ...
I've been using workstations for more than 10 years and love finding ways to get more performance from my system. With demanding professional applications that require more power each ...
A lasting memory from my first job as an engineer in an auto assembly plant is standing on hard concrete at six in the morning, vending-machine coffee clutched in hand, listening to ...
For industrial control applications, or even a simple assembly line, that machine can go almost 24/7 without a break. But what happens when the task is a little more complex? That’s where the “smart” machine would come in. The smart machine is one that has some simple (or complex in some cases) processing capability to be able to adapt to changing conditions. Such machines are suited for a host of applications, including automotive, aerospace, defense, medical, computers and electronics, telecommunications, consumer goods, and so on. This radio show will show what’s possible with smart machines, and what tradeoffs need to be made to implement such a solution.
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