Design Generator

7/30/2019 Design Generator

1/20

ENGR 102010/27/09

Client: Ms. McGinnisInstructor for Roseville Area Middle School

Dan Joachim Team LeaderBrandon Sohn Team Member

Thai Vang Team Member

Generator Project

Design and Assembly

Team DBT


2/20


3/20

3

......................................................................................................................................16

.......................................................................................................................19

..........................................................................................................................20

Contents

Introduction......................................................................................................................4

Design Procedure............................................................................................................5

Problem Definition........................................................................................................ 5

Constraints and Criteria ...............................................................................................5

Research .....................................................................................................................6

Alternative Solutions .................................................................................................... 7

Analysis .....................................................................................................................11

Decision .....................................................................................................................11

Decision Matrix ..........................................................................................................12

Specifications. ...............................................................................................................13

Bill of Materials ..........................................................................................................13

Fabrication instructions..............................................................................................13

Assembly Instructions................................................................................................14

Recommendations and Conclusions.............................................................................15

Appendix .......................................................................................................................16

A - Photos

B - Pro/E drawings

C - Project Costs


4/20

4

The client, Ms. Pamela McGinnis, was interviewed during class on September 17, 2009. Ms. McGinnisis a middle school teacher at Roseville Area Middle School (RAMS). She teaches an earth sciencecourse to 7th and 8th graders. Ms. McGinnis requested a portable device that would demonstrate the

conversion of energy from mechanical to electrical. The demonstration device would need to be durable,reusable, and interesting to the audience. The project was to be made from materials found in CenturyColleges FabLab and/or materials found in local hardware stores. Material costs were to be tracked andkept to a minimum. The project makes use of several software programs and utilized a few of theprocesses and machines found in the FabLab.

This report is divided into several sections. We will discuss how we defined the problem, the constraintsand criteria used for this project and the various websites reviewed to generate solutions to our project.We will present several alternative designs to the problem as well as the final solution we choose and

how we decided upon the selected generator design. The report will show how we built our project andprovide the reader an understanding of how our generator was assembled and how well it meets the

requirements of our client.

Introduction


5/20

5

Design and build a generator that can easily demonstrate the conversion of mechanical energy to

electrical energy. The intended audience will be 7 th and 8th grade students and the project should be both

durable and interesting. Use materials from in the FabLab and/or materials that could be found inhardware stores while controlling costs. Use engineering software to model and build the generatorcomponents.

Problem Statement: Build a product that demonstrates the conversion of energy from mechanical toelectrical so that it can be used in a middle school science program. The final product must conform tothe constraints and criteria defined by the client and our instructor.

Interactive

DurableEasy to use

Demonstrates the concept

Interesting to the target audience

User safety

Approximate size of shoebox

Use materials found in FabLab and/or a hardware store

Cost of materials less is better

Use team approach participation by all team membersOctober 27 deadline

Design Procedure

Problem Definition

Criteria

Constraints


6/20

6

Our team reviewed numerous websites on the Internet prior to choosing and assembling our generator.We used typical search engines with combinations of the word generator and descriptive phrases that we

wanted for our project simple, mechanical to electrical conversion, experiment, easy to use, building,magnetism, electronics, etc. These searches produce an enormous array of interesting and informative

websites. We reviewed videos of working generator examples on YouTube (www.youtube.com) as wellas videos depicting principles of electrical generation. Each of these websites added to our knowledge of

generation electrical energy and helped to form some of the ideas we would later use to design and

construct our project. Many times these websites would lead to additional sites with similar information.Using this wealth of information, we were able to form the ideas and concepts that would help in our

brainstorming portion of the project.

Samples of reviewed websites are listed below. We reviewed all of th e recommended sites listed on thecourse information on Century Colleges D2L website.

Research

#mandghttp://www.animations.physics.unsw.edu.au/jw/electricmotors.html

10' diameter wind turbine constructionhttp://www.otherpower.com/turbineplans.shtmlCopper and electricity. Introduction.http://resources.schoolscience.co.uk/cda/16plus/index.htmlDisc Magnetshttp://www.rare-earth-magnets.com/SearchResult-CategoryID-28.htmlExploratorials - Physics UNSW

http://www.phys.unsw.edu.au/exploratorials/catalogue/activities/activity_faraday.htmHamster-Powered Night Light

http://www.otherpower.com/hamster.htmlHow an Electric Generator Works

http://new.wvic.com/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=9&Itemid=46How I built an electricity producing wind turbine

http://www.mdpub.com/Wind_Turbine/index.htmlHowStuffWorks Generators

http://science.howstuffworks.com/electricity2.htmMagnetic field - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Magnetic_fieldNeodymium magnet - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Neodymium_magnetScience fair project Ultra-simple Electric Generator, spinning magnets

http://www.amasci.com/amateur/coilgen.htmlScience Fair Wind Generatorshttp://www.otherpower.com/toymill.html#danfToys from Trashhttp://www.arvindguptatoys.com/toys/opengenerator.html

Ultra-simple AC Electric Generatorhttp://www.amasci.com/amateur/coilgen.html

How to make an Electric Generator

http://www.ehow.com/how_4609137_make-a-generator.html


7/20

7

Alternative Solutions

Proposal A R otating 4 m agnets on disk with 2 coils and 2 L E D s. Th e magnets would need to beon a wheel or disk and rotated so that the magnetic field would intersect the coil winding. The coilwould be connected to L E D s.


