Tim Wrinch
Wind Generator
Tauranga Boys' College
Composite Years 12/13 Product Technology
Teacher: Steve Ronowicz
Given an open brief, Year 12 student Tim Wrinch decided to do a project designing and developing a boat-mounted wind generator.
"I wanted something to do with the marine industry and I'd seen wind generators before," Tim says. "They're usually spinning around on a horizontal axis and they have to turn into the wind. They're noisy and spin so fast they can be dangerous, so we wanted something that was different. We'd seen wind generators that spin on a vertical axis that take the wind from any direction and we wanted a blade system that could only ever go as fast as the wind - that would make it a lot quieter and safer."
"My client also wanted it to be removable, so that when the boat was sitting around it could be charging up the battery, and then when you were out for a sail it could be taken off for a while so it didn't get in the way."
Tim drew up some basic ideas then developed three that he took out to his stakeholder group. "I went to my client, and we talked about those ideas and what we liked about each. From those three concepts we ended up taking a component from each and joining them together. Then I went through developing that idea - talking to outside experts and getting their input."
Tim found an electrical technician who was able to help him with the decisions made about the alternator and an engineer he could consult when he was developing the system of bearings to be used, and readily admits that he couldn't have completed the project successfully without their guidance.
"My electrical mentor put me onto the idea of using a stepping motor when I was going down the path of using an alternator. This required quite a high revolution where the stepping motor could create a current at a low rpm. That was a real saving and going to those experts and getting constant feedback from them was really useful."
Time was a constant constraint during the development and production work and the need for effective planning was always at the back of his mind. "I was always thinking: 'How long will this take?' ... 'When does it have to be done by?' ... 'What am I going to need to finish it?'... In the end, I was just pleased that it all worked."
Tim's project was so successful that he received a New Zealand Scholarship Award in 2006 for his work - an excellent achievement for a Year 12 student.
Teacher comment
"Tim's wind generator would be a challenging development for any student," says Steve. "The key to Tim's success was his ability to find and use the knowledge and skills of outside experts to supplement his own.
"As a teacher it is so rewarding to see a student push the boundaries and succeed at that level. Tim adapted and modified an electric motor from an office printer into a power generation unit. Now that's innovative!"
