The *N Machine'

A Perpetual Motion Notion

DUNCAN G. CUMMING

According to present scientific theory, the

^ ^ p e r p e t u a l - m o t i o n , or "free energy,"
I \ machine is flatly impossible. Any number
of such devices have been presented to the world
in the past, but not one has really worked. In
every case, the inventors either have been
honestly mistaken or were knowingly perpetrat-
ing hoaxes. But supposing that a new source
of energy were, in fact, to be discovered by an
individual inventor, would the "orthodox c ^
scientific establishment" suppress the idea? A perpetual
The answer to this question is a resounding
no. Far from being suppressed, the new principle motion
would be enthusiastically investigated, tamed, controversy
and exploited. Even in the unlikely event that
the government tried to suppress such an reported by an
invention, it would probably be no more emeritus professor
successful than it has been in trying to suppress
such things as nuclear energy secrets.
at Stanford is
In this article I describe investigations of a resolved by a new
possible new energy source, politely named the
"Presumed Latent Spatial Energy Field." The
experiment.
device to use this purported energy, known as
an "N Machine," was invented by an MIT
graduate, Bruce De Palma (Electrical Engineer-
ing, 1958). Some nonscientists will be surprised
that the scientific community displayed such
interest in a concept that most physicists and
engineers would reject out of hand.
In order to test an electrical machine, it is
necessary to measure power levels accurately.
The definition of a perpetual-motion machine
requires simply that the output power exceed
the input power. The scientific techniques for
measuring power are well established; so it is
no surprise that, when apparent power gains
are reported, since the inventors usually have
no formal scientific training they neglect to
measure one or more factors. I have found that

Fall 1990
the most usually neglected items are input by a factor of four. What was
the power factor and the crest factor, going on?
both critical to the measurement of I examined Kincheloe's test data to
power. Joe N e w m a n ' s device is a see w h a t kind of errors might have
typical example of the latter. Ignoring been introduced. The input power had
the crest factor, he greatly under- not been measured in the usual way
estimates the input p o w e r to his with a dynamometer, but instead the
machine, giving an apparent efficiency electrical input to the drive motor had
g r e a t e r t h a n 100 p e r c e n t . T h e been measured. This was a much less
National Bureau of Standards also accurate technique. Also, the gener-
made some m e a s u r e m e n t s on his ator was coupled to the drive motor
machine. They, of course, did take the by means of a belt drive, introducing
crest factor into account and found further u n k n o w n errors. Even more
true efficiencies well below 100 per- serious was the considerable brush
cent {SI, 11:114-116; see also SI, friction in the generator itself. In fact,
14:226-228). T h u s Newman's "energy the various losses amounted to several
machine," once correct testing proce- times the generated p o w e r u n d e r
dures were used, was shown to most conditions. T o get around this
consume energy rather than produce problem, t w o measurements had been
it. made, one with and one without the
T h e "N Machine" is a device that load. T h e increase in input power was
seems to generate more power than then compared with the increase in
it consumes w h e n the power measure- o u t p u t power. However, this created
ments are made by a trained scientist "ill conditioned" data and was an
w h o does not neglect any obvious inaccurate technique.
factors. It is an electrical generator Could any conclusions be drawn
first invented by Faraday in 1825, but from these data in spite of the possible
neglected since then. Technically, it is inaccuracies? I felt that Kincheloe's
k n o w n as a "one-piece homopolar experiment was inconclusive regard-
g e n e r a t o r . " Faraday himself never ing the "incremental power gain."
measured the efficiency of such a However, t h e r e had been a n o t h e r
machine, being more concerned with spectacular discovery. At top speed,
the basic principles of electromagnet- the electrical output was about equal
ism. De Palma decided to build such to the drive motor power, in spite of
a machine and found, to his delight, the high brush-friction losses. This
that the efficiency appeared to exceed implied t h a t if t h e friction w e r e
100 percent. reduced by better design, then the
A n o t h e r scientist, Robert Kinche- o u t p u t power would increase to the
loe, was intrigued by De Palma's point w h e r e it exceeded input power.
results and decided to repeat the Could De Palma's speculations about
experiment. Kincheloe is emeritu s latent spatial energy be correct?
professor of electrical engineering at In December 1987 I decided to do
Stanford University. He found that some experiments myself to investi-
De Palma had made the classical error gate this phenomenon further. I did
of not accounting properly for the not w a n t to go to the e n o r m o u s
power factor in the drive motor, so trouble and expense of constructing
he replaced it with a D C motor, which a high-efficiency homopolar machine,
is not subject to this error. Astonish- and in any case it would be difficult
ingly, Kincheloe still found that the to account accurately for all the losses
power o u t p ut exceeded the power in such a machine. I needed to measure

