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ShakeyLeggs
02-07-2008, 20:51
Here ya go a new fangled battery charger.

http://sciencenow.sciencemag.org/cgi/content/full/2008/207/1

wrongway_08
02-07-2008, 20:59
Reading about that in popular science a little bit ago, cool idea.

I'll wait till they make them for dogs...... 2x as many legs to make 2x the power........

doggiebag
02-07-2008, 21:05
Reading about that in popular science a little bit ago, cool idea.

I'll wait till they make them for dogs...... 2x as many legs to make 2x the power........
Have you no shame man ... first you make the dog hike the trail. Then you put a pack on the dog ... now you're waiting to use him as a power source! You are pure evil. Sir.

wrongway_08
02-07-2008, 21:14
Have you no shame man ... first you make the dog hike the trail. Then you put a pack on the dog ... now you're waiting to use him as a power source! You are pure evil. Sir.

http://www.langkawi.dk/smileys/a1089.gif, Nope no shame, http://www.langkawi.dk/smileys/a1091.gif, :eek:

doggiebag
02-07-2008, 21:17
http://www.langkawi.dk/smileys/a1089.gif, Nope no shame, http://www.langkawi.dk/smileys/a1091.gif, :eek:
Congratulations for achieving an alltime low on disturbing smilies :D!

wrongway_08
02-07-2008, 21:27
http://www.surromomsonline.com/support/images/smilies/thankyou.gif



http://www.surromomsonline.com/support/images/smilies/topic.gif



http://www.surromomsonline.com/support/images/smilies/elefant.gif

Bob S
02-07-2008, 21:46
No practical use for that thing, you would not generate enough power to be of much use.

jnohs
02-08-2008, 10:42
charge gps, sat phone,digital camera,probably figure a way to charge a ipod, flash light, radio,

Bob S
02-08-2008, 14:37
To generate electricity with magnets and a coil (like a generator) you need to have the magnets move by the coil very fast, as it does in the rotation in a motor or generator armature. Even the hand-crank generators have a gear-reduction setup to make the armature (magnets) spin by the coils faster then you are turning the handle. Even Steve Austin, the “Six Million Dollar Man” could not run fast enough to generate much electricity. You may get enough to light a small LED light, but that’s about it.

ShakeyLeggs
02-08-2008, 14:53
To generate electricity with magnets and a coil (like a generator) you need to have the magnets move by the coil very fast, as it does in the rotation in a motor or generator armature. Even the hand-crank generators have a gear-reduction setup to make the armature (magnets) spin by the coils faster then you are turning the handle. Even Steve Austin, the “Six Million Dollar Man” could not run fast enough to generate much electricity. You may get enough to light a small LED light, but that’s about it.

I agree with everything you stated. I am a power generation mechanic. But the article states "the braces produced 5 watts of power--enough to run 10 cell phones". I would really like to see some drawings on the thing.

twentybelow
02-08-2008, 18:38
someone gave me this (http://store.sundancesolar.com/flsobachfor2.html) solar charger as a Christmas gift. if you don't count the weight of the spare set of batteries (which i think most of us carry anyway), the panel itself and the battery holder is only 18 grams or a bit over half an ounce. i can't say how it works in the field yet, but it seems like it might do the job on a long distance hike to replace the small amount of power used by a low-draw device like an mp3 player / radio or maybe even an LED headlight. obviously it won't catch much direct sun on trails like the AT, but maybe a few hours a day over the course of a week would be enough. i figure if i doesn't work in the woods, i'll try it on kayak trips. does anyone here have any experience using a solar charger on the trail?

Bob S
02-08-2008, 21:59
someone gave me this (http://store.sundancesolar.com/flsobachfor2.html) solar charger as a Christmas gift. if you don't count the weight of the spare set of batteries (which i think most of us carry anyway), the panel itself and the battery holder is only 18 grams or a bit over half an ounce. i can't say how it works in the field yet, but it seems like it might do the job on a long distance hike to replace the small amount of power used by a low-draw device like an mp3 player / radio or maybe even an LED headlight. obviously it won't catch much direct sun on trails like the AT, but maybe a few hours a day over the course of a week would be enough. i figure if i doesn't work in the woods, i'll try it on kayak trips. does anyone here have any experience using a solar charger on the trail?

I love solar chargers & solar water heaters. That one you linked to looks like it will work, but it says it takes 17-hrs to charge batteries. That’s going to take 2-days to charge a set of dead AA Batts. If you had 2-chargers wires up parallel you could cut that time by 1/2 , they are only $25.00 so this is within reach.

A way to get by fairly well with one is to charge the batteries before they are 100% dead, this way you should be able to keep a set of batteries topped of for every morning. But I don’t see solar as a good AT charging method, other places with more sun would be OK