@ Staffman . Great idea but why stop at four?

@Omnibus: explanation of the analysis coming and special attention will be given at 2:29.

Regards,
LightRider

How does this show on your graph? I don't quite understand what you've done there.

@Clanzer .You are already so near with this we can SMELL it. On the video it looks like if you replaced your thumb with an adjusting screw , It would run as it is ! . Also you need to re-shape the cam , The bit that does the work has too steep a slope and is tending to push the magnet sideways instead of just lifting it . Put a little grease on this part of the cam . Another possibility is to mount the moving magnet on one end of a see saw , with an adjustable counterweight on the other end .  Hey man , what if it actually WORKS . The cat is out of the bag then .... Aren't you exited?

@CLaNZeR,

Good job, mate. Wonder what you think about the bottom lever w/ magnet? Looking forward to seeing this darn thing spinning and spinning and spinning ... All the best for the New Year, a lot of health and successful experiments.

That goes also to everybody else: Happy New 2011 Year.

markdansie
  cant say much about my idea, except it involves an unusual type of cam.


 tried magnet type tracks many years ago, in fact one of my first ideas was similar to rob 33's idea, of using a cam to pass the sticky spot, it failed.
 now when comparing to rob33's wheel, its easy to see why it might have failed.
 
 first if this wheel can not run using 1 V track, it wont run if extra tracks are added, each track will cause the same problem..

 If you find a single device actually works, only then would adding more be useful to increase the overall power.
 the part of the cam that makes contact with the bar should be symmetrical, so the energy lost due to the lift is regained when coming down.
 
 same that happens when turning an overhead cam pulley, so the spring is important for the downhill run, the spring would not be setup in such a way that it reduces the resistance when lifting, this would result in the loss of stored energy. Need to find the sweet spot.
 
 The weight of the overall bar mechanism is important as well, if too heavy for the gain in speed, the wheel stops.
 
 a heavy wheel probably wont get up to speed to lift the bar as well.
    using more v tracks on the one wheel reduces the time it takes to gain momentum, so if using 4, it needs to get up to speed in a 1/4 of the time.
 the width is important for acceleration, too narrow would be too slow, too wide then there is more weight in the bar and wheel.
 
 if deciding to rotate the stators and using the same type of cam concept as rob 33,  the stator would need to be balanced and as light or lighter than the wheel, a new problem is caused, as now centrifugal force becomes a factor on the bar, this would require stronger springs, which then causes more problems.
There are many catch 22 situations in this build.
 The end result would make a good desk ornament.


 if it gains enough momentum to overcome the friction it could probably work, as all the other actions basically balance out.
 where it needs the highest momentum is just before hitting the cam,
 may be worth trying to start the track with a narrower v, as the spring gives it push at the start, e.g 50% of the width at 270 degrees,then go to full width the last 90 degrees before the bar.

  just a few observations

I've given the 4 stator idea some though. Each stator should be able to be lifted by the 'cam'. If the rotor was laid out horizontally, instead of vertically, springs could push the stators back in. This way, three are pulling at all times, while the cam lifts one of the stators.

Below is a pic showing what i'm talking about. I am artistically challenged, so no remarks about the quality of the pic. 

As this design calls for a horizontal setup, this is the top view.
The red things are the springs, the grey dots are the magnets, the blue thing is the cam, the large circle is the rotor. V track and magnet supports not shown.

Staffman,   It looks very promising.  I like the idea.   Nice art work.   

Bill

@Clanzer .You are already so near with this we can SMELL it. On the video it looks like if you replaced your thumb with an adjusting screw , It would run as it is ! . Also you need to re-shape the cam , The bit that does the work has too steep a slope and is tending to push the magnet sideways instead of just lifting it . Put a little grease on this part of the cam . Another possibility is to mount the moving magnet on one end of a see saw , with an adjustable counterweight on the other end .  Hey man , what if it actually WORKS . The cat is out of the bag then .... Aren't you exited?

Are you serious? Clanzer's admirable attempt at a v-gate SMOT shows the obvious fact that it does not work. Not even close.