KidWind Mobile Learning Laboratory getting ready to “roll”

 

A month ago I posted a picture of this 2001 Ford E350 bus with only 8,00 miles on it!  This bus was going to become the KidWind Mobile Learning Laboratory, an idea I proposed to Mike Arquin, the founder of the KidWind program, in August of 2024. Part of the justification for the bus was to make the KidWind training sessions we had been doing for the last 5 years in Wisconsin more efficient. I wrote, “Everyone knows that teachers/coaches are the key to KidWind student participation. Right now the training model calls for getting a suitable location, picking a specific date and time that 10 to 15 teachers can fit into their schedule plus getting a substitute and travel time. The training day and date are advertised and communicated through various ways. Preparations are made with the hope for 10-12 participants.” 

There is also the preparation by the trainers to consider. Equipment must be gather, loaded and transported to the training site. Then it must be unloaded and set up at the training site. After the training is done the process must be reversed and the equipment and materials stored for the next session. We did 2 or 3 a year.

How is this going to work? 5 W’s How and How Much…

The bus is loaded with everything needed to go. The list of hands on learning experiences that are contained on the bus.

Each of these experiences is more defined and explained on a 3 page attachment for the teacher to refer to as they make their 8 to 10 selections on the sign up sheet pictured below.

This is the sign up sheet that teachers will fill out.

It works. The first beta testing shows it. Just ask Pedro, a former KidWind team member now attending the UW Platteville assembling the new Gen-X AC wind generator.

Or David, a local coffee buddy wiring a series of solar PV panels into an array that will power devises with the correct voltage.

I am confident that with the continued support and funding from the stake holders in the renewable energy business the KidWind Mobile Learning Laboratory will be coming to a school near you soon and working with a teacher that wants to learn more about making electricity from the wind and sun and teaching their students about the future of renewable energy today!

I welcome any comments or suggestions you might have.

Dick Anderson

Darlington, WI  

Beta Test 2 for 2

The delivery system of content for the Mobile KidWind Learning Laboratory bus is now in place and works!

Local coffee buddy, Dave, from Darlington went through the process. He selected 10 hands on experiences from the list of 32 hands on experiences list and he committed to 4 hours. We narrowed it down to these four, #49 Assemble PV panels in series /parallel. #50 Design and assemble PV panel circuit to run a devise. #51 Measure output of a solar PV system. And # 65 Use and explore LOTO (Lock Out Tag Out) systems.

Starting a 11:30 we spent 45 minutes touring and discussing my 16 panel, 8kW grid tied solar system. Dave has an interest in PV because he’s planing to move to Hawaii next year and because of Hawaii’s limited grid will need to run his rural off grid home on Solar. Dave used a multimeter to measure my systems output and how it is tied to the grid.

The next 45 minutes were spent wiring up AA batteries in series and parallel learning the rules for voltage and verifying the rules with a multimeter. 

Back from lunch. By the way part of the program will be that any teacher committing to a 4 hour session will get a free lunch on KidWind! The next hour was spent experimenting with the Sun Shine in a Jar model. This model has a single 4 volt PV panel that charges a 660mAh  3.2v LiFePO4 Rechargable cell. It is also wired to charge a 3V 10F capacitor to compare performance with the LiFePO4 cell. Various devises can be hooked to this system and measurements for voltage and amperage were measured. This model was compared to the common solar yard pathway lights that many people have and use.

 

With these experiences under his belt Dave moved on the to the meat and potatoes of using what he learned to wire several 6v PV panels to supply the needed voltage to run different voltage devises. Here you can see he has the PV panels wired to run a 6v KW water pump. The “sun” is a stage light to the left. Other electric devises to power can be seen on the bench.

And the last 30 minutes we took a look at the model wind turbine with all the lock out points for power and rotation from top to bottom. Had there been more time some different repair or maintenance jobs requiring LOTO could give been planned out and the safety points physically locked. 

My plan is for a third Beta test with the new first year teacher that is going to teach the 7th and 8th grade Tech classes this year in Darlington. 

