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Microwind Generator: 30X More Efficient and Cheaper!

ecogeek.org — Popular Mechanics just held it's yearly Breakthrough Conference, and one of the winners was the Wind Belt an invention we've not seen before. The Wind Belt

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  • sineyopitty, on 10/14/2007, -0/+41Wow, very neat invention. Now all those people who complain about how wind turbines look can shut up.
    • rahuldj, on 10/14/2007, -1/+1It is an impressive design... although I would have liked the design to be tested outdoors without using artificial wind... that would have been really fantastic.
      • piesforyou, on 10/14/2007, -1/+1Exactly. This works great with a constant source of wind, like the fan, which can sustain the vibration. From the video it looks like it needs a few seconds of strong wind to get it running, then a constant supply. I'm not sure how well it would work in the real world when wind can fluctuate so much.
        • rexbron, on 10/14/2007, -0/+6Those are the same problems for regular wind turbines, therefore you could use the same solution, batteries. :)
        • spectre_25gt, on 10/14/2007, -1/+1Not necessarily. Turbines have a good amount of mass, thus momentum once spinning. If wind conditions are changing quickly, then the turbine would have momentum to keep the blades spinning till the next gust while this would stop producing energy and then take a bit of time to start again.
    • jacquesm, on 10/13/2007, -3/+4this 'invention' is a non-starter.
      - it does not scale
      - it is not more efficient than a regular turbine (that fan has a lot more than a few milliwatts going in to it)
      - it has a very narrow operating range

      why yes, I did design and build a windmill...

      http://www.fieldlines.com/story/2004/11/10/172439/ ...
    • Prefection, on 10/13/2007, -0/+1Sounds like you've really done your homework. Please cite your sources that demonstrate that this is non-viable.
      - The intended use is low-power low-cost energy, not industrial-grade solutions. Also, if you need more energy set up a second device.
      - I am fairly certain that the inventor doesn't intend to energize his invention with table top fans - I believe the idea is to use wind.
      - Nobody suggested using it in high speed high-altitude wind. It's intended environment would be no higher than a tree next to a house.
      • jacquesm, on 10/13/2007, -0/+1$ per watt produced is the key figure in windmill design. the figures of this unit if it costs $.50 to make will give it astronmical cost / watt. For me the discussion ends right there. Below someone compared this thing with an 85 watt PV panel and 'if it breaks'. PV panels don't magically break, they degrade over time. if it makes 85 Watts in full sun that is several orders of magnitude more power than this thingy produces in it's narrow 'allowed' wind range. it does not cost proportionally more.
      • spectre_25gt, on 10/13/2007, -0/+1That's all well and good except that this isn't a windmill. What you know about windmills really doesn't apply here because the applications are completely different. No-one really knows whether this will be useful or not because it hasn't been around long enough to see how it could be used.
  • readthis, on 10/15/2007, -6/+19Al Gore, please recommend this kid for the Nobel Prize.
  • falco216, on 10/13/2007, -7/+39Did anyone else read this as "Morrowwind Generator: 30x more efficient and cheaper!"?
  • stoanhart, on 10/13/2007, -0/+14That was really cool. I hope it develops into a good product. That and these cheaper better solar cells we keep hearing about!

    Here is a link to the video: http://link.brightcove.com/services/link/bcpid1214 ...
  • Sp0rAdiC, on 10/14/2007, -0/+28Someone needs to get a DIY up on instructables or something, I want some of these.
  • Dokument, on 10/14/2007, -1/+17that blows my mind.
  • jschnees, on 10/13/2007, -0/+3the generators will be great for rechargeable batteries. perhaps even ones that could contain enough power to maintain home appliances and pcs
    • MarvinGalaxy, on 10/13/2007, -1/+2Their model only puts out 40 milliwatts, so it would take a huge one to power even a laptop. Regardless, you are right that batteries are an important part of the system. A larger one of these and a few AA batteries to power a few LEDs would make life in a hut much more productive. Lamp oil costs money and is dangerous and polluting. Imagine kids with little chances for education being able to read for a couple hours before bed time. It could change their lives. As it is, many people spend all day in the fields and their only free time is when the sun is down. Since people don't need to sleep for 12 hours, it makes sense to have a couple hours of artificial light each day. One nice thing about wind power is that it works even when the sun is down. One of these could be charging batteries while people sleep and while they are at work. Then, the batteries would be ready for peak output between sundown and bed time.
      • NSResponder, on 10/19/2007, -2/+1" it would take a huge one to power even a laptop. "

        Depends on the laptop. The OLPC machines draw a lot less power than my MacBook Pro.

