Dear friends,
Congratulations for everybody!!! I think it is a great work and it?s very nice to share it.
I?d a lot of simulations and I?m filling a document with results (my problem is time )
I agree with harti and Tao results at a first view with some additional (and important, I think) remarks:
1.- Force (and torque) changes with relative position between rotor-stator-gap. There is a period shape with peaks and valleys force.
2.- Maybe, the force (and the torque, and, more important, the energy) is greater with separated magnets in stator because the space (and the time) with "peaks" field is greater and the integral (work) is greater. That means you have less field (with separated magnets) but you have more time (space) that it is useful. I guest there will be a optimal distance but there are a lot variables that affects it. I expect to get data to confirm this (it is only a "theory" based on no systematic simulations)
3.- There is an optimal point to hold down the stator magnet just in a valley force instant. At this time, there is a peak of kinetic energy in the rotor that is used to hold down without a strong resistance. Think in a pendulus: peak of gravity potential energy mgh can be equivalent to peak of magnetic force and the peak of kinetic energy (1/2mv2) is quivalent to the same in the rotor.
Another "warning" is about materials. Conductors (aluminium, for instance) will have strong currents when the rotor (a magnet) moves. Remember Harti animated draw in S.Mark issue. There is a very simple and illustrative experiment: the Lenz pipeline; drop a small magnet (cylinder) inside a cupper pipeline(no magnetic material) (1m long for instance) holding vertical. The magnet is braked (even stops in some instants). (Magnet diameter must be closely to pipeline diameter). So conductors could brake the rotor ... from my point of view.
I expect the above remarks can help a little bit ...
Regards.

Hello all
The last day I?ve been reading this tread about the Torbay Motor, trying to understand its function.
What I see is different to that what you are talking about.
Please tell me if I?m wrong and excuse my bad englisch.

I found that the best and most interesting picture of the motor is that with the wooden prototype. There you can see the rotor-arm. Regarding the shadow of it, it seems to be a half-circle. So I don?t think that the rotor is lifting one (one of seven!) magnet-arm at a time. The rotor lifts tree or four magnet arms at a time.
In both cases there is a desequilibrium because there are tree magnets (down) and four magnets up and vice versa.

Then I read you talking about the sticky point. Long time ago I try to design my own magnet-motor. When you have a magnet on the rotor north-sided to the stator and on the stator you four magnets (12, 3, 6, 9 o?clock)  north sided to the rotor, you will notice that between every magnet on the stator there are sticky points.
I think that the Torbay motor has the same `problem?.

And now let me think about the ring magnet in the rotor. You wrote that it is south-north trough the diameter. So the only way there can be a torque is when the north-half of the ringmagnet ist facing to the magnets-arm that are down, so that repulsion can create a torque.
But the south-half of ringmagnet is facing to the upper magnetsarm that where lifted by the created torque by repulsion. Here you have an atraction, south of the ringmagnet to the lifted northpoles of the lifted arms.
So you need to produce enough torque to lift up tree magnets-arms that are cought by the atraction of the ringmagnet.

See U

Tao,

The graphics are great! I would like to mention something about the springs. I think the springs should be used to help bring the stator magnet back in line with the rest. I think there will be more resistance in lowering it back into place than lifting it. You will probably have help in lifting it by the repulsive force. The design I am working on is upside down from yours, where the stator magnets are lowered out of the way instead of lifted. It will be easier for the introduction of springs. I am also looking into putting a track for the stator magnets to ride in. This way, they will be directed in both up and down directions.

TJ

tjanzer, do you think at high rpms the lifting by the repulsive force would be reliable enough to ensure proper lifting? Synchronized lifting at just the same height is crucial for the functioning of the device. Otherwise, it would be great ? I never liked the spring idea. Would rather see it with small wheels and a ramp. Too many additional details, though.

Omnibus,

I just think you might need springs to help with the work to overcome the repulsive forces. I really don't like them either but at this point it sort of makes sense. Until my model is finished, I won't know if they are required. I am just looking into the drag of the motor and I think most of it naturally comes from the lifting and lowering of the stator magnets. Whatever could be used to reduce this drag will help performance.

TJ

Tao
The stator is lifted at between south and north of the arc/semicircle, it is now balanced, because it wants to get to the midpoint.
Now that this stator magnet is lifted, let us take him away and take look what happens. The rotor is still balance.
The other midpoint of the arc/semicircle faces a statormagnet (N) that is down -> no torque, couse of the balancing to the midpoint
The south side of the ringmagnet faces to a statormagnet (N) ?-> attraction
 ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? +
The north side of the ringmagnet faces to a statormagnet (N) ?-> repulsion
 ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? =
 ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? no torque
I don?t still see any unbalance in this setup, that is needed to produce a torque.
Sorry but I try to understand, in order to help you all, if there are problems.

regards
2tiger

correction i have found a ring magnet........ if you take apart a floppy disk drive inside the motor is a ring magnet ...... would this work in the rotor i dont know how its poles work  either......

@tjanzer
yes, springs would be better into the direction to push
the lifted stator magnets again back into the track.

@Tao
yes I agree totally with your description of the fields.
I did a simulation with just the stator magnets without the rotor in it
and when 1 stator
magnet is away  the field looks like a "bar-magnet"....
so the rotor magnet surely wants to turn by 90 degrees to align with this
pseudo "bar-magnet". So the disc magnet is really the best solution and
the easiest, cause we can buy disc magnets with a hole in the center
and this will also have the lowest unbalance ( this is better than several
magnets on a rotor which have to be balanced with additional weights).

I hope Tao can soon make an animation with Bryce, so we can show the world
how the motor will work and everybody understands it much better.
Tao, if you can provide a few rendered highres pics, I can compress them into a AVI movie
or GIF animation.
Many thanks.
Regards, Stefan.