I have put together an Index for the hands on Learning Experiences for making electricity from the wind or the sun. A detailed sheet is also included that briefly explains what the experience is about and will cover.

BLADES

#9 - Cut a single airfoil shape blade from a styrofoam blank

14 - Laminate a turbine blade made of styrofoam with plastic

16 - Experiment with different blade design shapes

17 - Experiment with different number of blades in a rotor

18 - Experiment with rotors having different blade pitches

21 - Cut airfoil profile shapes from 1/4” illiquid for use in the hot wire cutting process

24 - Hot glue cardboard to sticks making blades fora rotor to be tested

GEAR BOXES

8 - Set up a gear ratio in a KW Nacelle

20 - Experiment with different gear ratios

71 - Work with planetary gears

GENERATORS

41 - Assemble a GEN-X AC generator

42 - Wind a stator coil for a GEN-X AC generator

43 - Test a single stator coil with magnets for output

44 - Wire an AC generator stator for single phase output

45 - Wire an AC generator stator for 3 phase output

MEASUREMENTS and CALCULATIONS

10 - Test a wind turbine using a 20” box fan

11 - Test a wind turbine using a 48” KW wind tunnel

51 - Measure the output of a solar system

68 - Use a multimeter to measure volts, amps and ohms

SOLAR SYSTEMS

47 - Assemble PV panels in a series array

48 - Assemble PV panels in a parallel array

49 - Assemble PV panels in a combination series/parallel array

50 - Design and assemble a PV panned array to run a devise

SAFETY

64 - Use and apply LOTO (Lock Out Tag Out) devises

OTHER

7 - Assemble a KW Nacelle

13 - Perform a McGyver weight lifting test

23 - Drill and thread a KW black blade hub for 6-32 threads and cap screws

46 - Measure the strength of different magnets

66 - Build a full wave bridge rectifier

69 - Assemble a yaw system for a wind turbine

70 - Assemble a furling system for a wind turbine

Please share if you have suggests or comments about this idea of bringing Renewable Energy education to teachers. Thanks

Imagine this…

 

This is going to be one mighty fine place for a teacher interested in learning more about making electricity from the wind and sun. Where they can design, build and test a model wind turbine. Then take that new knowledge and skill back to their classroom and share it with their students. 

Imagine for a minute. You are a teacher that is interested in learning a new technology. A technology that has vocabulary terms, new equipment and processes that are new to you. There are many ways to do this, YouTube, books, vocational or college classes. Or maybe a bus that comes to your school or home with all the “stuff” needed and an instructor to get you started.  

Remember that mystery box. Imagine this box filled with Lego blocks, but no plans or manual? Like a Jig Saw puzzle in a plain brown box!

In the last post we did everything on the left. Now we are going to do what is on the right. Like Bob Wiley says in my favorite movie, What About Bob? “Meat and potatoes Marie.”

These parts from the box will make up the 4 different gear rations that are possible, how?

The first one is going to be an easy single step 1:4 gear ratio like this.

Then we will ramp it up to a two step gear train. If you are getting interested in this and how the ratio is calculated you are getting the idea. The students will also get this and the fun is coming up.

Because after we make some new blades for the Nacelle we will put them into the on board wind tunnel and start to see how much electrical power they can make. With these new skills and knowledge get experience with the number of blades and blade materials. Then make different blade shapes, maybe even airfoils. What about the pitch?

Is it just a bus or do you see what I see? If you want to be a member of the village to learn more or be a supporter of this project contact me Dick Anderson in Darlington, WI or KidWind.org a 501c3 organization.

 

Good progress on KW Bus Project

 

OK, so if you know about KidWind, you know this is what we want for teachers to be able to do with their students. Assemble a KW Nacelle, with a 2 watt KW generator and gear train that is driven by a set of blades in a 4 m/s wind tunnel to produce electric power. Specifically a number of Joules in 30 seconds against a 30 ohm load. Normally the Joule out put is around 30-40 J in 30 seconds for beginning students. Experienced student teams are putting out ten times that, 300 to 400 Joules. For the record a joule of power is 1 watt of power for 1 second. Now IF, you are still reading this then by all means read on to learn what the KidWind Mobile Learning Laboratory is all about.

