Latest Inventions

posted by admin on Nov 6

There is talk of another attempt to beat the land speed record.

A British team have come up with a car that has the potential to break the current land speed record of 763 miles per hour, held since 1997 by the Thrust SSC (super-sonic car).  And by some way.

The Bloodhound SSC:
Their new vehicle will apparently cover the length of a soccer pitch in the blink of an eye - literally. In one sixth of a second it would have travelled the entire distance at 1.4 times the speed of sound, and it would only take 34 seconds to travel 10 miles…..

Made from carbon fiber and precision made titanium parts, this vehicle will be assisted by not only a Typhoon jet engine, but also a Falcon Solid-Fuel rocket engine and a V12 racing engine.  The jet engine fires first getting the vehicle up to 100mph in 5 seconds, then the rocket engine takes over, powering from 300mph to over 1000mph.

It would have hit the speed of sound at 761mph, so there would have been an ear-shattering sonic boom as the car just kept on accelerating.

After having only traveled just over 1 mile, the record will have been broken and the vehicle will be coming to a stop, with the engines cut, the brakes deployed and the parachute inflated.

Why Do This? 
If successful, this record will also have overtaken the low-altitude flight speed record too - which currently stands at 994mph.

Out of the 109 years the land speed record has been contested, it has been held by the British for 65 of those.

Due to the immense forces of the speed and acceleration, the vehicle needs to withstand more pressure than a submarine - requiring the protection from forces of around 12 tonnes per square meter.  The wheels will be turning a over 10,500 revolutions per minute creating a g-force of around 50,000 times that of gravity.

When Will It Happen? 
Needless to say, the construction of such a precise machine has yet to be authorised, but if allowed, the crew are hoping to begin work next year (2009) and they hope for a world record attempt by 2011.

Who is crazy enough to drive the super sonic machine?  Who has the experience to handle such tough conditions?  Why, Andy Green - the RAF pilot who currently holds the land speed world record of course!

To see The Guardians computer generated video of the Bloodhound in action, go to their site.

posted by admin on Sep 13

Powered by a Hydrogen fuel cell - meet the new Ford Edge.

There is another car on the road that runs off of the same element that keeps the sun shining. So far though, it has only been let out for testing, but the insight is something to really consider.

Without the cylinders and pumps of standard fuel cars, this one is silent. And without the burning of fossil fuels either: this one leaves only water behind - pure enough to drink if you wanted to try it!

Is is truly an Eco Vehicle?
No, not yet. Like all electric and hybrid cars, it is still reliant on fossil fuels and therefore still emits huge amounts of carbon waste at somewhere along the production line. But it opens up hope for the future.

Although it is currently as heavy as some of the larger cars already on the road and still pollutes the atmosphere like all other road users, Ford are looking to the next decade to really make the savings. Apparently, they say, there will be a chain of nuclear power stations creating pollution-free hydrogen that they can use to power their Edge.

10 years is a long time away, but then, it will take that long to build up all the ‘hydrogen service stations’ along interstates and in superstore car parks. You’ll need them, as with a driving range of only 100 miles (225 with over night charging with a lithium-ion battery) you won’t be driving to your destination, you will be driving to the next top-up point!

It seems that some states in the US are already considering this as a viable method, and the state of California has started creating a ‘hydrogen highway’ between it’s 2 main towns to get things started.  But we are still quite some way from this becoming ‘everyday’.

The Future:
Well, thanks to the record-breaking Ford Fusion Hydrogen 999 - which last year (2007) broke the land speed record for a fuel-celled car - they are not letting time or the shortage of fuel get in their way.  Other manufacturers are also in the race to designed the first alternate fuel vehicle for the masses, like BMW.

However, Ford have already started making further improvements and obviously the alternative fuel car that we see in 10 years time on the roads will probably be nothing like the one we see today.   It wasn’t long ago that the first fuel cell ‘car’ was pulling a trailer of hydrogen to gets it’s energy!!!!

Ideas change, technologies change, consumer demands change - but I’m sure that fossils fuels will run out before long, leaving us little choice about hydrogen (and nuclear) as the source of our energy.

Source: The Sunday Times
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posted by admin on Jul 11

An electric car that doesn’t look like an iron!

