Patent Document

BACKGROUND 
   1. Technical Field 
   The present invention relates energy storage devices using magnetic fields and a material, such as mu-metal, that can provide the property of screening or attenuating magnetic fields. More particularly, the present invention relates to components used in constructing an energy storage device, such as a fly wheel, using magnetic fields and mu-metal. 
   2. Related Art 
   Magnetic fields can be created by permanent magnets or electro magnets. The magnetic field generated can be used to create magnets to lift metal containers or scrap metal, to deflect charged particles as in a cathode ray tube, and to operate electric motors. Many uses for magnetic fields have been discovered, and it would be desirable to provide a means to enhance those uses or enable potentially untapped uses for magnetic fields. 
   Control of the electro magnetic field enables components such as magnetic lifting devices, charged particle deflectors, or electric motors to operate. For example, electric motors typically operate with a combination of permanent magnets arranged in a circle, and opposing electromagnets. Current is applied to the electromagnets in a manner to operate the device as an electric motor, or alternatively to use the device as a brake or charge generator. To provide an electric motor, current is applied to the electromagnets with appropriate timing so that the permanent magnets and electromagnets pull toward each other, and then push away from each other after passing to accelerate the motor in a desired direction. The electric motor can similarly be used for braking, such as regenerative braking used in hybrid electric-gasoline powered vehicles. To use the electric motor as a brake or generator, current is withdrawn from the electromagnets in a reverse direction of the current application to the electric motor so that the permanent magnets push away from each other and then pull toward each other after passing to decelerate the motor. 
   Mu-metal provides the property of high permeability making it very effective at screening static or low frequency magnetic fields, which cannot be attenuated by other methods. Its high permeability provides its “mu” name, with permeability being represented by μ the Greek letter mu. Mu-metal is a nickel-alloy, namely approximately 75% nickel and 15% iron plus a mixture of copper and molybdenum. The materials are annealed in a hydrogen atmosphere. 
   The annealing organizes the mu-metal&#39;s crystal structure so that its valence electrons are aligned in an arbitrary manner, unlike other magnetic materials. Permanent magnets have atoms with aligned valence electrons. In a soft metal such as iron the grains that do not normally have aligned valence electrons forming electromagnets, but current can be applied so that their valence electrons are aligned giving then a magnetic property. With mu-metal, the electrons will be arranged in a random manner so that no matter what the direction of a magnetic field applied to the mu-metal, its valence electrons will not align. This will cause a magnetic field striking the mu-metal to be significantly attenuated. 
   SUMMARY 
   Embodiments of the present invention recognized the advantage of combining the properties of permanent magnets or electric magnets with the property of mu-metal to create a novel energy storage device. In a system according to the present invention, mu-metal is placed in the magnetic field created by a magnet or electromagnetic in a manner to provide an energy storage device, similar to a fly wheel. 
   The system includes a set of magnets arranged in a circle forming a cylinder in a stationary position, effectively creating a stator. Another set of opposing magnets are rotatably arranged within the cylinder of stator magnets, effectively creating a rotor. When the rotor is rotated, mu-metal material is arranged so that it is inserted between the rotor and stator magnets when the poles of these magnets are aligned. In this manner, the push and pull forces provide by the magnets occur so that the rotor will remain in motion, even if an opposing force is applied to the rotor axle. The system, thus, forms an energy storage device similar to a fly wheel. 
   The system can be used in a number of different ways. In one embodiment, the system can be used as a fly wheel for a conventional engine. For example, the system can be used in a vehicle with an electric engine, such as in a hybrid car that includes both an electric engine and fossil fuel type engine. The mu-metal material can be combined with the electric motor components to create a fly wheel. The mu-metal can be removed to allow operation of the motor as an electric motor when an energy storing fly wheel is not desired. The fossil fuel engine flywheel can then be eliminated. 
   The system can also provide an energy storage device for micro-technology or nano-technology type components. One of the drawbacks currently in nano-technology components is the ability to supply more than minute quantities of energy at one time. With a system according to the present invention, the small bursts of energy can be stored and the energy level sustained over time until another burst is provided. This is similar to a fly wheel that keeps a fossil fuel engine running when the engine is running slowly or idling by sustaining movement of the crankshaft from one combustion burst until a subsequent burst to keep the engine running. 

