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What can the 4x4 green capacitors be used for concerning mindstorms? I am
involved with a team of elementary scholl kids who have recently received nearly
two-hundred of them. We just can't see what they could be used for, especially
for a FLL-type robot.
Andrew
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In lugnet.technic, Andrew G. Meyer wrote:
> What can the 4x4 green capacitors be used for concerning mindstorms?
They can demonstrate energy storage. Wire together a capacitor and a motor
(put a nice wheel on the motor so you have a way to turn the axle). Turn the
axle, and the motor will act as a generator, pumping energy into the capacitor
which will slowly release it back to the motor. Note that there is a polarity to
the capacitor, so if turning the wheel one way results in poor power storage,
try turning it the other way for a while. You can make a "pull back car" with a
capacitor & motor that will work very nicely (if slowly). The fully charged
capacitor will light up a little LED that is in the base when it saturates.
Pitsco-Dacta carries a couple of sets that use them to explore energy
concepts. Ordering one of these (the "green car", I think, is the one I have)
will provide some ideas and simple diagrams, but just looking at the pictures in
the Pistco-Dacta catalog will get you started (the car is very easy to build).
> I am involved with a team of elementary school kids who
> have recently received nearly two-hundred of them.
Wow!! OK, with 200 of them, you could build one heck of a battery (either to
provide a hefty voltage (in series), which I'd not recommend, or to provide some
very long-term power in parallel). These also work well with the LEGO solar
cell, acting as both a storage system and a voltage leveler.
> We just can't see what they could be used for, especially
> for a FLL-type robot.
For a *robot*, possibly not a lot (although they could be used to provide a
seperate power source for a low-voltage motor, perhaps triggered by a mechanical
bumper that activates a polarity switch (if you have them). I have a couple, and
have always wanted to power the RCX with solar cells and capacitors, but the
conclusion is it would take too many (although with a lot of 200... wow, how
lucky can you get!).
--
Brian Davis
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In lugnet.technic, Brian Davis wrote:
> You can make a "pull back car" with a capacitor & motor that will work very
> nicely (if slowly). • Thanks, I'll try to set up an experiment using this.
> Wow!! OK, with 200 of them, you could build one heck of a battery (either to
> provide a hefty voltage (in series), which I'd not recommend, or to provide some
> very long-term power in parallel). These also work well with the LEGO solar
> cell, acting as both a storage system and a voltage leveler.
We have no solar cells, which would have been cool, but the battery idea is
useful. We have a lot of mini-motors, so maybe one of those attached to a
bank...
> For a *robot*, possibly not a lot (although they could be used to provide a
> seperate power source for a low-voltage motor, perhaps triggered by a mechanical
> bumper that activates a polarity switch (if you have them).
No polarity switches either, but I'm going to put them on the next Pitsco order.
Thanks for the suggestions Mr. Davis. I hope the team will be able to make use
of them. As you said, 200 is a lot of caps!
Andrew
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"Andrew G. Meyer" <agmlego@yahoo.com> wrote in message
news:I2JLKD.1KEL@lugnet.com...
> What can the 4x4 green capacitors be used for concerning mindstorms? I am
> involved with a team of elementary scholl kids who have recently received • nearly
> two-hundred of them. We just can't see what they could be used for, • especially
> for a FLL-type robot.
>
> Andrew
They are quite useful with the Lego Solar Cell. They will regulate the out
put at 2.5 volts DC.
http://www.ozbricks.com/bobfay/solar.htm
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