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Issue #216 July 2008
Energy Costs Drive Design Ingenuity
by C. J. Abate
Last July, I told you about my earliest experiences with the Internet. Since the mid-1990s, my daily ’Net time has increased dramatically. Like most of you, I now use it for researching engineering topics, reading the news, following stocks, interacting with friends and coworkers, ordering gifts, securing reservations, scheduling travel, and more. Hmm. I wonder what new ’Net-related features I’ll be using in July 2009.
If gas prices continue to rise, I’ll probably be using the ’Net even more in an effort to keep my monthly drive time to a minimum. I’ll increase my use of online financial services rather than truck to the local bank branch (3.1 miles round trip) or investment consultant (21.74 miles round trip). I’ll watch movies on the ’Net rather than drive to the nearest theater (7.28 miles round trip). I’ll buy more clothes online than offline at the local mall (14.24 miles round trip). I’ll order wine from online distributors at bulk discount rates rather than hit the local liquor shop (8.36 miles round trip). There are countless other examples. Hopefully, by increasing my ’Net time and decreasing my drive time, I will reduce my monthly cost of living, if only by a bit. At least the psychological effect of cost cutting should be more positive than negative. (Fingers crossed.)
Trading in a four-wheeled shopping cart for a virtual shopping cart is only one example of how average consumers are dealing with the price increases associated with rising energy costs. In the U.S., “hybrid” and solar technologies are all the rage (or at least conversations about them are). This augurs well for engineers, particularly the embedded designers and programmers who read this magazine. In the coming months and years, you will use your ingenuity and design/programming prowess to develop the systems and programs that will advance these technologies—and you will be well paid for your services. Whether you design ’Net-connected systems that enable remote access, build energy-efficient solar systems that cut monthly utility costs, or create advanced embedded systems for next-generation electric vehicles, you will be improving the lives of countless consumers while slowing the depletion of important natural resources. In this issue, we present articles about designs that can serve as starting points for such projects.
If you’re interested ’Net-related technologies, turn to page 12, where DJ Delorie begins describing how he planned and designed an Internet-connected alarm clock. The PIC-based design features automatic time setting, streaming MP3 music, and remote management. Another handy Internet-connected design is Fernando Jordan’s SwissJazz system (p. 30). He uses it to pull song title/artist information from an Internet radio station and display it without the use of a PC. You can build a similar system to gather and display the content of your choice. Although these two designs don’t directly reduce energy consumption, you can apply the basic design techniques to other projects.
Feature writers aren’t the only members of the Circuit Cellar community focused on tackling the problem of rising energy costs. Two of our columnists have stepped up to the challenge. In the first part of a series titled “Living And Working Off The Grid,” George Martin describes how he designed and installed a photovoltaic power-generating system at his New Mexico-based hideaway (p. 22). And finally, on page 74, Jeff Bachiochi examines electric motor technology. He covers electric motor theory, construction, and usage.
We thank The National Institute of Standards and Technology for allowing us to use the screenshot on the cover of this issue. For info about the NIST, visit www.nist.gov.
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