| US20030155770A1 | 2003-08-21 | |||
| GB400333A | 1933-10-26 | |||
| GB177641A | 1922-04-06 | |||
| FR2461125A1 | 1981-01-30 |
| The claims defining the invention are as follows; 1/ An off balance wheel consisting of two wheels sharing a common hub and joined together which contain and locate moveable 'weight units' between them. These twin wheels are contained within a structure which supports and braces the axle of the wheel as well as providing support for the 'guides' for the 'weight units' the axle supported by bearings, the whole as described and built in accordance with the attached drawings will provide sufficient motive power to provide renewable free energy 24 hrs a day / 7 days a week. / An off balance wheel built in accordance with the attached drawings as in claim 1 with a single row of weight units will provide sufficient renewable free power to drive a device to enable the generation of 240 volt electrical energy for and within the average household./ An off balance wheel as in claims 1 and 2 but built with multiple concentric rows of weight units all on a single hub would provide renewable free energy for a variety of uses such as pumping water in hazardous conditions. / An off balance wheel as in claims 1, 2 and 3 but built to a larger size and with heavier weights and with the addition of longer spokes and extra rims to enable several concentric rings of weight units and built with multiple adjacent rows of wheels will provide sufficient renewable free power to enable the generation of electrical power on a commercial scale / An off balance wheel as in claims 1, 2, and 3 but built to a smaller size could generate 12 volt current to provide for the home charging of batteries for electric powered cars. / An off balance wheel built in accordance with these drawings and specifications will provide commercially viable 'Gravity Power' electricity for charging of batteries of electric cars at multiple charging stations. / An off balance wheel built in accordance with these drawings and specifications could be built entirely underground in a custom built environment, or incorporated into existing underground car parks because it has zero pollution and no emissions. 8/ A series of large off balance wheels built in accordance with these drawings and specifications and coupled together could provide power for small localities, suburbs or towns, alleviating the problems of power loss on large voltage, long power lines 9/ An off balance wheel built in accordance with these specifications may be built to operate in either direction of rotation equally efficiently so that adjacent wheels may be contra rotating if so desired. |
For a long time people have searched for an answer to perpetual motion or 'free energy' .
Of the natural energy sources Solar power is only available during daylight hours, wind relies on weather conditions but only Gravity provides a constant source of energy, 'free energy' 24/7 regardless of weather or other conditions and is available everywhere.
To date no satisfactory machine has been produced to efficiently harness this free energy. Previous efforts with off balance wheels have been overly complicated with too little or no power produced. Because gravity is available 24/7 a relatively small gravity powered electrical generator in constant operation will provide a surplus for the average household.
My invention provides the solution to using gravity to provide power to generate electricity It consists of twin wheels sharing a common hub, which contain and locate movable 'weight units' held between them. My invention is in regard to the manner in which these 'weight units' are located and moved, the path they follow and the manner in which the power of gravity is transmitted to the wheel.
The twin wheels are contained within a structure which supports and braces the axle of the wheel as well as providing support for the 'guides' for the 'weight units'
Refer to Fig's 1 & 3. The structure housing the wheel is dust proofed and lightly soundproofed to minimize noise output.
The basic structure and the wheel itself could be made from a variety of materials including but not limited to steel, high impact plastics ferrous or non-ferrous metals, concrete, or a combination of many such materials The 'weight units' also can be ferrous, non-ferrous or any dense material such as concrete, plastics, or a combination of many materials.
Each 'weight unit' consists of a weight with a shaft at each end Refer to Fig 5 with each of these shafts having a bearing fitted to it. These bearings run in or on the guides attached to the main structure.
Each 'weight unit' has a hole through it near each end and the holes are fitted with a low friction bush / bearing each side which locates the 'weight unit 'on the 'locater pins'. The 'locater pins' are attached to the rim of each wheel and also attached to a secondary rim of a smaller diameter which is forms part of each wheel. Refer to Fig 3
The 'weight units' are guided along an optimum path Refer to dotted line Fig 1 as the wheel rotates by two different methods; 1/ retaining relative position and 2/ guides to change relative position.. The 'weight units' more than four in number but with no maximum number, are initially held at the outer position against the rim of the wheel by a mechanical / magnetic retaining catch Each 'weight unit' has its own two retaining catches attached to the wheel one at the outer rim and one at inner rim
As the 'weight units' fall under the influence of gravity to a position approximately 45 degrees below the centeiiine of the wheel, the outer rim catch is released as the wheel rotates and the 'weight units' are guided laterally toward the centre of the wheel, by means of the locator pins and the bearings on the end of the shafts. They are held in this relative position as the wheel rotates by the second mechanical / magnetic retaining catch.
During this downward movement of the 'weight units' their energy is transmitted to the wheel through the locator pins. With continued rotation of the wheel the weights are guided upwards through a further one quarter of a revolution. At the centerline position it will be noted that of the opposing weights, the upward moving 'weight unit' now has a lever moment less than the downward moving 'weight unit'. This 'offset' provides the power for the wheel. After further rotation of the wheel which brings the 'weight unit' back near the top of the wheel this second catch is released and they are again guided back to the outer rim of the wheel by the locator pins, to be retained by the original catch again and so it continues.
The amount of energy produced is related to the diameter of the wheel, the RPM of the wheel which is governed by the number of 'weight units', the weight of each individual unit and the 'offset' or distance the weights can be moved.
The actual weight, shape and physical dimensions of the 'weight units' will vary in relation to the diameter and width of the wheel subject to power requirements and this power produced is only limited by the space available for more 'weight units' i.e. the diameter / circumference of the wheel and the width which governs the length and so the weight of the 'weight units'
Each 'weight unit' will be fitted with special caged bearings top and bottom of the weight unit to locate it and allow it to move with minimal frictional loss as in Fig 5 , 6 and 7 Heavier 'weight units' generally used with larger diameter wheels may be located and directed in a similar manner with stronger locater pins and other components. The retaining catches may be entirely mechanical in concept or entirely magnetic or a combination of mechanical and magnetic.
Further power increases can be obtained by having multiple concentric rings or levels of 'weight units' as in Fig 2 which shows two concentric series of 'weight units'. Depending on the diameter of the wheel it would be possible to have many such progressively smaller concentric rows. The maximum effective size will be governed by engineering factors, but the basic technologies will be unchanged across the size range. The effective power generation has an as yet unexplored maximum, which will be sufficient to enable small localized power production facilities with single or multiple wheels.
It is necessary to provide a braking system in order to stop the wheel for maintenance and this system will consist of a diverter in the guides which can be applied to direct the 'weight units' to either the periphery or the inner limit of movement thereby nullifying the off balance of the wheels. Braking will then be performed in a conventional manner for braking a wheel. To provide a truly useable domestic energy source the optimum size wheel must be capable of being installed within an average garage yet still provide adequate power.
The diameter of the wheels could range from one meter to many meters in diameter. The electrical generating part of the wheel will be a standard generator coupled to the wheel in a conventional manner.