   
     BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
     Further details of the present invention are explained with the help of the attached drawings in which: 
       FIG. 1  shows a cross sectional view illustrating components of a mass magnifier according to one embodiment of the present invention; 
       FIG. 2  illustrates how pure strips of mu-metal can be affected by the magnets; 
       FIG. 3  is a perspective view illustrating how mu-metal can be formed in strips and connected to a disk to be rotatably mounted between a rotor and stator; 
       FIG. 4  is a perspective view illustrating another embodiment for mounting mu-metal strips on a cylinder that can be rotatably mounted between a rotor and a stator; 
       FIGS. 5A-5D  show cross sectional views of components of a mass magnifier illustrating a process for moving the mu-metal material between a rotor and stator to form an energy storage device; 
       FIG. 6  is a cross sectional view of the back of a mass magnifier showing components that allow the mu-metal support ring to oscillate between a rotor and stator; 
       FIG. 7  is a side view of a mass magnifier showing how a cylinder supporting mu-metal material can be moved in and out from between a rotor and stator assembly to alternatively provide for operation as either an electric motor or a mass magnifier type fly wheel; and 
       FIG. 8  is a side view of a mass magnifier illustrating operation with a cylinder made entirely of mu-metal that is moved in and out from between a rotor and stator assembly with appropriate timing to enable the device to function as an energy storage device. 
   

   DETAILED DESCRIPTION 
     FIG. 1  shows a cross sectional view illustrating components of a mass magnifier according to one embodiment of the present invention. The mass magnifier includes a cylinder or drum  2  with magnetic devices  4   1-6  placed around the circumference of the cylinder  2 . The magnetic devices  4   1-6  can be permanent magnets or electromagnets, as can other components described as magnetic devices herein. The cylinder  2  and magnetic devices  4   1-6  in the embodiment shown are assumed to be fixed in place to form a stator. Additional two pole magnets  6   1-3  are rotatably connected together inside the cylinder  2  to form a rotor. Rotation of the rotor is illustrated by the arrows going in a clockwise direction, although rotation can likewise be counterclockwise. Although rotation of the center magnetic devices  4   1-6  is illustrated, a further embodiment of the present invention allows for rotation of the cylinder  2  with magnets  4   1-6 , while magnets  6   1-3  remain fixed. 
   Between the stator magnets  4   1-6  and rotor magnets  6   1-3  are strips of mu-metal  8   1-6 . The mu-metal material strips  8   1-6  can be attached together to a ring or disk (not shown in  FIG. 1 ) that is rotatably rocked in a back and forth in a manner relative to the magnets as illustrated by the arrows above mu-metal strip  8   1 . The rocking of the mu-metal strips  8   1-6  is controlled in one embodiment to block magnetic fields when the stator magnets  4   1-6  apply a force on the rotor magnets  6   1-3  to prevent motion in the clockwise direction shown. Control further removes the mu-metal strips  8   1-6  from between the stator magnets  4   1-6  and rotor magnets  6   1-3  when the magnetic field applies a force to move the rotor in the desired clockwise direction. More details of movement of the mu-metal strips  8   1-6  is described with respect to  FIGS. 5A-D  subsequently. 
     FIG. 2  illustrates how pure strips of mu-metal can be affected by the magnets. The mu-metal is made up of molecules with valence electrons that do not align in any particular direction. In contrast, a metal such as iron will have its valence electrons aligned between the magnets and will not attenuate the magnetic field significantly. The mu-metal will provide greater than a 90% attenuation of a magnetic field when placed between magnets relative to a conventional magnetic material. 
   The magnetic field between the two magnets will cause a thin piece of conventional magnetic material to bend and stick to one of the poles. The mu-metal, although having less tendency to bend and stick to one of the poles will still have some valence electrons that align and can bend and stick to one of the poles, as illustrated by mu-metal strip  10  attaching in  FIG. 2 . 
   In one embodiment of the present invention, to prevent the mu-metal from bending and sticking to the pole of one magnet as shown in  FIG. 2 , the metal is provided within a rigid material such as ceramic. The mu-metal can be cut into strips, or ground into a powder and impregnated into a ceramic material. The combined ceramic and mu-metal will offer substantially the same attenuation properties as a pure mu-metal strip, but will not bend to attach to either magnet pole. In another embodiment the mu-metal material is made thick enough to resist bending, but this may be undesirable to a designer because the rotor and stator magnets will be more effective when placed closer together. Another alternative is to provide the mu-metal within a softer low dielectric material such as Teflon™ that is more flexible than ceramic yet has a low coefficient of friction so that it can contact the magnets of the rotor and stator and slide on the surfaces virtually unimpeded. 
