Hi Eduardo,
For me it was the BB&B Paws Life search – I was one of the five G8s from that search.

Hi ken, I just want to know when you become a LPSG8. Because, I Don’t. Know who won this year.

Thats a good idea Ken, thanks. Never thought to copy those patent #’s for use like that. Very smart.

Hi John,
For specific details for the products you have used, you could search patents for the manufacturer’s name as the assignee (using the dropdown on the quick search page) on the USPTO site.
When researching an idea, I’ll often look at related products in stores and jot down the patent numbers from the package, then look up the patents to see what features the claims actually cover. From there, the “references” and “referenced by” lists are useful to find older and newer concepts.

Yea, there we go thanks guys…and gals

Hey, that was a good suggestion by Ken…Looking at the different patent drawings!

http://www.google.com/patents?q=magnetic+chuck+...

John,
I believe that’s a patent application publication number. Try searching patent applications instead at the uspto.gov site.

Hey ken, i put in that # and it says no patent under that #. Thanks though.

Hi John,
For images, I’d recommend looking at the USPTO website, since patent images should contain enough detail to illustrate the operation. For example, search patent applications, and put in this number: 20060012094, then go to the images so you can see this one with a rotary mechanism.

Tim,
You got it right about magnets. Get those energy and highly technical ideas ready for 2011, because EN keeps talking about working with companies like Battelle in the near future!

Non electric magnets can’t be turned on or off. The can only be moved away from magnetic material,even blocking he field won’t help as a magnetic field moves through almost anything . It is unlikely that you could generate enough magnetic force to do much without using electromagnets.

If you ever had a set of magnets that you got as a kid from a science kit, and if you stored 2 magnets repelling each other, they are basically not magnetic anymore inside of a year. That is why electromagnets are used for just about everything. They do not weaken and the poles can be reversed or made stronger with increased power.
Most electromagnets have regular ferrous magnets incorporated in them, but in most cases the electromagnet is being switched back and forth which preserves the ferrous magnet. ( as in speakers and motors).
That is about all I know about the magnetic field :)
I was obsessed with magnets as a kid and I wanted to invent a magnetic skateboard like the one used in the movie " back to the future2". Actually they never said how that was supposed to work, but I thought I could manage it with magnets. I’m glad I never got out of the brainstorming stage on that one.

Gizmo,
Yes they do, but I think John was talking about devices that don’t require electric power because he wanted to know how a permanent-magnet magnetic switch was switched on and off. I always use double-backed tape for engraving and small milling jobs. A vise with soft jaws works well most of the time too. I was getting off track trying by alluding to an electric-chuck that uses the coulomb force to hold non-ferrous, metallic parts in place. However, coulombic forces are relatively weak, so if someone were to ever devise such a powerful electric-chuck, then they would have discovered something very relevant to science!

Jim ,dont vacumm chuck’s hold non-ferrous materials without clamping ?

Lol, You did get a little off track there, but you came through with flying colors in the end. Thanks for all the info, I appreciate it.

Hey John,
Sorry if I got off track a little, but all the laws I mentioned are ‘binding’ when it comes to snowboards and snow skis(if you know what I mean!) Just like a magnet, hold on to what you got!

John,
I don’t know what they have to do with this thread either, but I thought you were asking because of a possible correlation between your invention and how a magnetic chuck works. And a permanent-magnet magnetic chuck is a wonderful device that puts physical principles to good use. But if you were to invent a chuck to hold non-ferrous materials without clamping, I would be very, very impressed! Frictionless skateboards and snow skis would also get my attention. The last part of the post was derived from knowledge gained purely from personal experiences!

thanks Jim very interesting, although i’m not sure what it has to do with this thread.

John,
From what I can remember, and I may be wrong, but the first law states that energy cannot be created or destroyed, just transformed from one form to another. In easier terms, it means that every thermodynamic process has losses in that work must be done to the surroundings to reset the cycle to its starting point resulting in an increase in entropy. Friction for instance guarantees no mechanical process will run forever without additional energy input. The second law expounds on the first since it guarantees a closed system or process cannot put out more energy than what has been put in. Thus, no perpetual motion machines are possible, even though inventors perpetually try to prove the laws wrong! Before I understood what the counter-electromotive force was, I was insistent on creating a magnetic motor that not only would run forever, but would also do useful work as well! There are many, many inventions submitted for patenting that involve connecting an electric motor with a generator with the claim that not only will the system run forever, but extra work will result to move an automobile and end the world’s energy problems forever! Just as with life in general, you can’t get something for nothing (unless you marry into it!)

Please enlighten me jim, what are the 2nd and 3rd laws of thermodynamics?