72 SKEPTICAL INQUIRER, Vol. 15

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The "Sunburst N Machine" with its inventor, Bruce De Palma (right), and its investigator,
Robert Kincheloe.

t h e i n p u t p o w e r and the o u t p u t linear, as predicted by theory.

power, and see if they were equal, as I measured the torque at various
predicted by established theory, or dif- currents by suspending the model
ferent, as claimed by the inventor of from a thin metal strip and measuring
the N Machine. Experimental consid- the angle through which the model
erations made direct measurement of rotated. (Electrical connection was
power very difficult in this type of made t h r o u gh a conducting liquid.) I
machine. However, by making separ- calculated the torque from the angle
ate m e a s u r e m e n t s of torque versus of rotation and found it to be both
current and voltage versus speed, both consistent and linear.
input power and output power could My own measurements indicated
be c a l c u l a t e d a c c u r a t e l y w i t h o u t that the output power was equal to
errors due to friction and other losses. the input power, as predicted by the
It was this dramatic improvement in law of conservation of energy. From
experimental accuracy that permitted the m e a s u r e m e n ts on the model, I was
the first definitive evaluation of the able to calculate what the input power
N Machine concept. (The full exper- and the output power would have
imental report is available from the been in an actual machine. The y
author.) agreed within 20 percent over the
I first built a scale model of the N entire range of speeds. Furthermore,
Machine from a ceramic bar magnet most of the experimental error came
with a brass disc attached to one end. from a known source in the particular
While rotating this at various speeds apparatus I used. This is a far cry from
in a lathe, I measured the generated the reports on the N Machine that
voltages. I found that the results were indicated an output power four times
both consistent from run to run and as great as the input power. It certainly

Fall 1990 73
casts doubt on the incremental power a high crest factor are of no interest
measurements of the N Machine, but if the crest factor is not even mea-
does not explain the remarkable total sured, particularly in view of the easy
power output results. To investigate availability of instruments for the
these, I discussed my results with purpose. Also, a single data point is
Kincheloe himself. of limited interest. A credible scientific
I spoke with Kincheloe on the experiment should produce a series of
telephone to see if he could shed any measurements over a range of con-
further light on his remarkable ditions (such as angular velocity,
results. He acknowledged that his excitation, voltage, etc.). If such
experiments were done on a ranch in measurements are carefully per-
Nevada in a remote location, with formed and indicate a new source of
limited time, and using apparatus energy, I guarantee that the scientific
provided by De Palma. Furthermore, community will be interested. As in
he had not personally calibrated a the case of the N Machine, somebody
shunt, one of the key components in will be inspired to repeat the exper-
the experimental setup. He admitted iment and refine the measurements.
the possibility that the (unpublished) It is true that if the results even-
measurements were in error, and had tually prove to be negative, they will
asked the inventor about the possi- probably not be published in the
bility of conducting further tests at mainstream scientific literature. This
Kincheloe's home. He had received no simply reflects the adage that extraor-
reply to this request, and meanwhile dinary claims require extraordinary
De Palma had moved on to the proof. If the proof is not forthcoming,
construction of a yet larger and more then there is little point in publish-
sophisticated N Machine. I am told ing the claim. But the interest is
that the new machine, built at con- definitely there, and I am confident
siderable expense, is superbly crafted that if a new energy source were to
and contains some 200 pounds of rare be discovered today it would be
earth magnets. recognized and exploited with re-
What can be learned from this? I markable speed.
think the most important lesson is
that there are many scientists with Duncan Camming is a private consultant.
sufficient interest to investigate new His background is in electronic engineer-
energy ideas. Scientific laws are not ing (Ph.D., Cambridge University,
legislated, so attempts to pass special England), and he has worked for the
bills in Congress, as Newman is Hughes Aircraft Company on electron
attempting, are futile. What is needed beam lithography. He has long been
to interest a scientist is a series of interested in perpetual-motion machines.
reproducible measurements. Mea- Address: P.O. Box 2876, Torrance, CA
surements on a machine running at 90509-2876.

74 SKEPTICAL INQUIRER, Vol. 15