Perpetual motion machine

[Drilldogger]

Originally Posted by rufus

IF it were possible to build a perpetual motion machine it would be useless except as a novelty display. BECAUSE as soon as you hooked a PTO to it it would slow down/stop.

We need an accelerating machine.

This^

Even the scientist in the interview says that it isn't 100% efficient. Meaning it can't run forever. As soon as you add the mechanics to create power the efficiency would drop from the extremely high percentage it's at to something closer to the machines we already have. Also someone has to start the ball rolling right? It doesn't mean that he has a power source, it just means he has to push the ball and it can run for a ridiculous amount of time.

That being said every machine we have now was created through an evolution of ideas. So if one man can come up with an idea that's more efficient than previously thought, maybe someone else can take that idea and improve on it. We don't necessarily need perpetual motion, but an efficiency of 80-90% could certainly change the way the world works.

On a side note, does it seem like most of his art is just 3D porn?

[ThanatosF]

Originally Posted by Pike Bishop

I bet if you had x-ray vision, and could see inside the center pillar, you'd see a great big one of these:

I'm embarrassed to ask now that no one else has but...wtf are those? I see pine cones/tiny grenades...then I see the image title of cuckoo clock weights...then I think, so what? Why would simple weights (given, shaped fancy like pine cones) within the pillar discredit what the video says the contraption does?

[drxr650r]

its more than possible, its been done, i've seen it with my own eyes. ... rare earth magnets are really magnificent,, and thats all i will say about it.

[Sparrowhawk]

Originally Posted by ThanatosF

I'm embarrassed to ask now that no one else has but...wtf are those? I see pine cones/tiny grenades...then I see the image title of cuckoo clock weights...then I think, so what? Why would simple weights (given, shaped fancy like pine cones) within the pillar discredit what the video says the contraption does?

I think the Bishop is alluding that hidden behind the curtain is a cuckoo clock mechanism with the weights slowy lowering. When they reach the bottom the machine stops unless rewound.

[Twilight Error]

Originally Posted by drxr650r

its more than possible, its been done, i've seen it with my own eyes. ... rare earth magnets are really magnificent,, and thats all i will say about it.

What? Magnetic bearings? Yeah, they do a beautiful job at reducing friction from a rotating shaft, but unless the shaft is enclosed in a vacuum, there is still friction in the system.

Perpetual motion is a nice dream, but its a practical impossibility - even if you could harness the motion to drive power supply that kept the system up, bumping that output up to provide any useful energy will degrade the system.

[Stan_R80/7]

I think devices like these always capture the imagination. Cold fusion and room temperature superconductivity are two others that come to mind. The second law of thermodynamics prohibits perpetual motion or 100% efficiency.

One of the tenants of science is being able to reproduce or duplicate an experiment or device. That is how cold fusion and room temperature superconductivity were found to be non existent (up to now). If this fellow is legitimate, he can provide plans or instructions to make a similar device. Getting a patent for such a device is difficult because patent officers will not allow perpetual motion devices (because of the second law of thermodynamics).

Magnets and magnetic fields have long been a 'source' for such devices, including the earth's magnetic field. However, none have 'panned out' to create a new era of scientific knowledge and discovery. There is a reason some scientific principles are declared 'laws', that is because they are true 100% of the time (i.e. cannot be violated). I wish him luck and can appreciate his enthusiasm and creativity.

[LuciferMutt]

I think we can all agree on one thing: That guy is better at molding shapely tits than he is making legitimate perpetual motioin.

[Pike Bishop]

Originally Posted by ThanatosF

I see the image title of cuckoo clock weights...then I think, so what? Why would simple weights (given, shaped fancy like pine cones) within the pillar discredit what the video says the contraption does?

Um, because if its continued motion depended upon someone adding energy (by lifting up a cuckoo clock weight once a week), it wouldn't exactly be what your thread title claims it is.

[Pike Bishop]

Originally Posted by drxr650r

its more than possible, its been done, i've seen it with my own eyes. ... rare earth magnets are really magnificent,, and thats all i will say about it.

Originally Posted by ThanatosF

I don't fully understand the physics behind the notion of perpetual motion

Here, maybe this will help:

[wyowillys46]

[anonny]

Would any of you believers be interested in a bridge?

[eepeqez]

The ideal almost perpetual motion machine would be something like a flywheel on magnetic bearings in a vacuum. Even then, no perfect vacuum exists and it will eventually slow down.

So why are these supposed perpetual motion machines always such complicated mechanisms; full of components which must have friction and slow things down?

Simple - to obfuscate how they feed energy into the system and to fascinate the audience.

No one would believe a simple flywheel because they can see it is not special. They need to see an Escher-esque ramp system or other plausible looking mechanism to believe in.

The thing is, a successful perpetual motion machine would still only be a curiosity.

The difference between a very low loss bearing and a no loss bearing would save some energy in machines, but it won't generate any energy. It might let you save 30% on your fuel costs in your truck, but it won't make the truck run for free.

What you want is not a machine which is 100% efficient (breaking the second law of thermodynamics, you can't break even), but one which is 150% efficient, or even just 100.001% efficient (breaking the first law of thermodynamics, there's no such thing as a free lunch).

[Klay]

You doubters are really messing up a good idea here.

[eepeqez]

Our scepticism is keeping the entry price cheaper for canny investors like yourself.

[Klay]

I don't invest, I just point the way.