energy generator with msterious power source??

[Silicate Wielder]

Okay, I found this video of a magnet generator that in it's simplified version can supply a constant 5.92 volts of power. yet its just a HDD magnet attached to a coil that has a smaller coil sticking out of it.

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I'm assuming that its gathering static electricity from the air (theory demonstrated in fringe) and turns it into an electrical current

[darkwoon]

Nothing mysterious there - this is a hoax, plain and simple.

[ethanf93]

"Free energy generators" are hoaxes.

I don't believe any part of this device is real. None of those components can generate electricity just sitting there. They are not drawing on any source. (e.g. this isn't solar powered) ergo there's a battery under it which is why the LEDs light up.

[Silicate Wielder]

take a look at the simplified version. rhere is no box and he even tests the voltage with a power meter. I was skeptical about this too and I wondered if his other video could prove to be true.

[ethanf93]

take a look at the simplified version. rhere is no box and he even tests the voltage with a power meter. I was skeptical about this too and I wondered if his other video could prove to be true.

One of the Youtube commenters explains how it could be faked:
I have to admit, this guy is really trying harder. The first attempt was very lame. Now, he's modified the motor, voltmeter and battery to promote this hoax. The motor has been modified to run on internal batteries when the external terminals are shorted. The voltmeter has been modified to show 5.92V when the leads are shorted. The 9V battery is now a short circuit. Obviously, the coil of wire with a magnet glued to it is a short circuit. Why this guy keeps trying is beyond me. Get a life, man!

There's just still no way a stationary magnet, inductor, and little piece of wire that's sticking off into space are generating power.

[Sephtyan]

Notice that when he turns the assemblage upside down to show the bottom, though you do hear the engines still, you see none of the components aside from a single lonely wire. He grabbed the cardboard from the edges, and I'm skeptical to say the least that a piece of cardboard could hold two small motors, a large coil and an HDD magnet.
Very identifiable hoax.

[Magus]

Nothing mysterious there - this is a hoax, plain and simple.

But a moving magnetic field induces current, no?

But, as the person above said, it's stationary, and doesn't produce shit.

[darkwoon]

But a moving magnetic field induces current, no?

But, as the person above said, it's stationary, and doesn't produce shit.
Yes, a moving magnetic field would generate electricity - that's the base idea used to convert mechanical energy into electrical one. But as you said, that's not what's used here, since the magnet is stationary.

There is indeed one effect that can "generate electricity out of thin air" - it is the one used in crystal radio receivers. In those, energy is got from the radio waves themselves. It is impossible that it is what's used there, though - the energy you can get from radio signals is way too weak to run a motor or a led as in the video above.

Conclusion: unless you want to discard thermodynamics, the video is an hoax, and a rather poorly crafted one ;)

[Silicate Wielder]

While it is very possible it could be a hoax, It gets me wondering...

[darkwoon]

While it is very possible it could be a hoax, It gets me wondering...
Really, don't. That's impossible. It goes against the 1st Principle of Thermodynamics. There is no form of energy that a simply magnet+copper spiral of that size could capture and convert. Radio waves are too weak, and that's the only thing such a device could ever hope to capture (and even for radio waves, you need a little more than that!).

It is like the infinitely moving machine - a scientific impossibility.

Think about it for a second: if it were that simple, then why would we bother powering our alarm clocks and radios with batteries and power plugs?

[Silicate Wielder]

... That wasn't exactly what I meant...

I was thinking along the lines of a micro FM transmitter.

[ethanf93]

... That wasn't exactly what I meant...

I was thinking along the lines of a micro FM transmitter.
I think you had us all worried there for a moment :P

Just an FYI you can buy part 15 (unlicensed low power transmitters) online, I'm not sure how much they cost. You might also be interested in getting involved with amateur radio, that's a great way to learn about radios and electronics.

[Magus]

It is like the infinitely moving machine - a scientific impossibility.

Like perpetual motion machine.

Do you have links on that radiowave thing? That will be an Interesting read.

[darkwoon]

Like perpetual motion machine.

Do you have links on that radiowave thing? That will be an Interesting read.
You mean the "self-powered" radio? This website (http://www.crystalradio.net/crystalplans/index.shtml#new) has a couple schematics. The Wikipedia article (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Crystal_radio) provides infos on the physical principle behind it.

[Magus]

You mean the "self-powered" radio? This website (http://www.crystalradio.net/crystalplans/index.shtml#new) has a couple schematics. The Wikipedia article (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Crystal_radio) provides infos on the physical principle behind it.

Got it. Thanks for the link.