8/20

8

Pr oposal B 2 coils r otat in g on shaft with a f ix ed m agn et. T he coil s would be connected to a L E D .


9/20

9

Pr oposal C M agnet fixed to a r otating shaft. Coils (wir e in the diagram ) fixed inside a box orshell. L E Ds (not shown in th is exam ple) would be connected t o the coil w ir es.


10/20

10

Pr oposal D U se a dr um stick to cr eate vib r ation i n a d r um contain in g p iezoelectr ic sensors.Sensor generates curr ent. Am plifying circuits would power L E D s to spell out RA M S.


11/20

11

Proposal A This proposal would meet our objectives. Further analysis would be required to determinehow many magnets, coils, and LEDs we could use to maximize the impact. We decided that this projectmight also have some difficulties with getting magnets mounted to a disk or wheel and building a gear

driven rotating wheel.

Proposal B This proposal takes a different approach by fixing the magnets and rotating the coils. Wenever came up with a clear plan as to how we could rotate coils without tangling the lead wires that

would be hooked to LEDs. This proposal was quickly abandoned.

Proposal C This proposal uses a shaft with magnet or magnets attached. The shaft rotates such that themagnetic fields intersect coils fixed above and below the rotating magnet. The coils would be connected

to LEDs. This generator offered some advantages as we could add a number of magnets and coils

depending on the length of the shaft. Coils could also be place on four sides assuming we used a

rectangle box as a holding structure for the coils. We thought we might be able to drive more LEDsusing this generator design.

Proposal D One of our earliest brainstormed model involved using a simple drum to generate current.This idea was taken from some popular games such as Rock Star or Guitar Hero. We spent sometime exploring this concept but the electronics involved with converted drum vibrations to a voltage

with sufficient power to light LEDs seemed to be beyond the expertise of the team members.

We decided that build simplicity would be the primary factor in choosing our design. We wanted aproject that would ensure completion before the deadline while keeping cost of materials and fabricationdifficulties to a minimum. We also wanted a project that would fit the skill and experience level of the

team members. In retrospect, these choices may limit the interest our project generates.

Our team kept coming back to a basic principle: We needed to move magnets so that the magnetic linesof force would intersect with coil windings. We discussed various ways to accomplish this anddemonstrated our ideas using sketching and verbal descriptions. Our inspiration for our final design was

the Ultra Simple Generator found at this website:

http://www.amasci.com/amateur/coilgen.html

We modified this design to better fit our objectives. We added magnets, coils, and LEDs. We built the

holding box for this configuration and added gears and brackets. We discussed various modifications to

our design including a crank handle and additional LEDs, especially after seeing the in -process designsof other teams.

Analysis

Decision


12/20

12

The table below represents the factors we used to determine which design would best fit our

requirements. The most weight (Value) was given to meeting the objectives of the project, followed by

the time needed for the project and the difficulty level of fabrication and assembly. The least amount of

weight was given to cost although we still wanted to create a project that would make efficient use ofmaterials. We determine the scores for each factor as applied to each of the four proposals. We

determined that Proposal C, with a score of 80 points, would be the best fit for our requirements.

Cost 10 5 5 10 2

Time requirement 20 15 10 20 5

Meets objectives 50 40 40 30 50Within the abilities of the team 20 15 15 20 5

Totals 100 75 70 62

D ecision M atrix

F actor V alue Proposal A Pr oposal B Proposal C Proposal D

80


13/20

13

1 each 18 x 24 x acrylic, laser cut to form pieces:

2 each box ends with teeth2 each box sides with teeth1 each box cover without teeth1 each magnet shaft gear1 each drive shaft gear6 each washers2 each holding brackets

1 each bottom base

4 each magnet wire coils approximately 100 of 30 gauge wire per coil

4 each one inch diameter disc magnets

2 each magnet shaft - wooden dowel rod diameter x 6 length

2 each red light emitting diodes (LED)

Misc. supplies Tie wraps, glues, electrical tape, solder

Fabricate pieces from acrylic sheet:

A. Box end pieces with teethB. Box side pieces with teethC. Box CoverD. Washers for holding shaft in place and gear spacingE. Holding brackets

F. Bottom BaseG. Drive Shaft gearH. Magnet Shaft gear

Fabricate from wooden dowel:

2 each 6 inch shafts - drive shaft and magnet shaft

Fabricated with FabLab coil winder:

4 Coils of magnet wire 30 gauge wire formed on FabLab coil winding machine.Approximately 100 feet of wire for each coil.

Specifications

Bill of Materials

Fabrication instructions


14/20

14

Acrylic Box with Coils

Assembly 2 sides and 1 end of the acrylic box using the acrylic pieces with teeth. Attached 4 coils ofmagnet wire using tie wraps on the inside of the box. The tie wraps should aligned with the laser cutholes in the box sides. Tighten the tie wraps so that the coils are against the acrylic.

