Designing a high-efficiency hydrostatic bicycle transmission
Name
77549265-MIT.pdf
Description
Full printable version
Size
2.42 MB
Format
Adobe PDF
Checksum (MD5)
e9201b8f3e7fe483cda1caeb870ad487
Author(s)
Socks, Matthew T. (Matthew Tristram)
Advisor(s)
David Gordon Wilson.
Date Issued
2006
Publisher
Massachusetts Institute of Technology
Abstract
Hydrostatic bicycle drives use a working fluid instead of the common roller-chain to transmit power to the drive wheel. These transmissions are typically considered too inefficient for human power applications. An experiment consisting of a very simple hydrostatic drive was designed and built in an attempt to measure the efficiency of these devices at approximate cycling speeds. A theoretical model was also developed to help predict losses using a wider range of operational parameters. Due to shortcomings of the experiment design, the measured efficiencies were on the order of 60% - considerably lower than those theoretically possible. Although the experimental results are of limited value, this study highlights the importance of minimizing side-loading on hydraulic cylinder piston-rods during low-speed, low-pressure operation. The research is used to suggest several design features which may aid in continued attempts to develop a highly efficient hydrostatic transmission.
Description
Thesis (S.B.)--Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Dept. of Mechanical Engineering, 2006.
Includes bibliographical references (leaf 24).
Subjects
Mechanical Engineering.
MIT Department
Massachusetts Institute of Technology. Department of Mechanical Engineering
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