Points of Interest | Green Energy News

March 14, 2004 – Vol.8 No.51

POINTS OF INTEREST.

A weekly collection of websites worth visiting.

This is a review of a story that appears in the March 2004 edition of Japan Inc magazine as well as on the Japan.com website.

The story from Japan Inc. is titled - The Techno Maestro’s Amazing Machine: Kohei Minato and the Japan Magnetic Fan Company.

The story is about a man and an invention. The man, Kohei Minato, is a former piano player who has invented, or believes he has invented, a way to better harness the latent energy in permanent magnets to operate electric motors.

If he is correct - and his inventions are proven - he could have one of the most important inventions of this century on his hands.

If he is not correct his inventions will eventually fade away.

The following is a quote from the Japan Inc. story on how the invention works:

“ Nubue (Nubue Minato, relationship unclear) explains to us (Japan Inc magazine and a group of bankers) that this and all other electric devices (Minato’s devices) only use the electrical power for the two electromagnetic stators at either side of each rotor, which are used to kick the rotor past the lockup point then onto the arc of the next magnets. Apparently the angle and spacing of the magnets is such that once each rotor is moving, repulsion between the stators and the rotor poles keeps the rotor moving in a counter clockwise direction.”

Here are some additional significant points in the story:

--- When the motors are attached to a generator there’s more electricity generated than powering the motor. Minato says that he is NOT transcending the laws of physics. He is NOT getting more energy out of his devices than he puts into it. But he HAS found a better way to tap or harness the energy in permanent magnets.

--- Minato's motors consume 20 percent, or less, of the electrical energy needed to run conventional motors with the same torque and power output.

--- The motors run cool to the touch and produce almost no acoustic or electrical noise. Because they run cool they can be made mostly of lightweight plastics, which is evident in the videos accompanying the story.

--- The motors will to be used initially for cooling fan applications, but in larger sizes would have enough torque to drive a vehicle.

--- Minato has received an order from a convenience store chain for 40,000 cooling fans built with his invention. He is also building a prototype motor for Nippon Denso and is receiving investment from bankers in Japan.

So given that Minato’s shops are half a world away from this editor’s desk (and no free ticket to Japan sitting on it) what have I found regarding the article, the invention and Minato himself?

--- The article is well worth reading and videos with the article at Japan.com worth watching. (large file sizes, high speed connection recommended)

--- Minato did help his singer-daughter Hiroko produce an album - One in a Million.

--- Minato does have two U.S. patents for the invention (the article also says he has patent protection in 48 countries)

--- And from the video I noted that three of the four devices shown - all cooling fans - appeared to be shaftless designs. That is, the blades of the fan were internal to the motor itself. The fan rotor is inside the housing of the motor. The fourth, a larger motor, was fully enclosed. Little of the workings could be seen.

So, again the article is worth a look, and soon, before the edition expires. Visit Japan.com at http://www.japan.com/ , Japan Inc magazine at http://www.japaninc.com/ .

Minato’s U.S. patents are available through the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office at http://www.uspto.gov/ (Click Search Patents, use Quick Search, enter minato-kohei in Term 1, and select Inventor Name in the Field 1 pull-down menu )