Abstract:
The present invention discloses electromagnetic propulsion systems and methods. The electromagnetic propulsion or thrusting systems include a multi-element capacitor, a means for charging and discharging the capacitor, a means for rotating parts of the capacitor, one or more electromagnetic coils, and a means for periodically shaping the intensity, duration and polarity of magnetic fields from the coils. In particular, these systems and methods use interactions between electromagnetic fields and rotating charged elements of capacitors to achieve thrust without expelling mass and with power requirements several orders of magnitude less than current proposed systems.

Description:
FIELD OF THE INVENTION 
       [0001]    The present invention concerns propulsion systems and methods. In particular, these systems and methods use interactions between electromagnetic fields and rotating elements of charged capacitors to achieve thrust without expelling mass. 
       BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 
       [0002]    The Stafford Synthesis Group concluded that future space exploration will require advanced propulsion technologies. Subsequently, NASA conducted the Breakthrough Propulsion Physics Program, one intent of which was to identify new propulsion concepts requiring either minimal or no propellant mass. 
         [0003]    One of the most significant metrics for space propulsion systems is specific impulse, which is the ratio of thrust produced to the rate of propellant consumed. Specific impulse has units of seconds, and is essentially the number of seconds that a pound of propellant will produce a pound of thrust. Higher specific impulse indicates lower required propellant for a given thrust level and duration. Current space propulsion systems have a specific impulse range from 300 seconds to 10,000 seconds, with thrust level being generally inversely proportional to specific impulse. 
         [0004]    By way of example for comparison, the LOX-H2 space shuttle main engines have a specific impulse of about 450 s, nuclear thermal rockets about 900 s, electric ion and magnetic plasma engines range from 5000 s-9000 s. One such ion propulsion system is disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 4,891,600 to Cox, wherein the thrust is created by electrostatic acceleration of ions created by an electron source in an electric field. U.S. Pat. No. 5,207,760 to Dailey et al. discloses another electric engine which includes a pulsed inductive magnetic gas discharge thruster powered by a nuclear reactor. 
         [0005]    Field propulsion, which employs electromagnetic field effects for generating propulsion forces, expels no reaction mass, and therefore effectively has an infinite specific impulse. As is well known to anyone skilled in the art, a moving charged particle generates a magnetic field. It is also well known that a magnetic field generates a force on a moving charged particle, the magnetic part of the full Lorentz force, which is proportional to the vector cross-product of the particle velocity vector and the magnetic field vector at the particle location. This phenomenon presents itself, for example, as the mutual equal-and-opposite forces on parallel conductors, which may be calculated by anyone skilled in the art through the use of the Biot-Savart Law. Due to compliance with Newton&#39;s Third Law (NTL), it has previously been accepted that the aforementioned magnetic interactions could not be used to produce a propellantless propulsion system. 
         [0006]    As reported by Hambling, recent experimental investigations validated by NASA have demonstrated apparent validity of field propulsion. As noted by Cullwick over sixty years ago, the relations between electromagnetic momentum, the Poynting vector for energy transport, and mass-energy equivalence do not appear to have received general recognition in connection with the validity of Newton&#39;s Third Law when applied to electromagnetic forces. 
         [0007]    More recently, Maimon has eloquently noted that NTL always holds in relativity theory if it is expressed as conservation of particle momentum plus field momentum. Physicists have known since at least 1952 that apparent violations of NTL, in cases where force interactions involve charged particles and electromagnetic fields, simply do not account for the momentum carried in the fields themselves. 
         [0008]    As noted by Feynman and Tipler, the magnetic interaction between two charged particles moving orthogonally to each other apparently does not satisfy NTL in classical Newtonian dynamics. But, as discussed above, if the changing momentum of the electromagnetic fields of the two particles is included, then overall momentum is conserved. Exploitation of this situation, to date, has not been effected due to the “circuit completion” problem. While isolated moving charges may apparently violate NTL, when they are considered as part of a complete closed circuit, the net forces on each circuit are found to be equal and opposite in accordance with NTL. 
