Patent ID: 8396523

Claim:
A motor comprising: a plurality of cylinders arranged in a ring relative to one another and positioned at a non-zero angle relative to one another, each cylinder comprising: a piston configured to move within the cylinder; a high-temperature superconductor material at a temperature, wherein the superconductor material is in a superconducting state in the presence of an external magnetic field below a critical field strength, wherein the critical field strength is a function of the temperature of the superconductor material; a permanent magnet mechanically coupled to the piston and configured to move within the cylinder and to have a magnetic field that interacts with the superconductor material; a first superconducting coil configured to apply a non-zero time-invariant magnetic field strength to the superconductor material; and a second superconducting coil configured to apply a time-varying magnetic field strength to the superconductor material, wherein a sum of the non-zero time-invariant magnetic field strength and the time-varying magnetic field strength cycles between at least a first field strength below the critical field strength for the superconductor material at the temperature and at least a second field strength above the critical field strength for the superconductor material at the temperature, such that the superconductor material cycles between a superconducting state and a non-superconducting state, wherein a time-varying force is applied to the magnet by an interaction of the magnet's magnetic field with the superconductor material.