Gas Turbine Jetpack – Test Pilots Wanted

January 19, 2011 by Mike Szczys 42 Comments

Feeling brave and ready to strap on this jet pack? Well, that’s not all of it. What you see above is just the manifold with two nozzles that can be aimed for control. The gas turbine engine that is being designed for the project will attach to the large circular coupling on top. The finished suit, called a Monocopter, should weigh in at about 265 pounds. That kind of weight makes us think they should include a robotic exoskeleton to help support it during takeoff, landing, and just when standing around. This thing already looks like it belongs to a villain from the Megaman series. Here’s hoping it’s used for good and not to help produce an army of mean robots.

[Thanks Rob]

Attitude Control For A Really Big Rocket

January 18, 2011 by Mike Szczys 42 Comments

If this is meant for a model rocket it must be the biggest we’ve ever seen. [Scott] and [Trevor] took on the task of building a rocket attitude control system after reading about some research on the topic. But that researcher only tested the theories using simulations so they set out to build their own. The prototype above has a tank of compressed Nitrogen which can hold up to 3000 PSI. You can begin to understand why this needs to be used with a big rocket. The pressurized gas is connected through a regulator to four valves which feed nozzles around the circumference of the fuselage. An Arduino takes readings from a gyroscope and actuates the gas valves via a relay board.

You can check out the test rig in the video after the break. The prototype is suspended horizontally from a wire and its orientation held at one position by the system. There’s also a paper (PDF) if you’re interested in the equations that went into the stabilization control. This system would have been right at home on that huge sugar rocket we saw back in October.

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$20 Fuel Injector Tester

January 16, 2011 by Mike Szczys 39 Comments

[Dino] is an auto mechanic and needed a way to test out fuel injectors. Commercially available tools start well over $100 and go up from there, but he built his own for about $20.

The injectors have a coil in them that needs to be tested. His design calls for a series of 0.008 millisecond pulses to test the coil. He started by setting up a 555 timer to output a one second pulse. This signal is fed into a second 555 chip that outputs the 0.008 pulses and in turn actuates a MOSFET to switch the coil on and off. To use it [Dino] connects to a 12V bench supply and to the injector, using a single button to start the test. See him explain the setup in the video after the break.

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SkyWalker: A Really Really Tall Bike

January 12, 2011 by Mike Szczys 37 Comments

[Brad Graham] enjoys building bikes. He threw together a tall bike called the SkyWalker and then shared the build details (link dead, try the Internet Archive version). It’s got everything you’d expect in a fixed-gear bike; a seat, pedals, steering, and two wheels. You’ll have to do a bit of climbing to get into the saddle but the incorporated ladder doubles as passenger space. [Brad] says the thing has no problem supporting up to four riders at a time. Check out the video after the break to see that the ladder and large-height steering frame make the bike easy to stop and start without leaning on something. Wow.

We’re thrilled and scared at the same time. At least that over-under tandem had full-sized wheels. But those tiny rims on this oblong creation? Yikes!

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Steam Cycle Feels Like Your Pants Are On Fire

January 8, 2011 by Mike Szczys 54 Comments

Usually we don’t like to feature projects that have zero build details, saving them instead for a links post. But this steam-powered bicycle is too… peculiar to pass up. In between the rider’s legs is the firebox that contains a wood-fueled fire. Watch the clip after the break and you’ll find just how noisy this contraption can be. In addition to the mid-range “chug-a chug-a” there’s also the constant whistle we’d attribute to the pressure regulator. It’s surprising that the whole bike doesn’t heat up, but it must not be all that bad since the test pilot isn’t wearing asbestos pants. All kidding aside, it looks like this beast has no problem getting up to a running pace (based on the movements of the camera) and that’s thanks to a renewable energy source.

We’d be much more comfortable seeing this in a mechanized tandem form factor since we just can’t get over having a fire between our legs.

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Hacking A Hack: Electric Hybrid Geo Metro

January 5, 2011 by Mike Szczys 54 Comments

[Ben Nelson] turned his electric Geo Metro into a plug-in hybrid. But wait, where’d he get an electric Geo Metro? It seems that we’re one hack behind [Ben], who converted the vehicle to all electric back in 2008 using a forklift motor and some batteries. This time around he’s following the Chevrolet Volt’s example by adding a backup generator. Instead of going with a gasoline power he added a tank of propane and the generator from a Recreational Vehicle. This won’t put out enough juice to drive while the generator is running, but you can use it to extend your traveling range by pulling over for a nap while it tops off the batteries.

Dome Light LED Retrofit

January 4, 2011 by Mike Szczys 25 Comments

One of the bulbs in the dome light of [Pete’s] car burnt out. These were a bit hard to get at for replacement so he thought he’d try something that would last longer, and have no problem standing up to the vibrations that go along with automotive electronics. But plug-in LED replacements cost more money than he was willing to spend. Luckily there was a dollar store next door to the auto part shop, so he bought three LED touch lights for the dome and cargo bulbs.

After cracking them open he found that the LEDs were wired in parallel. He needed to put these in series in order to take advantage of the voltage drop. After de-soldering the bulbs he measured the characteristics of one, then calculated the voltage drop and resistor value using a worst case scenario of 14V to avoid damage to the light when the engine is revving high. From there he cut the traces on the board and rewired them. The reworked module fits nicely and as you can see in the image, gives a more pleasing light color than the orange of the stock bulb.