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
-- teslaberry, Apr 17 2014

Bicycle-mounted hoe http://thechive.com...ls-bike-bicycle-15/
As mentioned. [MaxwellBuchanan, Apr 18 2014]

//hydraulick,or a fixed jerking system

???
-- not_morrison_rm, Apr 17 2014


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.
-- Alterother, Apr 17 2014


Plumbing rooters seem most suitable for this adaptation.

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.

You would have a fair amount of friction at high speeds & long runs. Esp. if it's flexible.
-- sophocles, Apr 17 2014


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.

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.
-- sophocles, Apr 17 2014


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.

It would be amusing for sure, but not practical. Diesel, gasoline, or electricity are all cheaper than food. + anyway
-- afinehowdoyoudo, Apr 17 2014


// essentially a crater //

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.

No shovels; no pedals; no sweat.*

*Possibly also no structures or vegetation remaining in the immediate vicinity, no eardrums if you stand too close.
-- 8th of 7, Apr 17 2014



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