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The Windbelt – a Cheap Wind-Power Generator
dominique_cimafranca writes "Shawn Frayne, a 28-year old inventor, has developed a small wind-powered generator that can be used to power small appliances in developing countries. Unlike the typical propeller design one expects of wind generators, the windbelt uses the oscillation of a membrane that follows the vibration of bridge. The oscillation drives small magnets which generate the electricity. From the article: 'Frayne's device, which he calls a Windbelt, is a taut membrane fitted with a pair of magnets that oscillate between metal coils. Prototypes have generated 40 milliwatts in 10-mph slivers of wind, making his device 10 to 30 times as efficient as the best microturbines. Frayne envisions the Windbelt costing a few dollars and replacing kerosene lamps in Haitian homes.'"
dupe: http://hardware.slashdot.org/article.pl?sid=07/10/14/1240206
Sometimes, life itself is sarcasm...
Yup.
40mW in 10 MPH wind for $5: Scale to 1W would take an array of 25 at a cost of $125.
This would be, looking at his prototype, about 50cm x 100cm...
The cost/watt however, is just astronomically bad. A 1 kW wind turbine is $3000 (which would produce ~400W at that windspeed)...
Its really a clever idea, but just not efficient enough to be economical, even to just glow an LED lamp.
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