14 DAY TRIAL // If you want to use your laptop without plugging it in, power it yourself, with your own energy! This is probably the best way to lose some calories while you are checking your mail. The project created by MIT students consists of an exercise bicycle that uses "pedaling power" to charge a laptop computer. It all started as a class assignment for Course 1.102, Introduction to Civil and Enviromenta Engineering Design, when students were instructed to design and build a device that converts mechanical power into efficient electrical power.
Encouraged by the instructors, a couple of students teamed up to work on the connecting of an exercise bike to a computer. After many hours in the laboratory, the students successfully coupled a donated laptop to the altered exercise bike. The motion produced by pedaling is transferred through the flywheel, belts and gears to an electric generator situated at the back of the bike, which transfers the energy to a conventional 12 volt car battery.
The battery is protected by a charge controller that regulates the amount of energy coming to the battery, to prevent overcharging. Power is drained out of the battery through a 12 volt cigarette-lighter adaptor to convert the electrical power for the laptop's specifications. The laptop rests on a tray atop what used to be the bicycle's handlebars.
Students gave great attention to the adjustable bike seat, so persons of any height don't have any problems assuming a comfortable and ergonomic position, both for pedaling and computing. Covers were placed over the flywheel to protect the rider's clothes from snagging into it and cleat plastic encloses the electrical components, leaving curious people to observe them as well.
The students' calculations showed that a bicyclist would be able to produce up to 75 watt of electrical energy continuously, more than 30 watts being needed to ensure the laptop's power. At initial "drive", when students tested the device for the first time, at least 50 watts of power were being produced effortlessly while checking an e-mail.
The device was put on display at N42 last summer, while students originally hoped it will be placed in an Athena Cluster (grouped workstations for student use), they are now thinking of placing it in a fitness center at the Stata Center.