        -jcr

        • HappyScrappy, on 10/13/2007, -0/+1A USB port has 2.5W available, which is 60X what this device creates. Can your device run off the power available at a USB port?

          You're gonna need a device at least 100X more powerful than this for even the most simple computer.

          A laptop typically has an 80Wh battery and runs for about 4 hours. That means it's using 20W average, the peaks will be even higher.
          • lepton, on 10/13/2007, -0/+1My iPhone charges off a USB port, and it's a pretty decent computer! Being able to charge a cell phone or small computer or TV might be pretty valuable.
    • samcrut, on 10/13/2007, -0/+1You would have to scale up the thing with some BIG honkin magnets to run a computer off this. It would take over 1600 of his prototypes to make enough wattage to power a 65W laptop charger. I'm not saying it can't be done, but it wouldn't be very easy. The more powerful the magnets, the more power. For about $100 you can get a neodymium supermagnet that might work but those things will be HEAVY. Just make sure you don't have your hand in the way when the magnets get close to each other. Magnets that size would crush your hand to a paper thin layer of meat-pulp.
  • eminem213486, on 10/14/2007, -11/+1a really good application of this would be planes. storing extra energy to go extra miles and less gas. although i dont see this being applied in the cities. maybe on top of high buildings sticking out all the sides. how about these in the grills in front of your car. nice...
    • Justice101, on 10/13/2007, -3/+1For trickling charging your electric car maybe:
      micro-wind generator in the grill + solar sheets on the roof.
      • MWeather, on 10/13/2007, -0/+1Just strap a wind turbine to the roof.
    • r3becca, on 10/14/2007, -0/+19No, cars or planes would be absolutely terrible places to apply this technology. Get a clue people! This would induce considerable drag which is NOT desirable on a vehicle needing to efficiently move through an atmosphere.
  • Calcularius, on 10/14/2007, -0/+21I'm so impressed I have goose bumps! I will be thinking about this for weeks. I want to build one.
    • MarvinGalaxy, on 10/14/2007, -0/+2Build it then Digg it!
    • NSResponder, on 10/19/2007, -6/+1I'd like to build millions of them. ;-)

      -jcr
  • vat0r, on 10/13/2007, -3/+11The best inventions are always the simplest and this is most certainly an excellent invention.

    btw the video states 10% more efficient as opposed to 30%, fairly large difference.
  • truegodofwar, on 10/14/2007, -1/+22Now this is what patents are intended for. Not "a method of checking a box to indicate a selection"
    • Urusai, on 10/13/2007, -0/+5I'm guessing he either never gets a patent or some IP pirate will submarine a "method of generating electricity using moving air".
      • MarvinGalaxy, on 10/14/2007, -4/+4I pledge to donate a 50-round box of handgun ammunition and a 20-round box of rifle ammunition to the assassination effort on anyone who plunders this invention for their own greed.
        If you would like to donate your ammunition, send unmarked boxes wrapped in lead foil to www.KillevEryMutherf***ingA-holeWhoScrewsOverthePlanetEarth.org.
  • MarvinGalaxy, on 10/13/2007, -0/+22That guy is a genius and he doesn't sound like a kook. That is one of those ideas that is so simple that it should have been discovered a hundred years ago.
    This quote may be the most important: “If Shawn’s innovation breaks, locals can fix it. If a solar panel breaks, the family is out a panel.”
    I love photovoltaic panels but most people in the world won't be able to pay $85 for a 5Watt panel. A frame, a piece of mylar, and two metal coils can be bought and repaired by probably any functional family in the world.
    • macbwizard, on 10/13/2007, -1/+1This idea was discovered a hundred years ago. People have known about electromagnetic induction for a long time.
  • swatward, on 10/14/2007, -8/+8I know it's a demo, but I think it's funny using an electric fan to power something that makes slightly less electricity.
    • DudleyInnocent, on 10/14/2007, -1/+11Oh my... You're serious, aren't you?
    • existent, on 10/14/2007, -1/+8But... you said it yourself. It's a DEMO.
    • kreneskyp, on 10/13/2007, -0/+1ya its funny being able to simulate wind to demonstrate a wind powered device
  • blindflacker, on 10/14/2007, -0/+7This application isn't to replace wind generators which produce much more energy, it's a cheap alternative for low watt off grid usage. $2 for a device to charge a couple AA batteries or to power a 3 watt LED light is a great for those who can't afford a solar panel. Not to mention there isn't any expensive machine process to build these.
  • samcrut, on 10/13/2007, -0/+10I'm thinking this would be a good thing to add to an emergency kit. Stranded in a blizzard? Keep that cell phone or walkie talkie juiced up till help can find you! Except for the frame, it could probably fit in an Altoids tin.
    • unreg, on 10/14/2007, -4/+0Then all you would need is some wind. And a frame to hold it up. Wiring. The appropriate charging mechanism. Something to keep the snow off of it. And a big heater to keep yourself warm.
  • offkey, on 10/14/2007, -1/+7the amount of truly needy people this can help around the world is staggering. bless you
    • shark615, on 10/13/2007, -1/+2These needy people need a way of creating sustainable agriculture, education and industry. Not an MIT experiment
  • existent, on 10/14/2007, -0/+28Who else wants to set thousands of these up in a very large array?
    • jacquesm, on 10/13/2007, -1/+2anybody who has more money than brains maybe ?

