Final Project: Energy Bike

Kat and I received our final project "team" for my original idea of the Energy Bike (inspired by the Ohio Energy Project), where a bike pedaler can feel the relative amounts of mechanical energy it takes to power some every-day appliances. working towards her idea of creating a bicycle into an energy source.

Goal: Teach users about energy, energy consumption and the importance of conserving energy. By physically experiencing how difficult it is to generate energy into a usable form, the users will gain a new appreciation for it and the importance of being "energy efficient."
Mechanisms: 
  • Bike Gears
    • A standard gear setting so that the only change in resistance comes from the change in energy requirements from the appliance it is powering. 
  • Pico-cricket or Arduino 
  • Sensing/Feedback:
    • Light-board -- measure the amount of power input and light up accordingly.
    •  Red/Green/Yellow Flashes for when there's too much, enough or too little energy being generated. 
    •  Proportional control to make the system respond in accordance with the energy input provided. 
    • Any other pieces for the specific circuit wall (e.g. ight-bulb circuit, flaps hiding answer to questions, other appliance connections, etc) 
Ideas/Brainstorming:
As far as what we could power, there really could be an infinite list....
  • Demonstrate energy differences between electric and traditional cars
  • Heat a cup of water using pedal power
  • Power a light board
  • Power a projector
  • Power a heater to keep temperature in a fish tank constant
  • Power a hair-dryer
  • Power a 9V Radio 
  • Charge users' cell phones and see power differences among brands
  • Have people guess how much power objects consume and try to recreate it
  • Power a small fan using gear ratios for resistance
Follow the Project at The Wellesley Energy Bike

Comments

  1. UnknownApril 18, 2014 at 10:20 AM

    I love how you have a little slideshow within your blog post to explain your ideas. Can't wait to see your final project! :)

    ReplyDelete

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