Magnet Shaft AssemblyAssemble the magnet shaft with 4 magnets glued in place. Align the magnet and shaft sub-assemblywithin the acrylic box such that the magnetic lines from the coil will intersect the coils of wire. The shaftwill fit through the hole in the box end piece. Add the second box end piece to so that the shaft end goes

through the hole. Push on acrylic washer on either end of the shaft to hold the shaft in the correct

position.

Solder coils and LEDs

The coils are soldered together to form pairs so that 1 pair of coil supplies voltage for 1 LED. Each coilshould have one end of the wire soldered to a mating coil and one end of the wire soldered to a LED

lead. Trial and error was needed to determine the correct current direction.

Small Gear mounting and washer placementsA small gear is fixed to one end of the shaft with the magnets on the outside of the acrylic box. Press a

tight fitting acrylic washer onto the other end of the shaft on the outside of the acrylic box. The shaftshould turn freely.

Base plate and holding brackets

Insert the holding brackets into the base plate. The cutouts in the base plate are sized so that the holdingbrackets fit snug. The holes in the holding brackets should align.

Large gear mounting and washer placementsA large gear is fixed to one end of the drive shaft. The drive shaft is feed through the holes of thebrackets such that the large gear is on the outside of one bracket and meshes with the teeth of the shaft

gear. The drive shaft is held in place by a tight fitting washer on the opposite end of the shaft on the

outside of the holding bracket.

Final assembly and acrylic cover

The box should now be fixed to the holding brackets. The box should be aligned such that the magnet

shaft gear meshes with the drive gear. We used acrylic glue to bond the box to the brackets. We glued a

cover on top of the box to protect the coils and LEDs.

Assembly Instructions (Refer to photos in Appendix A)


15/20

15

1. Our team met the projects objectives.

2. Our team worked well together. We shared the workload and didnt have to rush to complete ourproject or our reports.

3. Time was critical. A more intricate design would have required additional time and effort. We

chose a simpler design to ensure we could complete the project and related documentation

requirements.

4. We gained experience in several fabrication and assembly techniques as well as associated

software programs laser cutting, coil winding, soldering, vinyl cutting, and gluing.

5. While working in the FabLab, we were exposed to other teams project concepts. Our

observations generated additional changes to our own design. Our original generator only hadone shaft and the user would simply hold the shaft ends and spin the box. We decided to addanother shaft with gears so that the user could either spin the gear or a crank. We also added

brackets and a base so that our generator could be handled and supported.

6. There are several elements that could be added to our basic design:

a. Make the shaft longer and add more magnets, coils, and LEDs. If the shafts were 12 insteadof 6 we would be able double the number of magnets. We could also add coils on 4 sides of

the magnet shaft instead of just 2 sides. Adding magnets and coils would allow the generatorto supply voltage to several LEDs. We could also add more magnets by having less space

between them.

b. Add a simple hand crank. This would allow the user to spin the magnet shaft moreefficiently. We were going to try this idea but we decided that the large gear in our design

would need to have a greater diameter for this to work.

Conclusions and Recommendations


16/20

16

Drive Shaft Gear

Magnet Shaft Gear

Magnet Shaft

Drive Shaft

Base Plate

Coil (4 ea.)

Magnet (4 ea.)

LED (2 ea.)

Bracket

Appendix A Photos

Complete assembly with features labeled


17/20

17

Photos

2 end and 2 sides of the acrylic boxEnd pieces have hole for magnet shaft, Side pieces have holes for the tie wraps that

hold the coils

Acrylic box with 2 sides and 2 ends. 2 sides of the box are open.

Acrylic box with coils tie wrapped to sides and magnet shaft mounted through holes inbox ends.

continued


18/20

18

Photos

2 Holding brackets, top cover, drive shaft gear, magnet shaft gear

Base plate with holding brackets and empty acrylic box

continued


19/20

19

Appendix B Pro/E models

Pr o/E m odel of holding br ack et Pr o/E m odel of base plate

Pr o/E model of w asher Pr o/E m odel of box end

Pr o/E model of box side Pr o/E m odel of shaft


20/20

20

1 sheet 24 x 18 acrylic 1/4 sheet $20.00 $5.00

Magnet wire 4 $0.51 $2.04

Magnets 4 $2.05 $8.20Wood dowel 36 1 $0.16 $0.16

LEDs 2 $0.30 $0.60

Appendix C - Project costs

Descr iption Q uantity C ost / U nit M ater ial C ost

T otal C ost $16.00

Documents

Design Generator