      the thing makes a couple of millwatss... evan at a cost of $1 per unit that would still mean the highest cost / watt in windpower that I'm aware of.
      • SirZRX, on 10/13/2007, -0/+61 USD per Watt is not bad!
      • gh0st3000, on 10/13/2007, -0/+0as far as commercial, home power goes, 1$/Watt hour actually terrible. The average price of power is 9.67¢/kWh in the U.S. as of July 2007.(http://www.eia.doe.gov/cneaf/electricity/epm/table ... That comes out to .00967¢/Wh, or .0000967$/Wh.This thing's not designed for large scale use at all at that kind of cost.
        • ozziedog, on 10/17/2007, -0/+1Correct me if I am wrong, and there is a good chance I am but, if the machine costs 1$ to make a Watt per hour, then u have to figure the lifetime cost as an investment. So if you are paid 9.67¢ per kWh for electricity then the machine would have paid for itself when 100/9.67 it had run for 10.34 hrs @ 1000 Watts or 10,340 hrs at one Watt. In a year there are 8,760 hrs. So if half the time, the wind is blowing at 10kmh or better, the generator would produce 4,380 hrs of 1 Wh electricity per year. So in a little over 2 years, you have covered the cost. Can spin wind generators compare to this?
      • cgm1985, on 10/13/2007, -0/+0He just pulled $1 out of his ass anyway. Also you're comparing the initial costs of a power source per watt, to the price of energy....
  • samcrut, on 10/13/2007, -0/+3I'd love to see several tuned to different frequencies. You could have 3 or more of them sing in multipart harmony while they make power. I'm thinking an array of them tuned to make the sound of the THX Deep Note perpetually as the wind blows through the system.
  • NSResponder, on 10/19/2007, -1/+2Holy cow, that's brilliant. There are a lot of places where you need power in small amounts, like emergency phones, weather monitoring stations, street lights... The money saved by not having to run a power line alone would pay for the generator in many cases.

    -jcr
  • NSResponder, on 10/19/2007, -4/+13Oh, man... It just hit me. Couple these with 802.11 repeaters that have a small battery on them, and you've got connectivity over vast distances for an extremely small amount of money.

    -jcr

    • AnthonyA7, on 10/19/2007, -2/+18Stop ***** signing your posts. You look like a tool.
      • potifar, on 10/16/2007, -2/+2I read "signaling", noticed his nick and thought "Wait, what, is that some kind of an AppKit joke with four diggs?"

        No, no it isn't. >:(
      • SirZRX, on 10/16/2007, -3/+1LOL
      • NSResponder, on 10/19/2007, -1/+1Don't you just hate it when people don't comply with your arbitrary demands?

        -jcr

    • jacquesm, on 10/14/2007, -0/+3not enough power in that thing.
      a repeater uses a few watts, this thingy will make a few *milliwatts*
      • NSResponder, on 10/19/2007, -1/+1So, you make it a bit bigger, or you use several of them. We're still talking about a very cheap power supply.

