Practical Guige to Free Energy Devices

14. Ten metres of insulated, stranded wire rated for 1-amp or higher current.
15. Rigid sheet material 6 mm thick (possibly MDF).
16. One small off-cut of laminate flooring 85 x L (typically 337) mm
17. Adhesive.
18. Rubber feet or soft material for the underside of the desk lamp.
Notes:
Rocker switches are generally cheaper as the Change-over version with three switch tags, and so these
have been shown. For this design, only On/Off action is needed. Press the “1” end of the rocker down, and
the two contacts used are then the two farthest away from the “1”.
The TIP3055 transistor is the more recent version of the 2N3055 and is a particularly good transistor for this
application being much easier to connect to. While the TIP3055 is strongly recommended, other power
transistors may be used. No heat sink is needed if the transistor can handle 8 amps or more (the TIP3055
can handle 15 amps and 90 watts).
The BC109C transistor has a very high gain between 200 and 800, which is useful in this application, but a
major advantage of it is that it switches off fully with pretty much zero leakage current, while I have some of
the very popular 2N2222 transistors which don’t switch off properly at all and so are effectively rejects. Most
alternative transistors are highly inferior to the BC109C and so, if it is not readily available, then it is worth
ordering.
The 1N4007 diode is the cheapest readily available diode. It is rated for 1000-volt operation which is of
course, of no interest here and so the lower voltage 1N4001 through 1N4006 diodes are perfectly suitable
although slightly more expensive as they are less popular. While one diode is shown in this document,
people who are expert in electronics are inclined to use three connected in parallel as that passes current
more freely. That would cost an extra 6 pence at 1-off prices in the UK.
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Some people are really put off by electronics of any kind, so here is a version of the solar desk lamp which
effectively, has no electronics at all:
The only control on this version is the On/Off switch. As we no longer have any control over the voltage
applied to the LED arrays installed in the lamp shade, and since that voltage controls dramatic changes in
current draw, we need to reduce the number of 1.2V NiMh batteries from ten to seven. It is a matter of
choice whether you use three or four sets of seven batteries. If 10-battery battery boxes are used, then a
wire can be soldered across the gap left by the three omitted batteries.
The general construction is the same as before, with a rocker On/Off switch being installed instead of the
variable resistor. As with all of these solar units, the important thing is to switch the light off when it is not in
use, to avoid the next charging session being hindered by unwanted current draw through the light. The
general layout of the unit can be the same:
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