Wave-driven blower and electric motor/generator

Abstract

The present invention provides a wave-driven blower and a wave-driven generator. Embodiments can accelerate fluid flows with waves requiring with no or minimal moving parts. The waves driving the flow can be surface-thermal waves on the walls of the device. The velocity of the surface-thermal wave entrains the fluid near the surface and imparts a velocity to the fluid. Other types of waves can generate fluid flow. These other waves can be produced by variations in chemical composition, ionic concentration, chemical potential, total pressure, partial pressure and surface texture. Operating as a generator, the device extracts energy from a flowing fluid to amplify wave motions. The wave motions in turn generate electrical power or some other form of useable power

Description

TECHNICAL FIELD[0001]The present invention is related to the field of heat transfer, and more particularly to production of airflow across heat transfer surfaces, and to the field of electric motors and generators.BACKGROUND ART[0002]This application claims the benefit of U.S. provisional application 61 / 393,138, filed Oct. 14, 2010, which is incorporated herein by reference.[0003]Previous inventions for creating airflows and for cooling electronic devices have used electric fans to increase airflows thorough cooling fins. U.S. Pat. No. 7,647,960 and U.S. Pat. No. 7,701,718 describe a means for heat dissipation using separate cooling fins and electric fans to remove heat. Piezoelectric or otherwise electroactuated fans and pumps use mechanical traveling waves or peristaltic action to generate flows. U.S. Pat. No. 5,192,197 and U.S. Pat. No. 5,961,298 describe generating flows from macroscopic motions of the surfaces of chambers that progress as traveling waves. All prior approaches r...

AI Technical Summary

Benefits of technology

[0009]Embodiments of the present invention, which use piezoelectric actuators to regulate magnetic reluctance, can drive a magnetically powered electric motor or generator efficiently and with high power density. Embodiments of the present invention eliminate current carrying coils and significantly mitigate the problems with prior motor/generators. Piezoelectrically actuated, reluctance-switched (PARS) generators and motors according to the present invention provide important advantages over conventional electrical generators and motors. PARS generators and motors are unique in using piezoelectric actuators to modulate magnetic reluctance and in harnessing this effect to generate electrical power or mechanical motion. This approach leads to PARS generators and motors having attractive features not common in more conventional generators and motors: (1) The PARS generators and motors can have low mass because the piezoelectric actuators have high power densities. (2) The hysteresis losses in the piezoelectric material can be a few percent of the power generated. (3)

Problems solved by technology

(7) Conventional motors that use permanent magnets have safety issues because voltages ar

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