Design Process

First of all, we started by creating a windmill using lego-like sticks to create a miniature windmill to test different configurations of blades, air foils, and tilt. We used the results and checked the aerodynamics of the blades and decided that we would use 4 blades with 45 degree tilt on all of them.

Secondly, we started designing a base for our windmill. We knew that the base had to be extremely sturdy to be able to support the weight and the height of our windmill. We ended up with a cross shape with the equilibrium point being a quarter of the balsom wood in. We used the long end to be the back support as the forces applied by the wind will cause the windmill to be blown back. We then Placed our windmill tower in the centre supported by two rods glued to support the tower from the back support.

Thirdly, we started to create the blades. For the blades, we tried to create an airfoil like design to better catch the wind. We used four pieces of balsam wood and created a cut a quarter of the length in and bent the wood outwards to create a better surface for the wind to catch creating more torque and revolutions. We used a paper cup attached with a piece of glue stick in the middle to create a higher centre point to attach all the blades on so we can add the angle we want to rotate the blades.

Fourthly, we created a gearbox to convert the kinetic energy from the wind and mechanical energy from the rotation of the blades into electrical energy to be used to power a LED light. We thought that we could use everything in our table so we used the kit provided to simplify this process. However, we found out that we should have used paper cups and copper wires to convert the energy. We continued with the kit and attached the components together for testing.

Fifthly, we tested the windmill and found a handful of issues. The blades were too long, there wasn't enough electrical energy to fully power the LED, and there was a centre of balance issue with the windmill. 

Sixthly, we troubleshooted these problems with various solutions. We significantly reduced the length of the blades, and added another support beam to fix the balance issue. We still couldn't figure out how to get the LED to fully power up, so we tried different methods like changing LEDs, finding different angles for the wind to hit the blades, and changing gear ratios. But still, we couldn't figure it out, but we are actively still trying to troubleshoot this issue.