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Joseph Newman (inventor)
Encyclopedia
The Energy Machine of Joseph Newman is a DC motor
which the inventor claims will produce mechanical power exceeding the electrical power being supplied to it. In the 1980's, Newman attempted to patent the device, but was rejected by the United States Patent Office. When the rejection was later appealed, the United States district court
requested that Newman's machine be tested by the National Bureau of Standards
(NBS). The NBS concluded that the input power was greater than the output. The test results were published in June 1986 and concluded that it was not a perpetual motion machine, and the patent was again denied. Newman later withdrew the patent. Newman's ideas about electricity and magnetism have been described as pseudoscientific
and his claims false.
patent application for Newman's electric motor was rejected, which set off a lengthy court battle. The National Bureau of Standards (NBS), now known as the National Institute of Standards and Technology
(NIST), by request of the patent office, tested the device for several months and got negative results. In every case presented in the NBS report, the output power was less than power input from the battery pack, and therefore the efficiency was less than 100%. The court therefore upheld the rejection of the patent application.
The case is now cited in the USPTO's Manual of Patent Examining Procedure
as an example of an "inoperative" invention that can't have any utility, concretely as a perpetual motion machine.
Skeptical
DC motor
A DC motor is an electric motor that runs on direct current electricity.-Brush:The brushed DC electric motor generates torque directly from DC power supplied to the motor by using internal commutation, stationary magnets , and rotating electrical magnets.Like all electric motors or generators,...
which the inventor claims will produce mechanical power exceeding the electrical power being supplied to it. In the 1980's, Newman attempted to patent the device, but was rejected by the United States Patent Office. When the rejection was later appealed, the United States district court
United States district court
The United States district courts are the general trial courts of the United States federal court system. Both civil and criminal cases are filed in the district court, which is a court of law, equity, and admiralty. There is a United States bankruptcy court associated with each United States...
requested that Newman's machine be tested by the National Bureau of Standards
National Institute of Standards and Technology
The National Institute of Standards and Technology , known between 1901 and 1988 as the National Bureau of Standards , is a measurement standards laboratory, otherwise known as a National Metrological Institute , which is a non-regulatory agency of the United States Department of Commerce...
(NBS). The NBS concluded that the input power was greater than the output. The test results were published in June 1986 and concluded that it was not a perpetual motion machine, and the patent was again denied. Newman later withdrew the patent. Newman's ideas about electricity and magnetism have been described as pseudoscientific
Pseudoscience
Pseudoscience is a claim, belief, or practice which is presented as scientific, but which does not adhere to a valid scientific method, lacks supporting evidence or plausibility, cannot be reliably tested, or otherwise lacks scientific status...
and his claims false.
Claims by the inventor
Newman claims that the motor derives its power by converting some of the mass of the copper in the coils into usable energy. In support of this, he has developed his own theory of the electromagnetic interaction of atoms within matter. According to proponents of the Energy Machine, the most crucial part of the design concerns what happens as a result of mechanical commutation. Most scientists think that Newman's independent conclusions are in direct conflict with the laws of classical electrodynamics, and no articles in respected textbooks or peer reviewed journals make any direct references to them.U.S. patent application
In 1983, a United States Patent and Trademark OfficeUnited States Patent and Trademark Office
The United States Patent and Trademark Office is an agency in the United States Department of Commerce that issues patents to inventors and businesses for their inventions, and trademark registration for product and intellectual property identification.The USPTO is based in Alexandria, Virginia,...
patent application for Newman's electric motor was rejected, which set off a lengthy court battle. The National Bureau of Standards (NBS), now known as the National Institute of Standards and Technology
National Institute of Standards and Technology
The National Institute of Standards and Technology , known between 1901 and 1988 as the National Bureau of Standards , is a measurement standards laboratory, otherwise known as a National Metrological Institute , which is a non-regulatory agency of the United States Department of Commerce...
(NIST), by request of the patent office, tested the device for several months and got negative results. In every case presented in the NBS report, the output power was less than power input from the battery pack, and therefore the efficiency was less than 100%. The court therefore upheld the rejection of the patent application.
