November 28 2002.

For me, pulse motors were a great stepping-stone, as a huge amount of information was learned and experience gained. This is effectively my conclusion on the Adams Motor after one year of experimenting, studying the published articles, and communication with Dr Adams. It relates only to the basic public-domain device, and is unrelated to his 'thermo-generator' machines of later years.

Efficiency in the Adams Motor is measured by comparing the terminal voltage of one set of batteries powering the motor with the terminal voltage of another set being charged by the generator (integral, by design). On face value, this appears pointless, but there is an unusual effect that occurs when lead-acid batteries are subjected to high-voltage spikes, such as the motor coils produce. Their open-circuit voltage rises to a level higher than normal, but the net energy content still diminishes over time as normal. The very small motors that Dr Adams originally built were capable of masking the normal voltage decrease of the supply batteries and making them appear to hold their energy level. Large automotive batteries will run a small motor for several weeks (as I have done), and the mechanical contactor switch will fail within this time giving the impression that the motor is going to keep running forever without draining the batteries.

 

Harold Aspden offered Adams his services as a retired patent attorney and managed to circumvent the normal procedures for having a patent granted. Aspden effectively patented something based on a device that was (then) untested or built, and his own conjecture, subsequently becoming GB patent 2,282,708 filed on 30 September 1993. Aspden wrote that it would take less energy to electrically demagnetise an iron stator core than the torque energy supplied by a permanent magnet's attraction to it. This has proven incorrect in many experiments since, with most showing that it is in fact a very inefficient process after factoring in normal copper and iron losses.

 The proof of Adams' original error is in the 'Manual' published by Nexus of Australia, in the form of graphs comparing supply and charge battery voltages over time. These, combined with replication of this effect by myself and several others, and no evidence that the motor can be a self-runner are sufficient for me to conclude that there is no more energy in the system than the batteries can supply.

 Wishful thinking, lack of information flow, and distortion by those uninformed has led to the creation of yet another Internet legend. That aside, it is a wonderfully rewarding hobby building all manner of motor configurations, and also an excellent hands-on way to learn about electromagnetism and energy transfer.

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