During the summer of 06 I made a demonstration out of things laying around the home, the Lego pieces were the most crucial ;). I used a freezer to test if it can work. This demo is most similar to approach A.
Originally I tried making a gear train with a ridiculously high gear ratio, but the Lego pieces weren't quite strong enough, so I resorted to making a device from part of a joystick mechanism, some small weights and a small paddle wheel I fashioned that primes a spring and releases in quick bursts of energy, which is enough to briefly power a small pager motor. There are two 10lb weights underneath that the device is also lifting, and it takes about 15lbs of force to work the mechanical device.
Originally I tried making a gear train with a ridiculously high gear ratio, but the Lego pieces weren't quite strong enough, so I resorted to making a device from part of a joystick mechanism, some small weights and a small paddle wheel I fashioned that primes a spring and releases in quick bursts of energy, which is enough to briefly power a small pager motor. There are two 10lb weights underneath that the device is also lifting, and it takes about 15lbs of force to work the mechanical device.
Here is the mechanical portion of the device as it was placed in the freezer.
Here is another shot of what it looked like before, I had to change the small weights to what you saw in the previous picture so that I could fit the whole thing on an angle in the freezer.
Finally this is the entire device after a successful test.
Chris Mailloux
Here is another shot of what it looked like before, I had to change the small weights to what you saw in the previous picture so that I could fit the whole thing on an angle in the freezer.
Finally this is the entire device after a successful test.
Chris Mailloux