At last - there is a car coming on the market that is not only electric, but that looks great too.  It might be slightly more expensive than the normal chug-a-long weirdly-shaped earlier versions like the tiny Tango that stars like George Clooney are currently driving!

He deserves the roadster!  Both have 0-60 in under 4 seconds - and this beauty can travel 220 miles per charge - thats less than 2 cents per mile and the equvalent of 256 miles per gallon!!!

There are still issues about whether electric cars are more environmentally friendly than gasoline driven motors - but when you are driving the Tesla through town at those mileage prices you won’t be mocked by all and sundry!!!

With it’s great photo on Tesla Motors home page and plenty of available facts to interest you and your wallet - you would be hard pushed to find anything wrong with it.  The vehicle meets all the necessary Department of Transportation requirements for insurance and registration, and even connects to your iPod and is Blue-tooth enabled.

What are the benefits of driving an electric car?
There are many according to Tesla: ‘reduced dependence on foreign oil, zero emissions, and a cost of less than two cents per mile driven (using off-peak charging rates with a time-of-use meter. Many areas also offer carpool lane access and/or special parking privileges for electric cars. Check with your local DMV for details’.

The EV is claimed to be a more environmentally friendly transportation solution than an ethanol-powered or fuel-cell powered motor - quite simply they cost less per mile to drive, they also use less fuel per mile driven - also producing less pollution per mile driven.

There is also the concern that electric vehicles move pollution to another location - ie - the factory burning the fossil fuels to create the electricity in the first place - but Tesla Motors have the answer: ’Most electric power generation in the United States does not use oil. Coal, hydro, nuclear, solar, and natural gas are typical sources for generating electricity.’ 

Added to the fact that an electric car is far more efficient than a gasoline car, and they add that ‘a battery electric car like the Tesla Roadster is able to put more than 80 percent of the energy it consumes to use in moving the car down the road.’

Need to know more?
Read up on their FAQ section yourself, and check out their related pages and servicing comments if you are interested. 
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posted by admin on Apr 15

London have now introduced a second charge to visiting the city by road.  First of all it was the Congestion Charge which charges drivers of most vehicles when they enter certain areas of the city centre, trying to deter high traffic volumes.  But now they are charging for vehicle types.

So if you have recently been driving around the M25 and wondered what the green Low Emission Zone (LEZ) sign was going on about, here is a quick guide>

What is it - The LEZ was formed with the idea of improving the air quality of the city by deterring the most polluting vehicles from entering.  This includes older diesel lorries, buses, coaches, etc at the moment, but will include more vehicles over the next 2 years, and will include motorcaravans and horseboxes over 3.5 tonnes.  The LEZ does not affect cars and motoercycles.

Where is it - It includes most of Greater London inside the M25 and some areas outside of this - although the M25 itself is exempt from this charge.  So it extends from Heathrow to Brentwood, and Enfiled to near Gatwick Airport.  You can use the government website to check certain areas by inserting the postcode into their ‘Location Check’ tool.

When it is chargeable - The LEZ is always in operation, 24 hours a day every day - including bank holidays, and runs from midnight to midnight of every day.  Basically if you are staying somewhere in the LEZ overnight, you will have to pay for 2 days entry.

How do you pay - You can pay online, by phone or by post, although by post needs to be applied for at least 10 days before you wish to enter the zone.  By phone or online can be paid as late as the day after your travel into the LEZ.

Who pays - So far, it is only the registered owners of lorries over 12 tonnes who have to pay the charge, but from the 7th July 2008 it will also include buses and coaches over 5 tonnes and horseboxes, lorries and motoercaravans between 3.5 and 12 tonnes.

How much - At the moment the daily charge for lorries is set at 200UK pounds, but will be lower with the smaller vehicles added later.  However, the penalties are 1000 if not paid on time, and 1500 if paid late!  The way these are calculated is by remote cameras registering numberplates of vehicles entering the LEZ, then the fines are sent direct to the owner of the vehicle to pay - they are responsible for the charges, so they will pay the fine.

Find out more - go online to the government website for the London Emission Zone where it has all the details in many languages for your assistance in making sure you do not travel without having paid correctly.  There is also a ‘Common Questions’ tool for more advice.