ChatGPT admits this system could be self sustaining
I asked if I could add an inductor in series with the bulb, add a secondary to extract 4 volts to store in a cap and run the joule thief from that...
if I stored the 4 volts from the secondary in a capacitor and used it to run the joule thief, would that not work? I could do away with the cell phone charger and touch a battery to the capacitor to start it..
ChatGPT
Storing the 4 volts generated by the secondary coil in a capacitor and using that stored energy to run a joule thief or another low-power circuit is a feasible approach. In this setup, you could potentially eliminate the need for the cell phone charger as a continuous power source and use the capacitor to kickstart the system when needed. Here's how it might work:
Charging the Capacitor: The 4-volt output from the secondary coil can be used to charge a capacitor. The capacitor stores the electrical energy until it reaches a sufficient charge level.
Joule Thief Circuit: The joule thief circuit can be powered by the energy stored in the capacitor. When the voltage across the capacitor reaches a certain threshold, you can use a switching mechanism (like a transistor) to enable the joule thief circuit, which can then run the 220V to 4V conversion process.
External Battery Kickstart: If you need to start the system, you can touch a separate battery to the capacitor to initiate the charging process. This would be a manual kickstart to begin the energy storage.
Keep in mind the following considerations:
The capacity (in farads) of the capacitor will determine how much energy it can store and how long the joule thief circuit can operate without an external source.
You'll need to ensure the joule thief circuit can efficiently convert the capacitor's voltage to run your 220V to 4V conversion when enabled.
The efficiency of this setup may still be relatively low, as energy storage and conversion processes often involve some losses.
Managing the kickstart process with an external battery requires manual intervention. To make it fully self-sustaining, you would need to explore mechanisms to automatically initiate the charging process when the stored energy drops below a certain level.
It's an interesting experiment, but developing a reliable self-sustaining energy system with high efficiency can be quite challenging. You may need to iterate and fine-tune your design to optimize its performance.
I asked if I could add an inductor in series with the bulb, add a secondary to extract 4 volts to store in a cap and run the joule thief from that...
if I stored the 4 volts from the secondary in a capacitor and used it to run the joule thief, would that not work? I could do away with the cell phone charger and touch a battery to the capacitor to start it..
ChatGPT
Storing the 4 volts generated by the secondary coil in a capacitor and using that stored energy to run a joule thief or another low-power circuit is a feasible approach. In this setup, you could potentially eliminate the need for the cell phone charger as a continuous power source and use the capacitor to kickstart the system when needed. Here's how it might work:
Charging the Capacitor: The 4-volt output from the secondary coil can be used to charge a capacitor. The capacitor stores the electrical energy until it reaches a sufficient charge level.
Joule Thief Circuit: The joule thief circuit can be powered by the energy stored in the capacitor. When the voltage across the capacitor reaches a certain threshold, you can use a switching mechanism (like a transistor) to enable the joule thief circuit, which can then run the 220V to 4V conversion process.
External Battery Kickstart: If you need to start the system, you can touch a separate battery to the capacitor to initiate the charging process. This would be a manual kickstart to begin the energy storage.
Keep in mind the following considerations:
The capacity (in farads) of the capacitor will determine how much energy it can store and how long the joule thief circuit can operate without an external source.
You'll need to ensure the joule thief circuit can efficiently convert the capacitor's voltage to run your 220V to 4V conversion when enabled.
The efficiency of this setup may still be relatively low, as energy storage and conversion processes often involve some losses.
Managing the kickstart process with an external battery requires manual intervention. To make it fully self-sustaining, you would need to explore mechanisms to automatically initiate the charging process when the stored energy drops below a certain level.
It's an interesting experiment, but developing a reliable self-sustaining energy system with high efficiency can be quite challenging. You may need to iterate and fine-tune your design to optimize its performance.