Week 4

This week we came to the conclusion that instead of having our generator produce light, that we will design it to provide current that will be able to charge a mobile phone. We then conducted research on certain aspects that will allow us to accomplish this task. Things like the correct current that is needed, voltage, and the use of diodes to change the current from AC to DC are examples of the research conducted. An initial design for our model was also started using Pro Engineer (Figures 1, 2, and 3). Figure 1 is half of the exterior handle of the charge. Figure 2 is the interior of the handle and will encase the magnets and have the copper wire coiled around it. Figure 3 is an end cap to the interior of the handle.

Figure 1

Figure 2

Figure 3

Week 3

We started out today by deciding what materials we need for our project. We researched costs of the materials and tried to get a more specific picture of what the light source is going to look like. We figured out that an led light bulb needs a specific amount of current and voltage. If either one is exceeded then the light bulb could be damaged. We created a zaahah account to continue doing our research for the project. We determined that we need to go into greater detail of what exactly we will need to do to complete the project.

Week 2

We started up the Team Member Bio page. We added more specifics on our design, focusing on using a magnet passing through a coil of wire to charge a capacitor to give energy to a light bulb and act as a wireless phone charger. We began our initial research on the inner workings of the generator. Planned to meet On Wednesday the 11th at 6 pm at the Library Learning Terrace to continue research.

Week 1

In the first lab we decided to work on the topic of Materials Selection for Energy and Sustainability. What we chose to work on was the idea of a low cost portable light source that can be used in multiple scenarios. The machine will transform mechanical energy to electrical energy to power a light bulb or any other light source. The mechanical energy source will be either water generated or by physical labor. This includes physically turning a crank or handle to provide power for the generator.