       Prior Art for Propellantless Electromagnetic Propulsion 
       [0009]    As disclosed in U.S. Pat. Nos. 2,949,550 and 3,187,206 to T. T. Brown, through an electrokinetic phenomenon termed the Biefeld-Brown Effect, electrical energy input into asymmetrical capacitors can be converted to mechanical energy which then provides a force for propelling an object. NASA is still investigating the use of Brown&#39;s discovery, as disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 6,317,310 to Campbell. Another such device is disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 6,492,784 to Serrano, which generates the Biefeld-Brown Effect using stacked-disc asymmetrical capacitors. Debate is ongoing in the literature as to whether the Biefeld-Brown Effect will work in the vacuum of space. Another limitation to using the effect may be the scalability potential, since asymmetrical capacitor devices to date have only generated tens of milli-newtons of thrust from tens of watts of input power. 
         [0010]    Other propellantless propulsion concepts are under development. Electrodynamic structures, as disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 7,913,954 to Levin, include a power system, a plurality of collectors, a plurality of emitters, and conductive paths for moving payloads through the Earth&#39;s magnetic field. An inertial propulsion device, as disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 8,066,226 to Fiala, utilizes several interconnected gyroscopic elements and Earth&#39;s gravity field to move without propellant. The superconducting electromagnetic turbine, as disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 8,575,790 to Ogilvie, uses a pair of counter-rotating electrodynamic superconductor rotors to displace the surrounding geomagnetic field. These devices do not have general space-based utility since they are restricted to operations within either the gravity field or the magnetic field of Earth. 
         [0011]    The most current example of a propellantless field propulsion system is an electromagnetic drive system as disclosed in U.S. Pat. Appl. No. 20140013724 to Fetta, based on prior work in the UK by Shawyer and experiments in China as reported by Hambling. This system includes an axially-asymmetric resonant cavity with a conductive inner surface adapted to support a standing electromagnetic (EM) wave. The resonating cavity lacks second-axis axial symmetry, thereby causing the standing EM wave to induce a net unidirectional force on the resonant cavity, thus generating thrust without reaction mass. Experimental versions of these EM devices have reportedly produced thrust levels of micro-newtons up to milli-newtons from several kilowatts of input power. If proven to be functional as designed, the power system required for such a propulsion device in general space-based applications may not be practicable. 
       SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
       [0012]    It is the objective of the current disclosure to present systems and methods for effectively producing a current segment; i.e., a moving discrete packet of charged particles, which is not part of a continuous closed circuit. The basic principle is to rotate one part of a charged capacitor thereby creating a current segment. Said current segment is then subjected to an appropriate magnetic field in such a geometric manner so as to exploit certain of the effects described above in paragraph [0005], thereby producing thrust without expelling propellant. 
         [0013]    Embodiments of the present invention generate thrust without the use of reaction mass, and do so in a manner distinct from the devices and methods of Brown, Campbell, Serrano, Fetta, and others as mentioned above. Engineering calculations indicate that the present invention is scalable for general space-base applications and is capable of producing newtons of thrust from only tens of watts of input power. This invention is a significant improvement in thrust level with several orders of magnitude less power consumption as compared to other such propulsion devices. In addition to space-based applications, embodiments of the present invention may also be used to generate thrust in terrestrial applications. No evidence has been found in the literature of any device designed to take advantage of the electromagnetic effect as herein described for the present invention. 
         [0014]    An exemplary embodiment of the present invention is an electromagnetic thruster, including: a capacitor comprised of various conductive elements, a means to charge, discharge, and recharge elements of the capacitor, a means for moving certain specific elements of the capacitor, one or more electromagnetic coils, and a means to generate magnetic fields with varying polarity, intensity and duration from the coils. By moving certain charged elements of the capacitor, an effective isolated current segment is created which is not part of a continuous current loop. Appropriate application of a magnetic field to this current segment produces an unbalanced Lorentz force component perpendicular to the plane containing the magnetic field vector and the velocity vector of the current segment. 
     
    
     
       BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
         [0015]    The accompanying drawings, which are incorporated in and form part of the specification, illustrate various principles of operation and examples of the present invention, including a preferred embodiment of the invention, as well as alternate embodiments, and, together with the detailed description, serve to explain the principles of the invention. 