So if you want to do all this here is what you get now. A nice box for $150 from Vernier. Let me back up a bit. Since the 70’s I have been interested in renewable energy. Specifically making electricity from the wind (solar wasn’t even a possibility then). As a high school “shop” teacher I had all the tools and equipment for the subjects of the day, I taught, metals, welding, power mechanics and electricity. “Making electricity” was a “new” idea. The oil embargo when Jimmy Carter was president got people like me thinking. Plus building a wind turbine applied a lot of the skills and knowledge I taught in my classes.

I marched on building wind turbines, electric vehicles and solar hot water systems the educational system and students however were not interested at the time. Besides where would a students put any renewable energy skills to use?

Finally, after 15 years of planning, in 2015 EDP built a 95 MW wind farm in Seymour town ship in Darlington, WI ! It was time, I had never even heard about KidWind, but in 2017 (now retired) EDP sent me to Mike Arquin’s, Recharge Academy for a week in Fort Collins, CO. I was hooked! And here I am today building a bus that will bring to teachers the knowledge and equipment that took me over 8 years to learn. 

Sure you can get a box like this and plow through it on your own. But I can bring it, on the bus, to a teacher and get it done in a day or two so they can bring “The future of Renewable Energy” to their classes TODAY!

What’s in the BOX? Imagine any teacher getting this and then figuring it out…

Presently in Wisconsin we run 2 or 3 one day teacher training classes. Getting the site, date and teachers to all line up for 10-15 teachers and the trainers is a real challenge. From this “shotgun” approach hoping to get 5 or 6 teacher to put it into their classroom. Why not just take the training, on a bus, to the specific teacher that says I want to make Renewable Energy part of my curriculum for my students or a small group of interested students?

So here it is right off the notes on the white board. The McGyver activity that uses the wind to produce torque to raise a cup of washers. Students compete to design, build and test blades that will raise the greatest number of washers from the wind produced by a 20” box fan.  

And this is the start to bigger and better things. Designing, building and assembling a gear box. Designing, building and testing a set of blades to turn a 2 watt KidWind DC generator to light an LED and produce the Joules of electric power I mentioned at the start of this post.

The bus is taking shape, the alternator has been replaced. Two wind tunnels to test turbines have been built into the bus. A model work bench has been assembled and tested out with the McGyver activity. Storage units for supplies, tools and equipment have been researched.

The work bench/work area with storage units is next on my list and will be covered in my next post.

It is going to take a village of supporters to make this a reality. If you want to be a member of the village and learn more or be a supporter contact me, Dick Anderson in Darlington, WI or KidWind.org a 501c3 organization. 

    

 

KidWind Bus Project Begins

 What do you see?

If you said a small bus then you have told me what it IS. Please read on…

What I see is a vehicle that can be used to bring, to teachers, the knowledge and skills needed to design, build and test model wind turbines or solar PV systems to produce electricity from the wind and sun.

Why? The production of electricity from the wind and sun is here. To understand it we need to teach it in our schools. This will require the teaching of teachers first. How?

This bus when finished will be equipped with the necessary tools and materials to achieve this goal. 

How will it work? The teacher/s interested in learning the hands-on skills and knowledge to design, build and test a model wind turbine or PV solar system to produce electricity will schedule a mutually workable time and school or location for the bus and instructor (myself) to come and work with them.  Think of it like going on You Tube to learn something and then having the person making the You Tube video drive up with the equipment and materials to actually work with. 

The saying is, “I hear it I forget it, I see it I remember it, I do it I understand it.” 

Industrial Technology classes in public schools today have undergone a lot of change. When I was teaching in the 70’s it was call Shop class. Then Industrial Education, and now Industrial Tech. Likewise in preparing today’s teachers the skills and knowledge covered in preparing today’s “Shop” teacher has changed a lot. People have recognized that the skilled trades and the workers are very important. Technology changes rapidly and teachers need to keep up as it changes. I believe the time has come for this bus and the work that it will do has come. You cannot teach something you know nothing about.

