generator bike

8/12/2019 generator bike

1/5

uilding a Single ike Generator

Building your own generator requires a number of items. A person, a bike, a way ofsupporting your bike off the ground, a motor, an energy smoothing system and aninverter if you want to use your bike generator to power mains equipment. Each ofthese parts needs to work efficiently in order to generate between ! and "!! watts ofusable energy for your generator. #e$ll discuss the parts and how to assemble a singlebike generator in this %.&.'. Guide

". (E)(*E

At the end of the day if there are no motivated cyclists you cannot create electricity.Each person can create between +! and "!! watts over etended periods and we$ve got asmuch as +!w from athletes in short bursts.

+. A B&-'-*E

ype of bike/

0oad bikes are most suitable type of bike for generating electricity because they haveslick tires. Slick tyres help keep friction and noise to a minimum level. 0oad bikes aredesigned to be efficient on smooth roads. 'ou will generally get more watts from a roadbike than a town 1designed for comfort2 or a mountain bike 1designed for bumps andbashes2.

Gears/ Geared bikes have the advantage that cyclists of different abilities can use them. Single speed bikes have the advantage that the cyclist cannot change gear and make

life easier for him3herself. herefore you can almost guarantee the same power outfrom each person.

4agnificent 0evolution has a set of second hand road bikes. 'ou can get a good bike for

5ust over 6"!!. #e got ours from places such as the bicycle ambulancein -ambridgeand Bike #orksin *ondon.

7. A 4))0 1)0 A*E08A)0 )0 SE((E0 4))02

#e$ve always used permanent magnet 1pm2 motors in our generation systems. here are anumber of other methods using car alternators or stepper motors. Each method has its

pros and cons. See http/33www.scienceshareware.com3and http/33www.c9realevents.demon.co.uk3

:owever, in this %.&.'. guide we$re only going to talk about pm motors. #e$ve only always

used a +;


2/5

;. 0A&8&8G SA8%S

'ou can buy a new stand, a second hand one from e9bay, or weld your own. #e$ve tried all

of these options over time. 4inouradesign and build the best stand for thisapplication. 4inoura stands fit most bikes and have a simple tensioning system, whichcan be kept intact once you retrofit your motor. his eliminates the need to use a

bungee rope to tension the motor roller against the bicycle wheel.

. 0)**E0S

Attaching a roller to the scooter motor can be quite difficult. #e have approached thisusing a number of different bespoke designs/a. A conversion pin which slides onto the motor shaft and is secured in place using agrub screw. )ver this pin we slide a skateboard wheelb. A roller which slides over the motor shaft and is secured in place using a grubscrew.%esigns of these components, and any future designs, can be downloaded from the %.&.'.

(age.

=. ASSE4B*&8G :E 4))0 &8) :E SA8%

he motor needs to be attached to your stand somehow and then tensioned up to the backwheel of your bike. he location of the motor is critical and you may need to make anumber of mounting points suitable for different bicycles. he motor needs to belocated correctly from left to right, so the bike wheel is located as close to the motorbody as possible. 'ou may need to consider the vertical location of the motor tocompensate for back wheels of different diameters. )nce the motor is in the appropriateposition, it needs to be tensioned. &f you haven$t got a 4inoura stand with incorporatedtensioning device, you$ll need a bungee rope, which will do the same 5ob.
http://www.minoura.co.jp/http://www.minoura.co.jp/


3/5

?. S4)):&8G E*E-0&-&'

here are a number of options for smoothing electricity in a single bike generatorsystem. he options that we have tried are as follows/

? from 0S or part *++B0 from

4aplin.

he voltage regulators we have tried so far are Step %ownvoltage regulators.his means that the regulator can only produce a voltage lowerthan that supplied toit. So, if you require an output voltage of "+< then the regulator will need to besupplied with a voltage constantly greater than "+< on order to work. he voltagecreated by a permanent magnet 1(42 motor is directly proportional to the rotating speedof the motor 10(42. he scooter motors we use in our system are designed to provide a +;!0(4, so in order to create a voltage constantly higher than "+< the motormust rotate at a speed of at least ";+ 0(4. :ow fast the motor rotates depend on/

the speed the cyclist is spinning his or her legs 1faster greater motor 04(2 the sie of the rear wheel of the bike you are using 1larger greater motor 0(42 what gear the bike is in 1downhill3higher gears greater motor 04(2

&f your appliance or inverter keeps switching on and off when using a %-9%- converterit is usually for one of three reasons.

you are not providing the board with a high enough voltage 1the motor isn$tspinning fast enough2

the cyclist is not capable of powering the device you are attempting to power the device you are powering demands, momentarily, more watts than your cyclists

can generate. )ften it may not be that the cyclist cannot power these momentarysurges, but that the cyclist is unable to adapt fast enough to supply thesesurges when they are demanded. Cor eample, a cyclist powering a small (A may

have problems should a big bass note come along and the (A may cut outD
http://uk.rs-online.com/web/home.htmlhttp://www.maplin.co.uk/Home.aspxhttp://uk.rs-online.com/web/home.htmlhttp://www.maplin.co.uk/Home.aspx


4/5

Cig. " E #iring %etails for the rs part 1not very clear on the data sheet provided2

-apacitor )ption

his option utilises a capacitor. + Cahrad or greater should do the trick for a singlebike. #e$ve used a capacitor, which is designed to provide etra bass in a car audiosystem and has a handy voltage display.

A capacitor can be used to smooth the output voltage from the motor and has the addedbenefit of providing a reservoir of energy for those bass notes.

he capacitor doesn$t supply a constant output voltage. )nce charged it corresponds to

the voltage output from the motor, which is relative to its 0(4. &f you are using aninverter 1designed to work between @ and ";v2 or sensitive "+v equipment you will need tokeep an eye on the voltage across the capacitor and ad5ust your pedalling speed or gearto keep the voltage steady.

&t is possible to over charge a capacitor by applying a high voltage to it. 4ostcapacitors suitable for creating a single bike generator have been designed for "+v caraudio systems and come with a safety cut out to protect against over voltage linked torpm for a pm motor. Another reason why car audio capacitors are a good buy as theyoften come with their own built in volt meter.


5/5

*ed Acid Battery )ption

&n the same way that a capacitor can smooth the voltage output from the motor, abattery can do the same with the added benefit of providing long term energy storage.Again it is possible to over charge the battery which can result in battery fi. Cor a"+v lead acid battery the voltage across the it should be kept between "+ and "volts.

>. A8 &8

generator bike

Documents