           [0016]      FIG. 1  is a schematic diagram illustrating the Lorentz force acting on a charged particle moving through a magnetic field; 
           [0017]      FIG. 2  is a schematic diagram illustrating the mutual Lorentz forces acting on segments of parallel conductors; 
           [0018]      FIG. 3  is a schematic diagram illustrating the unbalanced Lorentz force acting on charged particles moving orthogonally in the same plane; 
           [0019]      FIG. 4  is a schematic diagram illustrating the unbalanced forces on an electromagnet and a group of charges on a conducting plate under the situation of  FIGS. 1 and 3 ; 
           [0020]      FIG. 5  is a schematic diagram illustrating one embodiment of the present invention designed to produce an axial thrust; 
           [0021]      FIG. 6  is a schematic diagram illustrating another embodiment of the present invention designed to produce an axial thrust; 
           [0022]      FIG. 7  is a schematic diagram illustrating another embodiment of the present invention designed to produce a radial thrust. 
           [0023]      FIG. 8  is a schematic diagram illustrating a further embodiment of the present invention designed to produce a radial thrust; 
           [0024]      FIGS. 9A and 9B  present two exploded schematic diagrams illustrating thin concentric cylindrical capacitor designs for embodiments of the present invention; 
           [0025]      FIGS. 10A through 10D  present four schematic diagrams illustrating various thin parallel disc capacitor designs for the  FIG. 8  embodiment of the present invention. 
       
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS 
       [0026]    The present invention will now be described more fully hereinafter with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which preferred embodiments of the invention are shown. This invention may, however, be embodied in many different forms and should not be construed as limited to the embodiments set forth herein. Rather, these embodiments are provided so that this disclosure will be thorough and complete, and will fully convey the scope of the invention to those skilled in the art. Like numbers refer to like elements throughout. 
         [0027]    By way of background, and with reference initially to  FIG. 1 , it is well known to those skilled in the art that a charged particle  1 , with velocity vector  3  parallel to the x-axis as shown, moving through magnetic field  2  which is parallel to the y-axis, will experience a Lorentz force component  4  parallel to the z-axis. The necessary equations to calculate the force magnitude and direction are well known in the current physics literature. 
         [0028]    By way of further background, and with reference to  FIG. 2 , it is also well known to those skilled in the art that segments of two parallel conductors  5  each carrying a current  7  in the same direction will experience equal and opposite forces  6  as shown. The necessary equations to calculate the force magnitude per unit length of conductor are well known in the current physics literature. 
         [0029]    By way of further background, the situation presented in  FIG. 3  is also well known to those skilled in the art and familiar with the works of Feynman and Tipler. The figure illustrates two positively charged coplanar particles  8  and  9  moving with respective orthogonal velocities  10  and  11 , with velocity vector  10  being parallel to the y-axis of the coordinate system shown, and velocity vector  11  being parallel to the x-axis. At the instant shown, particle  8  induces a magnetic field  12  on particle  9 , while particle  9  induces no magnetic field effect on particle  8 . As a result, a Lorentz force component acts on particle  9 , while no similar force acts on particle  8 . This situation has been well-studied in the literature, both as an apparent violation of Newton&#39;s Third Law (e.g. Cullick, Maimon) and as a potential for devising a propellantless propulsion device. However, experimental attempts to date have the charged particles confined in conductors as part of a continuous current loop. When all forces are properly accounted for on the continuous current loops, no net unbalanced system force is produced on the system. 
