The Tile
Step here. Make power.
Every time someone steps on this tile, it sinks a little. That push spins a motor, and the motor makes electricity. That’s the whole trick. Everything else on this site is me explaining how I made the trick work.
Ball screw
A threaded rod with a nut that rides on tiny steel balls. Push the nut straight down and the rod spins, with almost no friction. This is the magic trick.
Hollow shaft
A motor with a tunnel through the middle, so a rod can pass straight through. Very handy when the rod is the whole point.
One-way clutch
A bearing that grips when you turn it one way and lets go when you turn it the other. It’s why the motor doesn’t get dragged backward.
3-phase AC
The electricity a spinning motor makes: three waves, evenly spaced. Messy, but in a useful way.
Mess with the model
Go ahead, take it apart.
This is the whole unit: the CubeMars GL100 motor, my ball screw, the 3D-printed flange and base plate, the bearings and screws, plus the aluminum shell, spring, and top cap that wrap it all up. Switch views, try X-ray, and tap the dots to see what each part does. Nothing breaks. I checked.
How it works
One footstep, eight steps, some electricity.
The generator
One motor, running backwards.
Normally a motor turns electricity into motion. Spin one by hand and it does the opposite: it makes electricity. The GL100 is built as a gimbal motor, which turns out to make a smooth, efficient generator.
Motor
CubeMars GL100 KV10
Type
3-phase brushless gimbal motor
Hollow shaft
30 mm
Weight
About 698 g