The case is now cited in the USPTO's Manual of Patent Examining Procedure
Manual of Patent Examining Procedure
The Manual of Patent Examining Procedure is published by the United States Patent and Trademark Office for use by patent attorneys and agents and patent examiners. It describes all of the laws and regulations that must be followed in the examination of U.S. patent applications, and articulates...
as an example of an "inoperative" invention that can't have any utility, concretely as a perpetual motion machine.
Perpetual motion controversy
Newman claims that his device derives its power by converting a small fraction of the mass in the Copper coils into energy, and that it is therefore not a perpetual motion machine. Skeptics argue that regardless of the exact mode of operation, if the output power is higher than the required input electrical power, the device should be capable of running "closed-loop", producing excess power without external batteries. Such operation has never been demonstrated.Legal controversy
In August 2007 the state of Alabama Securities Commission issued a cease and desist order against the "Newman Energy Corp", because it was selling unregistered securities of its company.See also
- DC motorDC motorA DC motor is an electric motor that runs on direct current electricity.-Brush:The brushed DC electric motor generates torque directly from DC power supplied to the motor by using internal commutation, stationary magnets , and rotating electrical magnets.Like all electric motors or generators,...
- Displacement currentDisplacement currentIn electromagnetism, displacement current is a quantity that is defined in terms of the rate of change of electric displacement field. Displacement current has the units of electric current density, and it has an associated magnetic field just as actual currents do. However it is not an electric...
- GyroscopeGyroscopeA gyroscope is a device for measuring or maintaining orientation, based on the principles of angular momentum. In essence, a mechanical gyroscope is a spinning wheel or disk whose axle is free to take any orientation...
- InductorInductorAn inductor is a passive two-terminal electrical component used to store energy in a magnetic field. An inductor's ability to store magnetic energy is measured by its inductance, in units of henries...
- Singly fed electric machine
- Synchronous motorSynchronous motorA synchronous electric motor is an AC motor distinguished by a rotor spinning with coils passing magnets at the same rate as the power supply frequency and resulting rotating magnetic field which drives it....
- VoltageVoltageVoltage, otherwise known as electrical potential difference or electric tension is the difference in electric potential between two points — or the difference in electric potential energy per unit charge between two points...
- Crank (person)Crank (person)"Crank" is a pejorative term used for a person who unshakably holds a belief that most of his or her contemporaries consider to be false. A "cranky" belief is so wildly at variance with commonly accepted belief as to be ludicrous...
- Perpetual motionPerpetual motionPerpetual motion describes hypothetical machines that operate or produce useful work indefinitely and, more generally, hypothetical machines that produce more work or energy than they consume, whether they might operate indefinitely or not....
- Voodoo ScienceVoodoo scienceVoodoo Science: The Road from Foolishness to Fraud is a book published in 2000 by physics professor Robert L. Park,critical of research that falls short of adhering to the scientific method. Other authors have used the term "voodoo science", but it remains most closely associated with Park...
- Anomalous phenomenonAnomalyAnomaly may refer to:-Astronomy and celestial mechanics :* In astronomy, an anomaly is a quantity measured with respect to an apsis, usually the periapsis...
- Free energy suppressionFree energy suppressionFree energy suppression is a conspiracy theory claim that explains why advanced technology that would reshape current energy paradigms is being suppressed by certain special interest groups...
External links
Claims- "The Energy Machine of Joseph Newman" (official site)
- "The Newman's Energy Machine" by Jean-Louis Naudin and M. David
Skeptical
- "The Error Machine of Joseph Newman" by Tom Napier
- "Commentary: Crackpot Inventions" by James RandiJames RandiJames Randi is a Canadian-American stage magician and scientific skeptic best known as a challenger of paranormal claims and pseudoscience. Randi is the founder of the James Randi Educational Foundation...
- "Is it possible to build a machine that generates more power than it uses?" by Cecil AdamsCecil AdamsCecil Adams is a name, possibly a pseudonym, designating the American author of The Straight Dope, a popular question and answer column published in The Chicago Reader since 1973. Ed Zotti is Adams' current editor....