        -jcr

  • piesforyou, on 10/13/2007, -3/+5Why does he keep talking about turbans?
  • xaviergisz, on 10/13/2007, -1/+4there's a bit of prior art to this invention. for example US patent 4348594. http://www.google.com/patents?id=Mz43AAAAEBAJ&dq=4 ...
    • wibambau, on 10/14/2007, -0/+2Wow thanks for the link, I think the fact that google has a patent viewer needs to be a dugg story.
    • idntunknwn, on 10/13/2007, -0/+1If you read the patent, it doesn't use the same mechanism for capturing mechanical power from the wind. I think that the patent's idea is much less efficient
    • Chandon, on 10/13/2007, -0/+1That's an excellent example of how patents retard the progress of science and the useful arts. The precursor to this guy's idea was published as a patent 25 years ago, and he had to independantly re-invent it today because the patent was so useless. Luckily he waited 25 years - if he hadn't his new idea would be illegal.
      • ozziedog, on 10/16/2007, -0/+1Patents suck. The piece of crap laid out for the patent office is useless. Design, is everything and this kid nailed it.
  • indolin, on 10/14/2007, -0/+3I'm imagining how cool I would look with one of these strapped to my bike helmet, powering my bike light.
    Move over beanie propeller.
  • MonkeyMonk, on 10/13/2007, -0/+3I really can't think of anything else to say except "simply spectacular."
  • jacquesm, on 10/15/2007, -2/+4look, not to burst anybody's bubble or so but this thing produces *milliwatts* , not even watts, it is not more efficient than a turbine (even though it claims to be there is no side by side comparision), it can not do 30x as good as a 'conventional turbine' because an optimal turbine will never get more power out of the wind then there is in it, and then still needs to respect 'betz' law which states that roughly 60% is the max.
    not cool for trying to suggest it scales, which it probably will not, and not cool to forget to mention that it only works in a very narrow band of windspeeds. It also needs to be aimed at the wind.
    • BobTrips, on 10/13/2007, -0/+1There's a level of "more efficient" as it apparently kicks in at a lower wind speed. That is a very important feature.

      There's no reason to think that it won't scale up as one can simply gang a lot of small units. (Would be interesting to see how large an array would have to be in order to produce as much power as a similar output turbine.)

      Aiming at the wind is simply as matter of how they are installed. Remember that wind turbines swivel into the wind.
    • TheLoneHoot, on 10/15/2007, -0/+2I'm sure that's why you're the one Popular Mechanics consulted then. Oh, wait... they didn't ask you for YOUR opinion and "expertise" - those bastards! Clearly you have presented irrefutable evidence for the argument against the wind belt.

      /sarc (in case you need the tag)
  • awkwardwhitejew, on 10/16/2007, -0/+7I've worked with Shawn in Haiti over the last few years and can personally vouch for how utterly brilliant and life-changing his innovations are. He is very much the real deal and his other solutions addressing problems in the developing world are equally as impressive.

    His mentor, Amy Smith, gives a good rundown of a number of simple, yet elegant, innovations tailored to the needs of the poor in her TED talk: http://www.ted.com/index.php/talks/view/id/2
    Shawn's homepage: http://www.humdingerwind.com/
  • Ghostwheel, on 10/14/2007, -2/+1Mylar will fatigue and break after a relatively short time. Neat idea though.
    • MWeather, on 10/13/2007, -0/+2It works with materials other than mylar.
    • Chandon, on 10/13/2007, -0/+1Did you see the size of that roll he had? Unless "relatively short" is hours, I'm not sure that matters.
  • Quote737, on 10/13/2007, -1/+2Now if he could make it store energy and then connect it to the lamp, it would be a self sufficient fan.
  • fredrihl, on 10/13/2007, -0/+1I strongly advice you to check out the other videos too: http://www.popularmechanics.com/breakthrough07
  • cgm1985, on 10/13/2007, -0/+0Does it scale up?
  • HappyScrappy, on 10/15/2007, -2/+340mw at a variable frequency?

    This is near waste-grade power. 40mW will only run the smallest LED alone, and you can't stack variable frequency (or even phase unlocked fixed frequency) power sources without rectifying them first.

    I'm not sure this is actually useful for anything.

    Keep thinking though, someone who comes up with an idea like this surely has some more, and one of them could be a big one.
  • HsoKinees, on 10/14/2007, -0/+1i wonder how many you'd need in an array to provide enough power for an OLPC?
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