     FIG. 3  is a perspective view illustrating how mu-metal can be formed in strips  12  and connected to a disk  14  (a ring can likewise be used instead of disk  14 ) to be rotatably mounted between a rotor and stator. The disk  14  provides a support for the mu-metal strips, and can be supported on a drive shaft  16  that is also the drive shaft for the rotor of the electric motor. The disk  14  is mounted behind the rotor and stator with the mu-metal strips  12  extending between the rotor and stator as shown in cross-section in  FIG. 1 . In the configuration of  FIG. 3 , the mu-metal strips  12  have unsupported ends opposite the disk  12  which can bend and stick to a magnet pole as illustrated in  FIG. 2 . Hence, it is beneficial in some embodiments to suspend the mu-metal within a ceramic to form the mu-metal strips  12 . 
     FIG. 4  is a perspective view illustrating another embodiment for mounting mu-metal strips  22  on a drum  20  that can be rotatably mounted between a rotor and a stator. The drum  20  can be formed from a dielectric material  24  that is readily permeated by magnetic fields. The mu-metal strips  22  can then be attached by an adhesive to the dielectric material  24 . With a drum  20  supporting the mu-metal strips  22 , the mu-metal will not have free ends that are as readily flexible as in the mounting configuration of  FIG. 3  and can thus be manufactured as pure mu-metal rather than being suspended in a ceramic to provide added support. 
     FIGS. 5A-5D  show cross sectional views of components of a mass magnifier illustrating a process for moving the mu-metal material between a rotor and stator to form an energy storage device. Reference will be made to movement of a rotor magnet  30  in a clockwise direction relative to stator magnets  32   1-4 , and how mu-metal strips  34   1-4  are accordingly moved to provide an energy storage device. Reference is made only to movement of rotor magnet  30  for convenience since similar forces will be applied to the other rotor magnets. 
   Beginning with  FIG. 5A , the rotor magnet  30  is top dead center and opposed to stator magnet  32   1 . In this configuration the opposing “S” magnet pole  30  and “N” magnet pole  32   1  attract, preventing movement of the rotor. Accordingly, the mu-metal strip  34   1  is placed between the poles  30  and  32   1  to attenuate the magnetic field and prevent the attractive force. The rotor is then free to move in a clockwise direction as shown by the arrows. For this example, it is assumed that an external force turns the crankshaft in a clockwise direction and the mu-metal strips  32   1-4  are moved to cause the rotor to continue moving clockwise. 
     FIG. 5B  illustrates that as the rotor continues to move clockwise, the mu-metal strip  34   1  is moved with the pole  30  to break up any magnetic field between it and poles  32   1  and  32   2 . Movement of the mu-metal  34   1  is illustrated in this figure to follow the rotor pole  30 . Without movement of mu-metal  34   1 , The “N” pole  32   1  will provide an attractive force to pull the “S” pole  30  in a counter clockwise direction, which is undesirable. The “S” pole  32   2  will further provide a pushing away force that will likewise turn the “S” pole  30  in a counterclockwise direction, which is undesirable. Accordingly, while rotor pole  30  is between stator poles  32   1  and  32   2  the mu-metal  34   1  is moved clockwise as shown by the arrows to block or attenuate magnetic fields. 
     FIG. 5C  illustrates further movement of the rotor magnet pole  30  between stator magnet poles  32   2  and  32   4 . In this configuration the “S” magnet pole  30  and “S” magnet pole  32   1  push away from each other, forcing rotation of the rotor in the desired clockwise direction. Accordingly, mu-metal strip  34   2  is left in place so that it is not presented between poles  30  and  32   2  as pole  30  moves clockwise away from stator pole  32   2 . The rotor is forced in a clockwise direction as shown by the arrows, and will offer resistance to a counterclockwise rotation. 
     FIG. 5D  illustrates movement of the mu-metal strip  34   2  that occurs when the rotor pole  30  moves half way between poles  32   2  and  32   3  and continues to proceed toward pole  32   3 . The mu-metal strip  34   2  is rotated counter clockwise, opposite the travel direction of the rotor. Both the mu-metal strip  34   2  and  34   1  are now back in the position they occupied in  FIG. 5A . The mu-metal strip  34   2  in this position will not block the magnetic field between the “S” rotor pole  30  and the “N” stator pole  323  so they will attract and pull the rotor in a continued clockwise motion. Once the rotor pole  30  passes the stator pole  32   3 , the mu-metal strip  34   3  will block its attenuation, and operation will continue as described with respect to  FIG. 5A . In this manner the rotor pole  30  will continue to be forced by magnetic fields to continue to rotate in a clockwise direction, even against a counterclockwise force applied to the crankshaft to effectively create an energy storage device. 
