Author Topic: Dynamo Powered rechargers Various  (Read 52955 times)

Re: Dynamo Powered rechargers Various
« Reply #125 on: 10 May, 2012, 07:34:14 pm »
 

aaaaargh...

I've just read this whole thread in one go - it makes sense for a while, then it blanks me with electronics jargon that I have never learned (don't laugh) such as regulator, male / female spades, etc etc etc - wish I still had a brain...

I'm running a SON dynamo with Supernova light, connected directly together with the Supernova wiring.

Separately I use a Tecknet iEP380 to top up/recharge the Garmin(s) - the Tecknet gets charged up in MacDonalds or hotels or home..... it does 30 plus hours on the Garmin(s) so not really a problem...... however..... I have often wondered about using the dynamo to recharge the Tecknet, but my LBS don't have experience of, ahem, the stuff on this thread......

I do have issues with the cables between the Tecknet and the Garmins breaking, so am forever buying new ones, but we are talking extremely high mileage, and mainly on audax style rough roads, so there is a lot of vibration which it is convenient to blame.

What I need is for someone to tell me what to buy to tie this all together, neatly, so I can recharge from the dynamo as well, keeping the dynamo / light connection hard wired, with the rest plugged into / removable from it, a la Feline solution, .......... or preferably to buy the gubbins for me, and then come along and fit it, and teach me how to use it......

I have a great coffee machine, and can provide lots of CAIK....    O:-)

The Pedalpower SIC seems to be able to take power from the dynamo and recharge its internal battery/power the garmin via usb at the same time. 

The setup I have (a switched light hard wired into the dynamo - and a "plug in" option to bring the SIC into play) would suit your requirements I think.
The SIC internal battery is a lot less mAh than the standalone ones like Tecknet, but will provide "external power" and hence backlighting to a Garmin for a good few hours even if not connected to the dyno.

Remind me to show you next time we meet. Chepstow on the 19th?

Chris S

Re: Dynamo Powered rechargers Various
« Reply #126 on: 10 May, 2012, 08:39:37 pm »
The TeckNet that fboab refers to is mine, I think (though she's just bought a new one - a whopping 12000mAh!). It's the 5000mAh version with 0.5a, 1.0a outputs and a micro USB input.

When connected to an e-werk, and my phone, it has claimed to be both charging and discharging at the same time.

But - it's a moot point as far as I'm concerned - a 5000mAh store (or more these days -just one year on) can hold enough charge to keep a smartphone righteous, and be "on charge" on the bike during daylight hours.

I suspect fboab's new 12000mAh store would take a full week tour of cycling to charge off the e-werk, but then again - could recharge my HTC at least 5 times.

Re: Dynamo Powered rechargers Various
« Reply #127 on: 10 May, 2012, 08:45:31 pm »
The TeckNet that fboab refers to is mine, I think (though she's just bought a new one - a whopping 12000mAh!). It's the 5000mAh version with 0.5a, 1.0a outputs and a micro USB input.

When connected to an e-werk, and my phone, it has claimed to be both charging and discharging at the same time.

But - it's a moot point as far as I'm concerned - a 5000mAh store (or more these days -just one year on) can hold enough charge to keep a smartphone righteous, and be "on charge" on the bike during daylight hours.

I suspect fboab's new 12000mAh store would take a full week tour of cycling to charge off the e-werk, but then again - could recharge my HTC at least 5 times.

Interesting to know! I had thought about using my 7000mAh Tech-net for recharging everything at night on the Sem Fed this summer then recharging it by day, however it gives an 8 hour to fully charge time in the instructions, which will be more than the riding time some days and with one bike we only have one dyno hub to play with! We will have a Garmin Edge 700, an eTrex and 2 iPhones to keep charged off that. It could end up being a good excuse to hole-up in a cafe with a mains socket sometimes though  ;D

Chris S

Re: Dynamo Powered rechargers Various
« Reply #128 on: 10 May, 2012, 08:49:59 pm »
Are you camping? Get a BFO solar panel, stick it on your tent and leave the battery pack there.

I've heard it's quite sunny in France :).

Re: Dynamo Powered rechargers Various
« Reply #129 on: 10 May, 2012, 08:51:19 pm »
Are you camping? Get a BFO solar panel, stick it on your tent and leave the battery pack there.