         [0030]    It is the purpose of the present invention to exploit the situation of  FIG. 3  by producing a current segment that is not part of a continuous current loop. With reference to  FIG. 4 , an electromagnetic coil  15  is positioned such that the axis of symmetry of the coil is in the direction of the y-axis of the coordinate system shown. When energized, the coil  15  is capable of producing a magnetic field  16  with strongest vector component along the y-axis, which is the axis of symmetry of the coil  15 . A negatively charged plate  13  is moved with velocity  14  in the x-direction such that it passes through the axis of symmetry of the coil  15  as shown. At the appropriate time, the coil  15  is energized to produce field  16 , which induces a net unbalanced Lorentz force  17  on the plate  13 . This unbalanced force arises from the fact that most individual electrons comprising the current moving in the conducting coils of the electromagnet have z-axis velocity components which are orthogonal to the x-axis velocities of each charge bound to the plate. For each coil-plate electron pair wherein a z-axis velocity component exists, the situation of  FIG. 3  is realized. Because the charges on the plate are a discrete packet and are not part of a continuous current loop, there is thus a net force realized on the system comprising the plate and coil. Comprehensive engineering calculations have verified that a net force is produced on the coil-plate system, while reaction momentum is carried away by the electromagnetic fields in accordance with currently understood principles of modern physics. 
         [0031]    With reference to  FIG. 5 , one embodiment of the present invention includes a plurality of electromagnetic coils  18  arranged radially about a capacitor. The capacitor consists of a static, charged cylindrical element  19 , and oppositely charged movable elements  20  and uncharged neutral movable elements  21 . In the embodiment herein described, by way of example, elements  20  and  21  are rotated about the circumference of the static capacitor element  19  by means of a motor  22  with an axis of rotation collinear with the axis of symmetry of the static capacitor element  19 . Each neutral element  21  is charged by means of a voltage source to become a charged element  20  just as the element passes through the axis of symmetry of each coil  18 . Each coil  18  is energized at the appropriate time by a current source to produce a radial magnetic field of desired polarity, intensity and duration while the charged element  20  passes through the axis of symmetry of the coil. The interaction of the pulsed magnetic field produced by each coil  18  with the moving charges on each element  20  results in an unbalanced Lorentz force component, as described previously in  FIG. 4 , parallel to the axis of rotation. Variations in the magnetic fields may also be used to induce a torque on the system perpendicular to the axis of rotation of elements  20 ,  21 . In order to maximize the axial thrust, each element  20  may be discharged to become a neutral element  21  when not in the preferred location within a magnetic field from a coil  18 . 
         [0032]    With reference to  FIG. 6 , another embodiment of the present invention includes a plurality of electromagnetic coils  18  arranged radially but axially offset about a capacitor. The capacitor consists of a static, charged cylindrical element  19 , with oppositely charged movable elements  20  and neutrally charged movable elements  21  which are positioned in a plane parallel to the disc surface of element  19 . In this embodiment herein described, elements  20  and  21  are rotated by means of a motor  22  with an axis of rotation collinear with the axis of symmetry of the static capacitor element  19 . Each neutral element  21  is charged by means of a voltage source to become a charged element  20  just as the element passes through the axis of symmetry of each coil  18 . A current source is applied to each coil  18  at the appropriate time to produce a radial magnetic field of desired polarity, intensity and duration while the charged element  20  passes through the axis of symmetry of the coil. The interaction of the magnetic field produced by each coil  18  with the moving charges on each element  20  results in the unbalanced Lorentz force component, as described in  FIG. 4 , parallel to the axis of rotation. Variations in the magnetic fields may also be used to induce a torque on the system perpendicular to the axis of rotation of elements  20 ,  21 . In order to maximize the axial thrust, each element  20  may be discharged to become a neutral element  21  when not in the preferred location within a magnetic field from a coil  18 . 
         [0033]    With reference to  FIG. 7 , further embodiment of the present invention includes a plurality of electromagnetic coils  18  arranged circumferentially about a capacitor with the axis of symmetry of each coil parallel to the axis of rotation of the capacitor. The remaining elements  19  through  22  of  FIG. 7  as described herein are identical to those of  FIG. 6  in all respects. A current source is applied to each coil  18  at the appropriate time to produce axial magnetic fields of desired polarity, intensity and duration while the charged element  20  passes through the axis of symmetry of the coil. The interaction of the magnetic field produced by each coil  18  with the moving charges on each plate  20  results in an unbalanced radial Lorentz force component, as described in  FIG. 4 , perpendicular to the axis of rotation. In order to maximize the radial thrust, each element  20  may be discharged to become a neutral element  21  when not in the preferred location within a magnetic field from a coil  18 . 
