From: Patrick Salsbury (salsbury_at_sculptors.com)
Date: 03/20/00
Message-Id: <200003201049.CAA01307@bootstrap.sculptors.com> Subject: Re: Your hub design... Date: Mon, 20 Mar 2000 02:49:52 -0800 From: Patrick Salsbury <salsbury_at_sculptors.com>
(CC: to domesteading, as I think hub designs are a favored topic of
discussion here. Seems to be the most activity we've had in months!
:-) )
> Hi Patrick,
>
> I saw the renderings of your hub designs. They are remarkable similar to a
> design that I have had kicking around in my head for a couple of years. I
> think your design would have better structural characteristics.
>
> My design uses two flat steel or aluminum plates with five or six holes
> drilled in both plus a central bolt hole to squeeze them together. The
> balls would be nylon so that the bearing edges of the holes in the plates
> would dig into the balls a little bit when tightened. One of the goals of
> my design was to be able to use any type of strut material, steel pipe,
> steel 2x4, fiberglass tube or I-beam, etc. A carridge bolt would go
> through a hole in the nylon ball. So, any kind of strut could be attached
> to this bolt with enough creativity and the right kind of fastener. The
> fact that the bolt is threaded also leaves open the possibility of fine
> tuning your strut length if you make a mistake in cutting. All of the
> parts are off the shelf, with the exception of the two plates, so cost
> would be minimal. As far as strength, I don't know. It would depend on
> what type of bolts are used, how the bolts are attached to your strut
> material, etc...
>
> I like your work. It keeps my mind going.
>
> Let me know what you think of my hub design, or ask me questions if
> something isn't clear.
>
> Take care,
>
> Brent Verrill
> --------------------------------------------------------
> The Institute for Sustainable Technology and Development
> at the Georgia Institute of Technology
> http://www.istd.gatech.edu/
> 404-385-0549 gt7922b_at_prism.gatech.edu
>
Sounds cool! The nylon ends would get bitten into a bit, and
I imagine they might wear over the years, but I could see that
working pretty well, and would definitely allow for clamping things
into place when you were ready to tighten it all.
Have you tried making these? Either in models or full-scale?
One other thing to consider is weather. (This isn't really clear from my
renderings, yet, as I need to put up more details.) You need to keep
the rain and wind and cold out, so you have to design with that in
mind. The hubs I put on the page have a smooth outer face and the
bolt only appears on the inside, where it's out of the weather. The
panel designs still need to be modeled, but the idea is to have them
drop into the frame, sealing around the edges with a soft, pliant
rubber gasket, much like a car door closing. Hopefully, this will
keep out the rain, without requiring a whole big pile of sealants
like tar, silicone, etc...
Pat
___________________Think For Yourself____________________
Patrick G. Salsbury - http://reality.sculptors.com/~salsbury/
We're looking for folks with sharp minds and bright ideas.
http://reality.sculptors.com/
---------------------------------------------------------
To invent, you need a good imagination and a pile of junk.
-- Thomas Edison