I've heard it's quite sunny in France :).

I heard that too, although on last year's Sem Fed we had 4 glorious sunny days and then 3 days of solid rain and I had to ride home with entire panniers full of heavy wet crap!!

Chris S

Re: Dynamo Powered rechargers Various
« Reply #130 on: 10 May, 2012, 08:53:40 pm »
Are you camping? Get a BFO solar panel, stick it on your tent and leave the battery pack there.

I've heard it's quite sunny in France :).

I heard that too, although on last year's Sem Fed we had 4 glorious sunny days and then 3 days of solid rain and I had to ride home with entire panniers full of heavy wet crap!!

I'm shocked. They have loos there too, y'know. There's no need to take your crap home...  ;)

Re: Dynamo Powered rechargers Various
« Reply #131 on: 10 May, 2012, 08:57:43 pm »
Are you camping? Get a BFO solar panel, stick it on your tent and leave the battery pack there.

I've heard it's quite sunny in France :).

I heard that too, although on last year's Sem Fed we had 4 glorious sunny days and then 3 days of solid rain and I had to ride home with entire panniers full of heavy wet crap!!

I'm shocked. They have loos there too, y'know. There's no need to take your crap home...  ;)

Well I dunno, the cycle-camping field had one uni-sex loo block with about 6 toilets, no bog roll and 1 sink to share between 200 campers :o :o :o
I'm using a Shewee this year!

Re: Dynamo Powered rechargers Various
« Reply #132 on: 10 May, 2012, 09:11:08 pm »
I'm using a Shewee this year!

These are brilliant and a couple of female mountaineers I know use them to save the crouching and removing all the kit.

I remember happily chatting to someone at dusk very high-up on Denali as we were both peeing into the toilet hole in the ice.  Suddenly saw what was happening and realised I was chatting to a female using a shewee.  Never thought the long blond hair and relatively high pitch voice was a clue!

bikey-mikey

  • AUK 6372
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Re: Dynamo Powered rechargers Various
« Reply #133 on: 14 May, 2012, 05:28:22 pm »


aaaaargh...

I've just read this whole thread in one go - it makes sense for a while, then it blanks me with electronics jargon that I have never learned (don't laugh) such as regulator, male / female spades, etc etc etc - wish I still had a brain...

I'm running a SON dynamo with Supernova light, connected directly together with the Supernova wiring.

Separately I use a Tecknet iEP380 to top up/recharge the Garmin(s) - the Tecknet gets charged up in MacDonalds or hotels or home..... it does 30 plus hours on the Garmin(s) so not really a problem...... however..... I have often wondered about using the dynamo to recharge the Tecknet, but my LBS don't have experience of, ahem, the stuff on this thread......

I do have issues with the cables between the Tecknet and the Garmins breaking, so am forever buying new ones, but we are talking extremely high mileage, and mainly on audax style rough roads, so there is a lot of vibration which it is convenient to blame.

What I need is for someone to tell me what to buy to tie this all together, neatly, so I can recharge from the dynamo as well, keeping the dynamo / light connection hard wired, with the rest plugged into / removable from it, a la Feline solution, .......... or preferably to buy the gubbins for me, and then come along and fit it, and teach me how to use it......

I have a great coffee machine, and can provide lots of CAIK....    O:-)

The Pedalpower SIC seems to be able to take power from the dynamo and recharge its internal battery/power the garmin via usb at the same time. 

The setup I have (a switched light hard wired into the dynamo - and a "plug in" option to bring the SIC into play) would suit your requirements I think.
The SIC internal battery is a lot less mAh than the standalone ones like Tecknet, but will provide "external power" and hence backlighting to a Garmin for a good few hours even if not connected to the dyno.

Remind me to show you next time we meet. Chepstow on the 19th?

Chepstow on the 19th is a good idea - I know we've met but not sure I'll recognise, so you may have to find me...   :-[
I’ve decided I’m not old. I’m 25 .....plus shipping and handling.