         [0034]    With reference to  FIG. 8 , an alternate embodiment of the present invention as described in  FIG. 7  uses two thin plates to comprise elements  20 ,  21 , and  22 . All elements in  FIG. 8  are otherwise identical in function to those similarly numbered in  FIG. 7 , and the operation of the embodiment in  FIG. 8  is identical to that as described in  FIG. 7 . 
         [0035]    With reference to FIG.s  9 A and  9 B, exploded views of two cylindrical shell capacitor designs for alternate embodiments of the design in  FIG. 5  are shown. Each embodiment contains an inner shell and an outer shell with various configurations of elements  19 ,  20  and  21 . Element  23  indicates the direction of rotation of parts of the capacitor. 
         [0036]    With reference to  FIG. 9A , the capacitor consists of an inner, static, charged thin cylindrical element  19 , and oppositely charged movable elements  20  and uncharged neutral movable elements  21  on an outer thin cylindrical shell. In the embodiment herein described, the outer cylindrical shell containing elements  20  and  21  is rotated about the circumference of the inner static capacitor element  19  by the means  22  with an axis of rotation collinear with the axis of symmetry of the inner static capacitor element  19 . The operation of the embodiment of  FIG. 9A  is otherwise identical in all respects to that of the embodiment of  FIG. 5  as previously described. 
         [0037]      FIG. 9B  represents the preferred embodiment of the present invention due to the fact that the geometry of the embodiment provides for a maximum thrust from a given power input as compared to other embodiments. In  FIG. 9B , the capacitor consists of an outer thin cylindrical shell, containing oppositely charged elements  19  and  20 , which is rotated by the means  22 , and an inner thin cylindrical shell also containing oppositely charged elements  19  and  20  which is counter-rotated also by the means  22 . Each coil  18  is energized at the appropriate time by a current source to produce a radial magnetic field of desired polarity, intensity and duration while an outer charged element, either  19  or  20 , and an oppositely charged inner element, either  20  or  19 , passes through the axis of symmetry of the coil. The interaction of the pulsed magnetic field produced by each coil  18  with the moving charges on each element  19  and  20  results in an unbalanced Lorentz force component, as described previously in  FIG. 4 , parallel to the axis of rotation. Variations in the magnetic fields may also be used to induce a torque on the system perpendicular to the axis of rotation. 
         [0038]    With reference to FIG.s  10 A through  10 D, four thin disc capacitor designs for various embodiments of the design in  FIG. 8  are shown, with the coils  18  and the means of rotation  22  omitted for clarity. Element  23  indicates the direction of rotation of parts of the capacitor. 
         [0039]    With reference to  FIG. 10A , the capacitor consists of a rotating upper thin disc and a lower static thin disc. The elements of each disc and the function of the embodiment is that as described in  FIG. 8  and is included again in  FIG. 10  for completeness. 
         [0040]    With reference to  FIG. 10B , the capacitor consists of rotating upper thin disc segments  20  and a lower static thin disc  19 . This embodiment is identical to that of  FIG. 10A  except that there are no neutral elements  21 . The function of this embodiment is as described in  FIG. 8 . 
         [0041]    With reference to  FIG. 10C , the capacitor consists of a rotating upper thin disc comprised of elements  20  and  21 , and a lower counter-rotating thin disc comprised of elements  19  and  20 . The function of this embodiment is as described in  FIG. 8 . 
         [0042]    With reference to  FIG. 10D , the capacitor consists of a rotating upper thin disc comprised of elements  19  and  20 , and a lower counter-rotating thin disc also comprised of elements  19  and  20 . The function of this embodiment is as described for the preferred embodiment of  FIG. 9B . 
         [0043]    It is to be understood that even though numerous characteristics and advantages of the present invention have been set forth in the foregoing description, together with details of the structure and function of the invention, the disclosure is illustrative only, and changes may be made in detail, especially in matters of shape, size and arrangement of parts within the principles of the invention to the full extent indicated by the broad general meaning of the terms in which the appended claims are expressed.