How would it feel like putting a small windmill on top of a car, so it will produce 5 volts of electricity?

Just wondering, can putting a small windmill on top of the car to produce some electricity and charge a battery pack, and the battery pack can be brought everywhere so whenever we need to charge our cell/iPod, we can just hook it up?? Will it be efficient??

Comments

[desotojohn]

Sounds like you want a perpetual motion machine ….

If you park the car or RV, then all the discussion about increased drag goes away.

[rykonen]

Now I want to put one on my car.  Just because.

[killerjackalope]

It would work, however it wouldn't be efficient and making the little windmill stand up to 70mph wind could be more effort than thought, as said the easiest source of power in a car is the lighter socket or if it's a permanent install you could add a new circuit to the inverter that gives you mains power in the car...  

[DELETED_GuardianFox]

Efficient?  No.  The increased drag will force the engine to work harder, burning more gas.  The energy has to come from somewhere, and in this case it's coming from your fuel tank. 

A better approach would be to just use an ordinary inverter  to plug in your AC gadgets in the car, or simply using DC adapters for your cell phone, iPod, etc.  Most car's alternators produce more electricity than the vehicle needs so adding a small device usually won't affect your fuel consumption.

[frollard]

Well fine then - why not just put a generator in a trailer behind the car?  :P

I love this question.  By love i mean hate.

[DELETED_GuardianFox]

Same problem, but in that case you've added the weight, friction, and wind resistance from the trailer and it's load, increasing your car's fuel consumption.  Plus you burn fuel in the generator when you run it.  You can't really win.

There is are some situations where a windmill on a car would be great...  Let's say you were studying wind and wanted to find the best locations for a permanent windmill.  Strap a small windmill onto your car, park it at a good potential location and take some readings.  Then just drive to the next location, and the next and the next...    I could also see it being handy for a parked RV, or an electric car.  A windmill that folds out of the way when the vehicle is moving and collects energy while it's stopped could go a long way towards keeping the electric car running or keeping the TV on in the RV.

A trailer with a generator?  Well contractors, emergency response teams, the military, campers, and hobbyists frequently do just that.  In fact, most of the bigger generators you can buy and rent are built with wheels and a hitch for just that reason.  It has it's place, but it's a terrible idea to drag one around (even a tiny one) to charge your iPod.  Fantastic idea if you want to use powertools in cabin-country though.

Yeah I knew your response was in jest.  I thought it was an interesting side-question though.

[frollard]

I feel bad for not explicitly overriding the default reasonable doubt that I had any confusion in the matter and making you type that.

*I* understand it perfectly well - sorry...

OKAY- next, WINDMILL ON A TRAILER WHILE THE CAR GOES IN REVERSE...so is that a leader, not a trailer?

[DELETED_GuardianFox]

Hahaha...  I'll leave that one for someone else who is equally obsessive compulsive to answer.

[frollard]

and the windmill is nuclear fusion powered....

[lemonie]

While I agree with the previous answers, I'll go a bit further in pointing you to this as an example of something better than the wind generator:
Car-Charger-For-Any-iPod

L

[Grathio]

Your car already has a very efficient generator and a very hand way interface with it via the plugs in your dash.

[Jayefuu]

The  increased drag from a windmill on your car with lower your car's fuel efficiency. What's wrong with the 12V plug that every car has in a cigarette lighter? You can get the 12V chargers for almost any gadget.....