Movement - From A to Z without the fuss!

Can we really create movement without energy? Not really, energy is always required from somewhere. Whether it is from a power cell or from the sun's rays, it has to be drawn from somewhere.

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My point for this post is quite simple, can we make it 'less'? Imagine that in ten years Toyota creates a motor that is able to use 50% less fuel in their cars. With hybrid engineering, this could allow an engine to travel twice, if not thrice the distance on a single tank.

This technology is getting better, and with the move to more sustainable energy options, we could see a time that we continue to use oil-based fuels, spread over more years than what we currently have available. Imagine spreading the oil we still have access to from the 50 years left at the moment, to another 200 years. Aside from the environmental impact, both positive and negative, the engineering prospects would be fascinating.

The negative consequences can be looked at another time. For now, though, let's look closely at the aspects of cutting the energy needed to move an object. I am going to break this down into the '5-Ways' of energy options first:

Way One: Oil-Based Combustion

A quick run through of how this works first. The fuel that is drawn from crude oil, in this case we'll look at gasoline, is mixed with air and then exploded to push sequenced cylinders down, thus turning a central bar. This turn is what is used to move the wheels, often via a transmission that contain several cog sizes. This makes the engine run faster or slower rotations based on their size.

Now that is done, simple, but I believe effective, we can see that it is not only old fashioned to some extent, but also messy. It doesn't take a genius to know that oil is mucky!

How are they solving the amount that is used? Although we could look at the hybrid concept, I want to look at the oil-based part only. Engineers have been able to create carburetor units that, with the help of other units fixed to the motor housing, will reduce the flow, and therefore, need for the fuel. Advances in efficiency with bearings and heat distribution can all make a difference too. What is the future for this technology?

Way Two: Hydrogen Fuel Cells

Sticking with cars and other wheeled-vehicles on this one, the concept, and now, reality of Hydrogen as a fuel has come a long way. With only water as a by-product, it is far cleaner than using oil.
The idea of this will allow there to be a truly sustainable form of energy that could power more than just wheeled vehicles. There is little to support the use of it as a power source for electricity in a home, but with further development, could this be an answer to power shortages around the world. Even if it was only a backup for now, it might be welcomed by many New Yorkers, i'm sure they would prefer that than another hefty black-out.

Way Three: The Wind

Okay, I don't mean the kind from the dark side, the kind that wisps past our faces in the great outdoors. Using the wind for power has been around for some time now, we have seen a big rise in turbines on grassy hills, on our coastal vistas and even on the deck of sail boats.

Talking of sailing boats, we know how the wind causes their movement, do we not? The gust will push the large area of the 'sail' along, thus pushing the hull through the water. There is more to this though, the keel acts like an under-wing to the sail's over-wing. When you discover that air is just like water, you can understand this better. Our nitrogen rich air is very thick! It rolls over the hills and your head, like a tidal flow in the ocean.

Thus, the sail and keel are like a aeroplane's wings but in liquid as opposed to the air. Even though this is a little off-track, it does beg the question of whether we could learn from these similarities, though, this might already be the case.

Way Four: You

'Wheels' it is again! The bicycle has been around for a long time. The Bone-Shaker was a French designed early idea of the two-wheeled frame that we have today.

Looking at the pedal rotation on a modern bike, we use our energy, made from what we eat and drink, to rotate a central wheel that drives a wheel at the rear to move you along. This, of course, is not the only way that we move objects along. As well as Fred Flintstone's epic running-powered rock-car, and the use of hand-cycles, we also move objects with our body heat. Though this is small, it is energy that could be harnessed. Maybe?

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Way Four: Unknown Technology from...'THE FUTURE'

So this is a cop-out I know, but really, what could you make in the future? This is the 'People in the Shed' aspect again. That's it really, is there another way of moving things? Solar energy is a great technology. There are fossil-fuels used for steam engines, what about coiled springs? This was an idea that I had a while ago...

Bonus: My Idea

My first concept was based on the use of a coiled spring. Like a 'pull-back' car from the toy chest, what if we could harness the energy that can be stored in a flexible material was used to power rotation of a wheel?

That brings me onto now. I was thinking about the use of hand-launched drones in the military. If we launch the vehicle first, air pressure maybe, this would improve the fuel economy. Fuel? What is the fuel in this case? The coil's 'potential' energy is what! So, the 'potential' might be there, are you ready to get in that shed?

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What do you think? What do you know? Is this a 'debunk-able blunder'? This could go on for a long time, I haven't even touched on gravity as a force for movement! Tally-ho!