- #1
shonagon53
- 16
- 0
I'm not an engineer, but I want to design this all for my self. So I have a few questions, for the bright out there. :-) [excuse me for my bad english, I'm not a native speaker].
I want to design a swimsuit (more a lightweight aerodynamic "rack" which you strap yourself into) which has a dolphin tail attached to it, which is thrusted up and down by an electric tubular linear motor. Only, I'm not sure how powerful the motor should be.
The idea is to have a suit with which you can swim up and down in the water, using your arms to gain initial speed (just crawl), and once you attain sufficient speed you let the tailfin do the rest. (You then keep your arms close to your body or keep them straight ahead of you). You use your arms and the weight of your head to steer (like you would driving a motorbike.)
How much power would you need to have such a horizontal tailfin (not a vertical one like that of sharks) kick up and down and push a person of average weight (say 80kgs - 175 pounds) through the water (say one meter, 3 feet under the surface) at a fun speed (say 30km/h - 20miles/ph)?
I'm at a loss.
Would the strongest tubular linear motor of this company suffice?
http://www.calinear.com/products.htm
Brushless direct drive technology
1180 Lb. Peak Force
180 In/Sec
40G Acceleration
Strokes up to 20 inches
The motor would be powered either by batteries (say good for a ride of up to 15 minutes) or by a fuelcell and hydrogen.
[By the way, how much does a good engineer cost? How much would it cost to have an independent engineer design this kind of toy in its entirety?]
I want to design a swimsuit (more a lightweight aerodynamic "rack" which you strap yourself into) which has a dolphin tail attached to it, which is thrusted up and down by an electric tubular linear motor. Only, I'm not sure how powerful the motor should be.
The idea is to have a suit with which you can swim up and down in the water, using your arms to gain initial speed (just crawl), and once you attain sufficient speed you let the tailfin do the rest. (You then keep your arms close to your body or keep them straight ahead of you). You use your arms and the weight of your head to steer (like you would driving a motorbike.)
How much power would you need to have such a horizontal tailfin (not a vertical one like that of sharks) kick up and down and push a person of average weight (say 80kgs - 175 pounds) through the water (say one meter, 3 feet under the surface) at a fun speed (say 30km/h - 20miles/ph)?
I'm at a loss.
Would the strongest tubular linear motor of this company suffice?
http://www.calinear.com/products.htm
Brushless direct drive technology
1180 Lb. Peak Force
180 In/Sec
40G Acceleration
Strokes up to 20 inches
The motor would be powered either by batteries (say good for a ride of up to 15 minutes) or by a fuelcell and hydrogen.
[By the way, how much does a good engineer cost? How much would it cost to have an independent engineer design this kind of toy in its entirety?]
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