Cycling heatmap
https://www.strava.com/athletes/4628735/heatmaps/6ed5ab12#10/51.12782/-3.16388

Re: Dynamo Powered rechargers Various
« Reply #134 on: 14 May, 2012, 07:30:14 pm »
last month i had my my satmap stolen off the trike as i was crossing to the iow on the ferry . the satmap had a option of running with 3 aa batterys which i could fast charge in around a hour at a cafe or c ampsite .i have not had enough money to replace the satmap with another one but i have replaced it with a adventure 2800 full gb mapping . it has no provision fo aa cell so i need to find a way of getting it charged .it 5v-900mA`on the back.i would like to charge it off a dynamo but i have no soldering or electronics skills i would be happy to pay for someone to fettle something up for me  . or should i be looking at either soler (in the uk :o ) or something else ?  :)
the slower you go the more you see

Re: Dynamo Powered rechargers Various
« Reply #135 on: 14 May, 2012, 08:39:42 pm »
last month i had my my satmap stolen off the trike as i was crossing to the iow on the ferry . the satmap had a option of running with 3 aa batterys which i could fast charge in around a hour at a cafe or c ampsite .i have not had enough money to replace the satmap with another one but i have replaced it with a adventure 2800 full gb mapping . it has no provision fo aa cell so i need to find a way of getting it charged .it 5v-900mA`on the back.i would like to charge it off a dynamo but i have no soldering or electronics skills i would be happy to pay for someone to fettle something up for me  . or should i be looking at either soler (in the uk :o ) or something else ?  :)

I would look at the something else, I don't think the sun is that good a bet in the UK!

Chris S

Re: Dynamo Powered rechargers Various
« Reply #136 on: 14 May, 2012, 08:49:49 pm »
Forget Solar, unless you have a large array of panels - of a Camping Kind.

For real portability, order of priority should be:

1. A 13amp socket in the pub you stop at, at lunchtime.
2. A 13amp socket in the cafe you stop at, at elevenses/tiffin.
3. Output from a cache battery you've charged in 1, 2, or Hotel/Train
4. Output from a cache battery you charged before you left home
5. Output from a cache battery you've charged on your bike using an E-Werk or equivalent.
6. Output from a cache battery you've charged from a small dynamo hooked up to a hamster in a cage, on a wheel.
7. Solar.

Re: Dynamo Powered rechargers Various
« Reply #137 on: 14 May, 2012, 10:00:37 pm »
is 5 easy for a idiot like me to set up . i must add that i am not looking to use a dynamo for powering lights , just for gps charging  ?.
6 looks intresting as well  ;D
the slower you go the more you see

Re: Dynamo Powered rechargers Various
« Reply #138 on: 15 May, 2012, 08:51:36 am »
is 5 easy for a idiot like me to set up . i must add that i am not looking to use a dynamo for powering lights , just for gps charging  ?.
6 looks intresting as well  ;D

I would say the answer is yes. (assuming the charging port on your GPS is a USB standard (or mini USB, or Micro USB)
If I can do it (without a soldering iron) then anyone can.
If you are happy with a relatively small cache battery (2200 mAh) then the absolute simplest option would be the pedalpower SIC
http://www.pedalpower.com.au/
Kit includes absolutely everything you need to charge the cache from the mains and from either Shimano or SON dynamos. 
It also includes the wherewithal to "piggyback" the charging function onto a dynamo used for lighting purposes (although rahter untidily IMO)

Re: Dynamo Powered rechargers Various
« Reply #139 on: 15 May, 2012, 08:05:55 pm »
it may not work for as i can only run a bottle dynamo on the trike  :'(
the slower you go the more you see

Auntie Helen

  • 6 Wheels in Germany
Re: Dynamo Powered rechargers Various
« Reply #140 on: 15 May, 2012, 08:29:20 pm »
Cycleman, I have a hub dynamo on my trike - although I have discs. Can't remember if you have drums or discs. Mind you, the SON hub was frighteningly expensive!
My blog on cycling in Germany and eating German cake – http://www.auntiehelen.co.uk


Kim

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Re: Dynamo Powered rechargers Various
« Reply #141 on: 15 May, 2012, 08:54:28 pm »
A bottle dynamo should work (I can vouch for the Axa working reasonably well to run a Cyo and a pair of Pixeos on barakta's trike), but performance at low speed is noticeably worse than either my SON Delux or Shimano DH-3N80 hub dynamos.  You really need to be doing over 10mph to get decent power from it.  There's also a voltage limiter built-in, so you get your rated 3W and that's it, regardless of speed (hub dynamos have no limiting, and clever electronics can use the higher voltage to extract more power at high speed).

