h a l f b a k e r yWhy did I think of that?
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when you look at the age old shovel----and the science
behind
it, it does seem remarkeable no one has made solid
progress
towards a pedal powered shovel system.
there are hoe's mounted on a bicycle, , that just as well
could
be pulled by an oxen,
there are pedal powered 2,3,4 wheelers
with mounted
plows
for plowing snow.
what I am talking about is a a small scale excavator . It
does
not have to have an arm with a shovel on the end like a
conventional excavator. it could. but the point is to be able
to dig into the earth with a scoop/spade and lift out some
dirt and then move it somewhere.
I think realistically , the machine/system has to be build in
a
manner of optimizing it to its task.
in this case, to build a hole in the ground for a pool, and to
place all the dirt into a low grade retaining hill around the
pool. essentially a crater.
it seems that in average soil a decent shape adult male
should
be able to dig about 2 cubic meters of dirt in a shift , 8
hours
of hard work with breaks. that's VERY variable depending
on
what type of soil, how far the dirt is thrown from the
shovel..etc...
seriously, of all the things that could be super useful,this
challenge of mechanical engineering is worth taking on.
the reason the manual shovel is to excellent a tool is
because
it's simplicity is a force multiplier of the already complex,
many degrees of freedom system we call the human upper
body, which itself is rooted in the core.
the idea of detaching the entire existing shovel through the
upper body and mechanically reproducing the degrees of
freedom through a mechanical arm that is powered by the
over simplistic rotary motion of a pedal powered by
spinning
legs-----well, thats a complex mechanical challenge.
first off, it may be most practical to have 2 people manning
this machine. one to pedal and one to move the business
end
of it around and into place, almost like applying the end of
a
pneumatic , hydraulick,or a fixed jerking system ( a long
static element pulled back and forth and jerking upon a
bearing/bushing at the end of it that allows for a back and
forth motion.
really, the possibilities for implementing this are endless
and
perhaps the best way to find out what works best is to have
a
competition.
it's possible the most pracitcal machine would allow hookup
of rotational power from at least 10 bicycles being hooked
up to the rotating element that powers a mechanical arm
controlled by a person . with the arm itself just being
mounted on a moveable tripod.
that's about
Bicycle-mounted hoe
http://thechive.com...ls-bike-bicycle-15/
As mentioned. [MaxwellBuchanan, Apr 18 2014]
[link]
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//hydraulick,or a fixed jerking system |
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Oh, yeh, the ol' fixed-jerk shovels, humblebums we called
'em, model of reliability, your fixed-jerk shovel. Oh, they
weren't going to the job done tomorrow, but that ain't
wot it's about now, innit? Kids today, 'yeh, job's done,
when ye gonna pay me, cobber?' They dunno about clean
lines and smooth operations, the little details that make a
day's work really matter. 'Cos that's wot happn'd to the
humblebums, innit, it don't matter no more! No need for a
quality machine like that. Model of reliability, the fixed-
jerk shovel were. |
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Plumbing rooters seem most suitable for this
adaptation. |
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You could then adjust the business end of the rooter
to have other attachments (drills) for people to use.
Also, you could add gear ratios to trade speed for
force. |
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You would have a fair amount of friction at high
speeds & long runs. Esp. if it's flexible. |
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But, as you know, 200 Watts is about the max you'll
get from one human cycling. That's like a 2 Amp
power tool @ 120VAC. |
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And, humans take more fuel (food) than
solar/wind/coal/etc. So, human-powered "X" really
only makes sense if you are in a situation where you
can't get other power. |
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It would be perfectly feasible to remove the engine and hydraulic pump from a conventional mini-excavator, and replace it with a small pedal-driven hydraulic pump. Variable-displacement pump such as an axial-piston swashplate would be desirable, to make best use of limited power. |
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It would be amusing for sure, but not practical. Diesel, gasoline, or electricity are all cheaper than food. + anyway |
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// essentially a crater // |
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That's more like it. We consider an ANFO slurry would be just the thing
for that job. Drill hole, drop in booster attached to cordtex, backfill with
Ammoblast, tamp, attach det ... flash, bang, wallop, job done. |
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No shovels; no pedals; no sweat.* |
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*Possibly also no structures or vegetation remaining in the immediate
vicinity, no eardrums if you stand too close. |
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