     FIG. 6  is a cross sectional view of the back of a mass magnifier showing components that allow the mu-metal support ring  40  to oscillate between a rotor  42  and stator  44 . The components include a first push rod  46  connected to a wheel  48  on the crankshaft of the rotor  42 . A second push rod  50  connects the first push rod  46  to the mu-metal support ring  40 . Connected as shown, rotation of the crankshaft of the rotor  42  will cause wheel  48  to turn, resulting in the first push rod  46  and second push rod  50  to cause the mu-metal support ring  40  to oscillate back and forth as illustrated by the arrows. Although not shown, a system of cams and spring operated rods can be used in place of wheel  48  push rods  46  and  50 . Further, although not shown, an electronically controlled solenoid can be used to move the ring  40 . 
     FIG. 7  is a side view of a mass magnifier showing how a cylinder  60  supporting mu-metal material can be moved in and out from between a rotor and stator assembly  62  to alternatively provide for operation as either an electric motor or a mass magnifier type fly wheel. The components for moving the cylinder  60  include two gears  64  and  62 . The gear  62  is connected to the crankshaft of the combined rotor and stator assembly  62 . The gear  66  is connected to a push rod  68  that is further attached to the cylinder  60 . The gear  64  can be controlled so that when the crankshaft is turned the push rod  68  will move the cylinder linearly in or out of the combined rotor and stator assembly. The drive mechanism of  FIG. 7  can be combined with the drive mechanism of  FIG. 6 , so that when the cylinder  60  is asserted into the rotor and stator assembly  62  the entire assembly behaves as a mass magnifier. Alternatively when the cylinder is removed, the rotor and stator assembly  62  can behave as an electric motor. Although shown as a system of gears and push rods, a similar cam system or electronic control system can be used. 
   A device connected as shown in  FIG. 7  can in one example be provided in a hybrid car that includes both a fossil fuel and an electric engine. The electric engine can be operated to drive the car, or alternatively for regenerative breaking without the mu-metal inserted. With the mu-metal inserted, the electric engine will behave as a fly wheel, enabling elimination of the need for a fly wheel in the fossil fuel burning engine. 
     FIG. 8  is a side view of a mass magnifier illustrating operation with a cylinder  70  made entirely of mu-metal that is moved in and out in a linear fashion rather than requiring rotation from between a rotor and stator assembly  72  with appropriate timing to enable the device to function as an energy storage device. Unlike the mu-metal strips, such as illustrated in  FIG. 3  or  FIG. 4 , here the entire cylinder  70  is made of mu-metal. Instead of oscillating like the mu-metal device illustrated in  FIGS. 5A-5D , the entire cylinder  70  cannot rotate, as it will always block all magnetic fields. Accordingly, the cylinder  70  is inserted between the rotor and stator when magnetic field forces are exerted to move the rotor in an undesirable direction. The cylinder  70  is then removed when magnetic field forces are applied in the desired opposite desired direction. The mechanism for moving the cylinder  70  is shown to include gears  74  and  76  and push rod  78  that operated similar to the assembly described in  FIG. 7 , although a cam driven system or electronic control system can likewise be used. 
   The rotor and stator magnetic elements described with respect to previous figures operate to rotate. In some embodiments, however, the magnetic elements can slide linearly back and forth relative to each other. The mu-metal can be inserted between the magnetic devices in a similar fashion as to when the magnetic devices rotate to promote oscillation of the magnets linearly relative to each other. 
   The mass magnifier device described herein can be used with conventional sized rotor and stator devices. Alternatively the mass magnifier can be provided as a microtechnology or nanotechnology device. The microtechnology or nanotechnology device will reduce component sizes down to a microscopic level. With such a small device, the energy storage capabilities will significantly improve over the inertia provided by the heavier engine components used in a conventional sized device. In particular, with microtechnology and nanotechnology components one problem is that energy is provided in short bursts and cannot be sustained over time. The mass magnifier provides a fly wheel type effect allowing the short bursts of energy to be stored and maintained until another burst of energy can be provided. This fly wheel type effect is similar to a fly wheel used to assure a fossil fuel engine remains idling between combustion cycles that occur only periodically at idol speeds. 
   Although the present invention has been described above with particularity, this was merely to teach one of ordinary skill in the art how to make and use the invention. Many additional modifications will fall within the scope of the invention, as that scope is defined by the following claims.

Technology Category: 4