User Manual

13. Pour 10ml water into the measuring
cup and using the given spoon add in 3-4
spoons of any type of salt into the water.
Keep stirring the water until the salt is
completely dissolved (saturated).
15. Drop the saturated salt water through
the hole on the battery compartment,
place the robot car on a smooth and flat
surface. The robot car will start running.
(Only 10 drops of salt water are needed.
Slowly add another drop after the one
before has been absorbed completely.)
1. Unplug the connectors.
2. Remove the chemical reaction box.
3. Pull out the battery case, take out the magnesium plate, copper plate and
absorbent paper, dispose the activated carbon.
4. Wash the battery case and wipe it with a paper towel. Keep it for future use.
5. The absorbent paper is reusable. Wash it and try to clean out as much of the
activated carbon residue as possible then leave out to dry for future use.
Note: The reused absorbent paper should be stored separately from the new
ones. You may also use your own paper towels/napkins as absorbent paper for
the experiment.
6. Copper and magnesium plates are reusable. Polish them with a sandpaper for
future use.
7. After extended usage the magnesium plates will wear out eventually. Please
replace if one does not work anymore.
14. Use the dropper to collect the salt
water.
3. Press down and smooth the
activated carbon, make sure the
activated carbon evenly covers the
surface as shown. Do not overfill.
4. Place one absorbent paper on top of
the activated carbon as shown.
5. Secure one magnesium plate on top
of the absorbent paper as shown.
6. Close the battery case cover as
shown, make sure it’s secured. (Remove
some activated carbon if the cover
cannot be closed securely.)
7. Install the wire plates to the chemical
reaction box as shown. (Note: insert the
Red wire plate to the R side, and the
Black wire plate to the B side.)
8. Slide the battery case into the
chemical reaction box as shown.
9. Press the battery case down to hold
down the two wire plates. Ensure that
the copper and magnesium plates are
touching the wire plates by placing the
battery case above and pushing down
until a click can be heard.
10. Slide the battery case forward to
secure in place. (Note: The battery case
should not be protruding out the back
from the chemical reaction box.)
11. Install the finished component on the support case and connect the wires together.
(Note: match the right sides of the two connectors, do not plug forcibly. Please ask for
parents’ help if you have trouble plugging in the connectors.)
12. The final look after installation.
Salt Water Battery
Solar Battery
Friendly Reminder: Before starting the installation,
use paper to cover your table to keep the working area clean.
Solar Battery
Alessandro Volta was an Italian physicist & chemist who
invented the first battery - Voltaic Pile, in the 1800’s. The
base word “Volt” in the unit of measurement voltage is
named in his honor.
Alessandro Volta (1745~1827) was born to a noble family in
the city of Como, Italy. At an early age he was
homeschooled by his uncle before going to the Jesuit
boarding school where the school pressured him to be a
priest. Volta’s family had their own plans as they wanted
him to be a lawyer. Eventually finding his passion through
electrical science, Volta began to make a name for himself through his research and
experiments early in his career. In 1779, due to his scientific achievements, he became
a professor of experimental physics at the University of Pavia.
On March 20, 1800, Volta introduced the “voltaic pile”, one of the first electrochemical
cells, to the Royal Society of London. It is composed of several pairs of alternating
copper and zinc discs separated by cardboard soaked in brine. Later on, Volta was
able to arrange various metals in a potential series based on multiple experiments. He
discovered that when using any two different metals to build a voltaic pile, the
preceding metal carries positive charge and the latter metal carries negative charge.
This is the "contact potential difference". Due to his scientific achievements, Napoleon
Bonaparte rewarded Volta with the title of “Count” and awarded him the “Legion of
Honor” the highest French order of merit.
How is the electricity generated from the salt water battery?
The salt water battery is actually called magnesium air battery, which turns the
chemical energy into electricity. It is made of magnesium, copper, activated carbon,
absorbent paper, and salt water. All batteries have two electrodes. In this battery,
magnesium is one electrode, and oxygen from the air is the other electrode. When
magnesium and oxygen in the air have oxidation reaction, electric energy is produced.