The KidWind program started over 20 years ago and has facilitated over 1,200 in-person workshops. These trainings broaden educator’s knowledge of STEM topics and clean energy, explore project-based pedagogies, and provide details about participating in the KidWind Challenges. In addition, we provide classroom materials. We offer a variety of workshops depending on the goals of the participants. 

It is going to take a village of supporters to make this a reality. So if you are reading this and see what I “see” and want to learn more or be a supporter contact me, Dick Anderson in Darlington, WI or KidWind.org a 501c3 organization.

I look forward to hearing from like minded people like yourself that believe we need to teach about the future of clean renewable energy, today!

Thanks 

40 for 40 Gazebo finish. What do you see?

 I liked to ask my Building Trades  students this question, while holding up a piece of 2x4 “What do you see?” Instantly hands shot up and with confidence the answer given,  A 2x4! 

To which I responded, wrong. That’s what it is. I asked what do you see? Puzzled looks swept over the class. 

With that example in mind here is what I saw when Arnie showed up at my door at 7am in the morning last fall and wanted to know if I wanted some logs from a couple of pine trees that he was cutting down for a neighbor of mine.

Well not right away. It took a look at my latest issue of the Timber Framers guild magazine where I saw a picture of structures that were featured at the 2025 annual conference.

With the layout of the post holes location done and dug it was on to the next step.

This was a fun part of the process as I took the preassembled post and brace units and laid them out by the holes. I took this picture from the top of the treehouse that would overlook the gazebo when finished.

This would require the disassembly of the roof rafters to get to the rim joist to complete the top of the posts. An important point here is that would be to measure and record the exact height of the #1 rafter from the top of the rim joist. This would be key to the reassembly process.

Even though the rafters were numbered I carefully laid them out for reassembly.

Getting the posts stood up and tied together with the rim joist was trickier than I expected. I thought the scaffolding would do all the work and all I would have to do was set the rim on the mortises cut in rim pieces. I was a struggle but worked.

With the rim set and the posts plumb I set in place the first two rafters. Using my Charlie stick shown as the black disc supported on the 4x6 and double 2x4 bridging, with fingers crossed, I secured them in place. Because if this placement was wrong I would be in big trouble when it came to the last rafters holes lining up. 

To my pleasant surprise I went very well with a little help from my mini tractor.

This is the money shot for me.

I will have many hours of viewing time from above and below in the future.

What do you see?

Reassembly of 40 for 40 Gazebo

 

It has been a few months. The snow is gone and the frost is out of the ground. So it’s time to take the parts for the gazebo out of storage and put them up.

The first step is to locate the holes for the six posts. This was tricky but using the radius of the 12 foot diameter of the gazebo I located the center of each hole.

Taking the photos from the treehouse with the spiral stairs gives a nice perspective.

Getting the right depth so that the finished gazebo would be level required that the holes were different depths to compensate for the slope of the land.

After the hole depths were rough dug I placed a cement cookie into the holes that the legs of post could set on and I dialed in the levelness.

I used a laser level placed in the center of the hexagon and double checked it across the sides.

I set up and placed some scaffolding to provide support for the posts while I began setting them up. It also gave me a platform to work off from. 

This was going to be trickier than I thought. The center scaffolding would be used later when I put up the rafters. I planned for the outside scaffolding to be rolled around as I set the rim joists to tie a pair of post together. Unfortunately the wheels of the scaffolding lined up with the holes. I had to use a ladder in stead.

I forgot to mention that I needed to take apart the rafters that I put together last fall so that I could get at the rim joists. All parts were numbered and chisel marked. All I had to do was keep everything straight.

Well it was a struggle but I got the first four up and this stabilized things.

Success. So far so good.

Here you can see the treehouse in the back ground that allows for the overhead views. This will be very nice to look at when the rafters are put up.

With the rafters all laid out the reassembly of the roof can begin.