Hey All,
Too many times inventors submit ideas for evaluation where the concepts involved clearly violate established physical laws, such as the first and second laws of thermodynamics. If the inventor would first realize that something can never be gained from nothing, then a lot of headaches and disappointments will be avoided. But that doesn’t mean significant improvements can’t be made to existing technology by independent inventors. For instance, anyone who understands mechanics will know how important it would be to produce an effective magnetic-bearing very cheaply. You don’t necessarily have to re-invent the wheel, but you can instead find news ways to use the wheel or to improve its performance. I have seen cases where an inventor working outside the box has found a solution to a problem engineers couldn’t see right under their noses. EN also realizes their own limitations as to what types of inventions they have the knowledge and experience to develop. But they are expanding those horizons by working with companies such as Battelle. Just keep on inventing and don’t worry about failing on occasion because success has to begin somewhere.

Thanks biskit, I did read that on one of the blogs but I still gotta try it. This is for a modification of an existing productline that already sells for several hundred dollars, I believe the precieved value that this type of mod. can do for the product would be well worth it. Without giving it away, just think snowboarding and skiing and how much they’re willing to pay for the next hot item. I probably gave it away didnt I?

2 cents Scooter…Kelly has pointed out on more than one occasion before your time here that innovation with magnets or copper as features…are basically starting off “behind the 8-ball” in EN searches. Cost prohibitive, I believe, but just FYI…

Thanks Jim, that does help in understanding the principles of how it works, I guess I really need to find a diagram of the internals of a mag. table to see if I could really apply it to this idea, I’d like to try to make my own somehow for this experiment. And good luck with the whole…“figure out what magnetic and electric lines-of-force are, then they will probably be very close to finding the elusive unified-field theory/equation/particle that ties electric, magnetic, gravitational, and the strong and weak nuclear forces together.” LOL, right over my head… Thanks though Jim.

Hi John,
If you examine the magnetic chuck closely, you will notice it is comprised of many parallel segments of ferroelectric material which are actually very strong permanent magnets. Magnetic flux-lines penetrate all matter as they extend from one magnetic pole to the other. So they can’t be stopped per se, they can only be re-directed by using other ferrous matter placed in their path because for example, iron is more permeable than air. Thus, the switch actually arranges a path for the flux-lines that either routes them through the workpiece to be held or else they are directed away from the workpiece entirely. Nobody really knows what magnetic flux-lines are made of, by the way. It’s still a big mystery surrounded by a lot of conjecture. Some theories say magnetism is related to up or down electron-spin, but only the people who get paid a lot for such things really believe the theories are true! Nobody knows for certain what electric flux-lines are either, and there are merely electron-drift theories to explain electric current flow in conductors. If someone does eventually figure out what magnetic and electric lines-of-force are, then they will probably be very close to finding the elusive unified-field theory/equation/particle that ties electric, magnetic, gravitational, and the strong and weak nuclear forces together. Anyway, the number of segments in the chuck determines how small a workpiece can be held by the chuck – more segments means a smaller workpiece can be held. Any magnetic chuck works only with ferrous matter. I remember when I first tried to hold an aluminum-alloy workpiece in a magnetic chuck. Needless to say, machinists standing nearby scattered! It’s kind of like leaving a chuck-key in a 3-jaw universal chuck – if you know what I mean!

Hey Jim, as Forest Gump says" I’m not a very smart man" When it comes to mag’s and stuff. What do you mean by flux lines? The way I’m thinking is theres something moving inside the chuck, I’m trying to figure out if its actually that simple, moving a magnet closer and further away from the top surface. BTW, I love machining , I would love to be able to buy a couple of nice CNC’s to put in my garage, to make what i want, when i want. And you are so right about being dependant on the economy, i myself just got laid off in Sept. and this economy isnt looking too hot right now, or for the forseeable future. Thinkin’ bout goin back to bartending, that was always fun,lol.

John,
If you mean permanent-magnet magnetic chucks, they work by switching the magnetic flux lines so they flow directly between two opposite magnetic poles (the chuck-switch is ‘off’) or else the magnetic flux-lines flow through the workpiece being held in place for machining (the chuck-switch is ‘on’). So the chuck-switch causes the magnetic flux lines to alter their course, rather than to switch them on or off as in an electromagnetic chuck. I was an inside machinist in the Navy for a few years, and I think they are amazing and very useful devices. By the way, I would have loved to a career machinist, but the work is either dependent upon the economy or else the jobs don’t pay enough until you are a master machinist or a tool and die maker. Knowing how to make parts has sure helped me with my inventing though. Good luck in your endeavors!

No, nothing that complicated, gees. lol. Thanks though Jane, I’m trying to find out the secret behind these http://www.harborfreight.com/12-inch-x-6-inch-m...

I just started looking around for you too… Do you mean nanotechnology? This article might lead you somewhere in the right direction anyway…

http://www.azonano.com/news.asp?newsID=4619