Powerful magnets under the front bumper of your car would pick up nails, screws and other metallic jaggy objects, and might prevent you rolling over them and getting punctures.

-- MikeOliver, Aug 23 2010

Magnetic Sweeper http://www.northern...g&cm_ven=Aggregates
with Lever-Action Release System [baconbrain, Aug 23 2010]

I disagree with the mfd. The other magnetic bumper ideas in this category seem to be aiming to prevent collisions by repulsion, rather than remove foreign objects. And I at least didn't know about the flightline trucks' magnetic bumpers.
-- MaxwellBuchanan, Aug 23 2010


You're trying to prevent tyre damage by picking up the puncture kits before they get your tyres, but only a portion of the puncture kits are handled by your solution, so its a fishbone from me.

Glass, brass nails and screws, etc., won't be caught by your magnet, and lots of magnet-susceptible items will be just too heavy or fixed to the road surface in other ways (embedded in the tarmac, or sticking up through a large peice of wood, etc.).
-- Tulaine, Aug 23 2010


This is applying a similar principle (magnetism), but with a completely different application (picking up nails)!
That is like comparing a lightbulb to a TV because they both use electricity!
This will not prevent all punctures, but it would prevent some. This might be an idea that falls somewhere inbetween completely useless and 100% infallible, but I not sure that makes it bad.
-- MikeOliver, Aug 23 2010


won't work if you're moving at any decent speed unless the magnets are close enough to the ground to be a danger by hitting something else in the road. [ ]

mfd denied: what [MB] said, besides flightline trucks aren't picking the stuff up for their own good.
-- FlyingToaster, Aug 23 2010


100% uninfallable. [+]
-- MaxwellBuchanan, Aug 23 2010


In my experience, I usually get punctures or drive over debris on slower roads in towns, so that might help. Also more powerful magnets would allow them to be mounted a bit higher... Maybe electromagnets running off the battery.
-- MikeOliver, Aug 23 2010


They'd only need to be mounted directly in front of each wheel. Also, if they were fixed to the sprung parts of the car instead of to the body, they would remain at their optimum position as close as possible to the ground.
-- MaxwellBuchanan, Aug 23 2010


I am sure I've seen one of these many years ago. I recall thinking that in some cases a magnet wouldn't pick up a nail completely, but simply stand it up into ideal puncturing position. Now I think it might also slide stuff over in front of the tires.

Baked, I say, but not well known because they didn't work. (Kinda like those little whistles were supposed to scare deer.)

A rooting around the internet finds magnets that can be hung from the front of a vehicle to clean up nails in construction areas, but they feature "2in. ground clearance" and are limited to "3–8 MPH recommended operating speed". (link)

This idea would work if magnets were incredibly powerful, but might have some disadvantages even then, including attracting unwanted metal and not removing glass (as said above).

I used to work in an factory that got nails into my tires on a regular basis, but I don't think I would buy one of these.
-- baconbrain, Aug 23 2010


So when you stop and switch off the electromagnets, they drop a handful of nails right next to your tyres?
-- Twizz, Aug 24 2010


Even if they did, when you started again it would pick them back up!
-- MikeOliver, Aug 24 2010


...except those which rolled back under the tyre.
-- Twizz, Aug 24 2010


You'd have to remember to park facing downhill.
-- MikeOliver, Aug 24 2010


"Careful, don't stand by my tires, it will magnetize your watch" (+).
-- normzone, Aug 24 2010


If the magnets aren't directly in front of where the tire will roll, but instead one on each side of where the tire will roll, it won't matter if the debris is dropped when the electromagnet is turned off, because it won't be dropped in front of the tire.
-- goldbb, Aug 26 2010


neither would it pick up in front of the tyre...

Unless you plan on using magnets so strong that they can collect a nail from 8" away while travelling at 30 mph. Parking close to dustbins, other cars, etc. would be entertaining.
-- Twizz, Aug 26 2010


This was also mentioned on Top Gear, they had little model cars with magnets mounted on them so that the North pole of one car's front magnet would repel another, but it was a farce of an idea as usual. Then someone from the crowd shouted out about how it would pick up screws and nails.
-- bs0u0155, Aug 27 2010



random, halfbakery