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Re: Nearly wireless streetcars. It's being done.
Author: mook
Date: 10-27-2015 - 08:40
> I remember when Muni was thinking of trying trolley buses with a different,
> but similar idea, Underneath the buses would be a giant flywheel that would
> provide the power between charging station stops along the line. Each time it
> charged via trolley poles, the flywheel would gain the lost speed used to move
> the bus. Imagine what would happen if the flywheel somehow got a bit off center?
> It would do the rumba all the way down Market Stret.
IIRC that was actually done in a few test buses, and it worked fine. I'm pretty sure some also used batteries. Could swear I saw a trolley bus one afternoon while walking to the GGT stop with the poles down, zipping down the "fast" lane of Van Ness near City Hall (back when you could actually drive 25 in spots).
There's nothing wrong, really, with the flywheel idea. It works, as shown by Porsche's use of it in several hybrid racers. Flywheels can accept a "charge" very quickly, from braking in the racers, and can also spit it out quickly as needed for fast acceleration. Supercapacitors can do that, too, but flywheels can store a bit more power than the capacitors, at least for now (capacitors are improving quickly). What's really needed for high performance is a hybrid of capacitor (or flywheel, but not likely) and battery, with the battery providing bulk power storage and the capacitor handling sudden loads/buffering large regeneration. A bus probably doesn't need the complexity; just a battery will do.
> but similar idea, Underneath the buses would be a giant flywheel that would
> provide the power between charging station stops along the line. Each time it
> charged via trolley poles, the flywheel would gain the lost speed used to move
> the bus. Imagine what would happen if the flywheel somehow got a bit off center?
> It would do the rumba all the way down Market Stret.
IIRC that was actually done in a few test buses, and it worked fine. I'm pretty sure some also used batteries. Could swear I saw a trolley bus one afternoon while walking to the GGT stop with the poles down, zipping down the "fast" lane of Van Ness near City Hall (back when you could actually drive 25 in spots).
There's nothing wrong, really, with the flywheel idea. It works, as shown by Porsche's use of it in several hybrid racers. Flywheels can accept a "charge" very quickly, from braking in the racers, and can also spit it out quickly as needed for fast acceleration. Supercapacitors can do that, too, but flywheels can store a bit more power than the capacitors, at least for now (capacitors are improving quickly). What's really needed for high performance is a hybrid of capacitor (or flywheel, but not likely) and battery, with the battery providing bulk power storage and the capacitor handling sudden loads/buffering large regeneration. A bus probably doesn't need the complexity; just a battery will do.