The absorbent paper is used to absorb salt water into the battery case. The activated
carbon is used to absorb oxygen from the air in order to catalyze the reaction. The
copper plate is a conductor between the battery case and the wire plate.
The electricity generated here is actually formed by the movement of electrons. The
oxygen from air and the water on the absorbent paper, together with electrons, will form
a microscopic particle called hydroxide ion. The hydroxide ion will oxidize the surface of
the magnesium plate, where electrons are released. The two reactions take place
simultaneously, releasing electrons into the salt water. Salt is also known as sodium
chloride. When it’s dissolved in the water, salt will be broken into chloride ions and
sodium ions and serves as the electrolyte so that electrons can flow from magnesium
to carbon. Then, through the copper plate and the wires, electrons flow to the motor.
This is the process that generates the current to power the motor.
Motor doesn't work after installing the salt water battery
Add a few more drops of saturated salt water.
Lightly push the robot car forward to help it start.
Make sure the wire plates are in contact with the copper plate and the magnesium
plate. Slightly bend the wire plates up to make better contact.
Check the copper plate and the magnesium plate, make sure they are not in
contact.
Check the connectors and make sure they are plugged in correctly.
The robot car runs backwards
Switch the wire plates, make sure all the connections and the battery case are put
together as illustrated in the instructions.
Battery is out of electricity
Add a few more drops of saturated salt water.
If the surface of the magnesium plate turned black, polish it with a sandpaper,
replace the activated carbon and the absorbent paper.
Polish the copper plate and the wire plates with a sandpaper.
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Black
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Salt Water Battery Installation & Use
1. Insert one copper plate (yellow) in the
battery case as shown.
2. Carefully open the bag of activated
carbon, use the spoon to pour an appropriate
amount of activated carbon into the battery
case as shown. Place the remaining
activated carbon in the designated bag
provided. Please be sure to push out as
much air as possible then zip tight the bag.
(Parent can help with this step.)
Disclaimer: While the activated carbon is safe to
handle it is best to be kept away from the eye, mouth,
or open cuts. If done so, please use cold water to
wash thoroughly the area in which the activated
carbon touched.
Wow!
You did a great job!
Troubleshooting
Salt Water Battery
Alessandro Volta
Let’s learn some
fun facts!
Questions or comments?
Please call us at 1 510-687-0388 or
email us at [e-mail]
Designed and Distributed By:
Tenergy Corporation
436 Kato Terrace, Fremont, CA 94539, USA
Designed and Manufactured By:
Beijing Today Innovation Technology Co.,Ltd.
No.118, Floor 1, Building 1, No.7, North Ritan Road,
Chaoyang District, Beijing, PRC
www.odevbot.com
Improtant! Follow these steps to safely store your robot for future reuse:
Motor doesn't work
Sunlight is not strong enough, or the solar panel is not facing directly to the sun.
The solar battery will not work on a cloudy day or indoors. It only works under
direct sunlight.
Solar panel will not work under a flashlight.
Check the connectors and make sure they are plugged in correctly.
Solar battery, also known as "solar cell" or "photovoltaic cell", is a semiconductor with
photoelectric effect that utilizes sunlight to generate electricity. Once certain illumination
conditions are met, it can output voltage and generate current in a circuit immediately.
In physics, it is called Photovoltaic (PV).
Solar battery turns luminous energy into electric energy through photoelectric effect or
photochemical effect. Solar energy is a green energy that causes no harm to the
environment, but it also has a low conversion efficiency. Even for the best quality
monocrystalline silicon solar cell this robot car uses, the conversion efficiency is less
than 20%. Thus the robot car only runs under strong sunlight. A cloudy day or indoor
environment will not provide enough electricity to power this product. To have the best
performance, we recommend play our solar powered robot car under a good sunlight
condition.
Modern solar battery was invented by an American Nobel Prize winner Russell Ohl in
1941.