Why no wind turbines powered by driving?

[Midniteoyl]

Quote:

Originally Posted by vermilye One interesting concept, particularly as roads get worse due to state financial problems is this Shock Absorber designed by a couple of MIT students. They claim each shock is capable of producing 1KW while driving on normal roads. The article is over 2 years old, & I haven't seen anything new on the concept,

GenShock...

Levant Power: Revolutionary GenShock Technology


They do have bus/truck applications: http://www.levantpower.com/trucking.html

Quote:

At left, a plot demonstrates a 30% reduction in vehicle vibration (of a 40,000 lb bus) using the GenShock ASH™ ride control system.

[bluepill]

There is already a form of regenerative charging used on many automobiles built in the last 20 years. The engine computer monitors electrical usage and required engine power and adjusts alternator output accordingly. The most basic form will try to charge only when the vehicle is slowing down and the energy would be wasted anyway. During cruise and acceleration the alternator output is reduced to the minimum (about 12.8 volts) needed to avoid excessive discharge of the battery.
This is the closest thing to a free lunch we will see until battery technology/price allows systems like ultracapacitors to harness much more energy.

I don't know if the DP's use it, but I would guess that all the gassers do.

[Tpflyer]

Don't they use small wind turbines on sailboats to keep the batteries charged? I don't see why you couldnt put it up when boondocking to keep the house batteries charged

[Midniteoyl]

You could, but since most people RV in an area surrounded by trees, dont expect to get much wind

[Senior Chief]

Actually, I know a number of folks with small wind turbines, but believe or not, noise from the turbine transmitted to the coach is a major drawback.

Having said that, they work very well in windy desert or coastal areas.

[Mekanic]

If you want some "FREE" enery here is an idea:
Mount an extra alt under the hood of you vehicle. then wire is to only charge the house batts.(make sure your other alt is NOT charging them) then wire it up though it regulator so it is only charging when you are on the brakes. (hook up the rgulator to to ONLY excite the field in that alt when the brake light are on. )
Just becaue a alt is turning does NOT mean it is charging or causing great drag.

[two-niner]

"Climate change is one of the greatest wealth generating opportunities of our generation". ....Sir Richard Branson (you know, the guy who owns Virgin Airways)

If I was 21 again, I'd be all over that green stuff. Hey, I missed inventing the Pet Rock by one day.

Kerry

[Midniteoyl]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Mekanic Just becaue a alt is turning does NOT mean it is charging or causing great drag.

True.. the hp needed to turn is directly related to the amount of energy its producing..

[leadman]

mekanic, could go farther with that idea and have a switch on the throttle so the alt. would charge when you are in gear and coasting, as going down an incline. This concept is similar to the Thelma Retarders found on fire trucks and other heavy equipment. The Thelma unit is on the driveline and uses battery power to create an electronic drag to slow the vehicle.
When I was in the Army my Contact Truck had a Hobart generator/welder powered off the front part of the driveshaft. There was a jaw type clutch to disengage the rear half of the driveline. On the front engine coaches something similar could be done with a smaller generator powered by a belt while you drove, and also camped.
All it takes is money and the willingness to experiment.

[Pigman1]

I'm not sure why you'd need the power when running. I came down from Alaska with a 110v 10+ cu ft chest freezer in the toad full of frozen fish and a 4 cu ft small freezer in the basement similarly full of frozen fish. we ran the both freezers from the alternator and inverter, charging 8 6V deep cycle AGM house batteries and the two engine batteries. 4 of the AGM's were house batteries and the other 4 were ONLY powering the audio-visual and satellite internet dishes. We boondocked each night on the house batteries, and each day the coach engine and alternator charged them fully during the day's run. We never ran the generator in an 11 day run.

The concept of a wind generator being used when driving is interesting but I would imagine the drag and cost would make it a lot less efficient than using your engine alternator.

Pigman
Allegro Bus 40QSP

[frankdamp]

There's no free lunch! Whatever power a roof-mounted air turbine would produce would add to the drag of your vehicle and you'd get less mpg.

A retractable turbine, when deployed at your campsite would add power, if the wind was strong enough. We've stayed at CGs in the Columbia Gorge, where the wind was about 50 knots, enough that we didn't deploy the slides in fear of their toppers being destroyed.

[jspande]

I remember reading somewhere that the makers of small home wind turbines strongly recomended against mounting them on buildings, due to vibrations from the units. It can actually cause structural damage (nails loosening, etc.,). Attaching one to an RV would likely mean you'd both hear and feel the vibration.

[TDiGuy]

Check out
Cyclone Power Technologies Inc

They could take your exhaust heat and power a generator while driving down the road.