900mA @5V is 4.5W - more than a dynamo will provide under normal circumstances.  As such, you'll need a cache battery of some sort.

Solar is largely a gimmick, unless you've got a panel about the size of a trike seat.  Doable, but expensive and still only as reliable as the weather. 

I think Chris S sums it up nicely.  Large cache batteries generally win if you can get access to a mains socket every couple of days.  Hamsters are unreliable, have poor energy density, will only run in the wheel when you're not looking, and will chew the wires to the charger.   :)

Personally, I'd approach this problem with a GPS that can take AAs and a couple of sets of spare batteries.   :-\

Re: Dynamo Powered rechargers Various
« Reply #142 on: 16 May, 2012, 09:16:29 am »
just a thought , would it be possable to make up a battery pack of rechargeable battery's with a mini usb to power the gps through its battery ?. chargeing aa's is no problem  :)
the slower you go the more you see

Re: Dynamo Powered rechargers Various
« Reply #143 on: 16 May, 2012, 10:49:52 am »
There are plenty of products that take this approach; usually they have a built-in recharger, so you just plug them into a mains socket. Then they can be used 'on the road' to recharge one or more devices.

Not a lot of sense in them using AAs (although there are some products that do so).
<i>Marmite slave</i>

Re: Dynamo Powered rechargers Various
« Reply #144 on: 16 May, 2012, 12:26:13 pm »
I actually carry one of the tiny AA packs in case of emergency dynamo charging failure. Because it's tiny, weighs almost nothing empty, and you can just go and buy AA batteries for it. It doesn't have sufficient oomph to both recharge and run my Garmin Edge, but it will keep it running.
I have this one, it cost £5! http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/PortaPow-AA-USB-Emergency-Battery-Power-Pack-External-Extender-Backup-Charger-/220875465723?pt=UK_Sound_Vision_Battery_Chargers&hash=item336d3423fb#ht_1858wt_1393

I should probably mention it is not waterproof (but then neither are the TechNets or Pebbles), so you will need to stick it in a plastic bag and have some way of housing it near your device. I use small frame bags designed for food on my top tube, which you can also stick Harribo in. The ziplock bag for the pack is still needed if it rains though.

Re: Dynamo Powered rechargers Various
« Reply #145 on: 16 May, 2012, 01:55:43 pm »
I seemed to have a surfeit of mini USB charging leads around so I just chopped the end off one that was clearly two wire (power only) and connected it up to one of these:
http://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/product/B006WNKGP8/ref=oh_details_o01_s00_i00
Again, not waterproof, but ziploc bags are fine, and 4x1.2V NiMh AA cells will happily persuade my Garmin Vista that it is running on external power (and hence keep the backlight on) for a good few hours. 
Do make absolutely sure you get the polarity right if you do this.

Kim

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Re: Dynamo Powered rechargers Various
« Reply #146 on: 16 May, 2012, 02:11:14 pm »
*wince*

Only do this with NiMhs!  The output will be on the low end of USB spec and probably won't break anything (though I expect many gadgets will turn up their nose and refuse to charge from it).  If you stick alkalines or lithiums in there, it's going to be above USB spec, and that's how magic smoke escapes.

The proper way to do it is with a 5V regulator.  The simple ones require an input voltage significantly above the output voltage, so you'd need a 6cell holder, but you could get clever with a boost regulator and a pair of cells (a la the commercial product linked by Feline), or whatever.

Re: Dynamo Powered rechargers Various
« Reply #147 on: 16 May, 2012, 03:27:42 pm »
*wince*

I knew you'd do that !   
I know it is very much a quick and dirty solution, and only cheap if you don't fry your Garmin in the process.  I'm rigorous about only ever letting NiMhs within a half mile of that piece of bodgery.

frankly frankie

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Re: Dynamo Powered rechargers Various
« Reply #148 on: 16 May, 2012, 04:35:01 pm »
10 pages into this thread and some people are still determined to re-invent the wheel ...
when you're dead you're done, so let the good times roll

Kim

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Re: Dynamo Powered rechargers Various
« Reply #149 on: 16 May, 2012, 06:04:21 pm »
There is of course a certain satisfaction than comes from building your own wheels...