Greenwood’s human-powered Imagine PS a design revolution
From our weekly issue dated February 11, 2009
An earlier model of Greenwood’s Imagine PS on display at the WIRED NextFest exposition in Chicago last fall. (Provided photo by Ned Stickles)
Takilma resident Charles Greenwood has come a long way since a routine California traffic jam in 1968 changed his life forever.
While in the standstill, Greenwood noticed that many people in the vehicles around him were overweight, and that they all were breathing in the same toxic auto emissions. That prompted Greenwood to rethink the way cars run, and he’s been working on fixing it since.
He relocated his design and engineering operations to Southern Oregon in 1975. He is preparing for an approaching barrage of international publicity to coincide with the release of his new prototype, the Imagine PS.
The PS stands for “power station” due to the fact that the vehicle can self-generate one kilowatt of power.
“It’s a drivable power station,” Greenwood said. “Incidentally, it’s a car that’s a lot of fun.”
Greenwood said that the Imagine PS weighs less than 600 pounds, and has enough battery power to go 30 miles and carry a 1,000-pound load. That differs considerably from the standard 2-ton vehicle, but it’s all part of the redesign revolution that Greenwood had in mind when he began his project.
“If you make it light and smaller, the human component can be significant in propulsion,” he said. “This is an extremely high-performance vehicle structural system.”
The Imagine PS features a technological innovation in that it can generate enough energy to power cell phones, laptop computers and other small devices. Greenwood said that the new model “has the potential of power backup,” which expands its overall utility.
“We need more functionality, especially now,” he noted. “Low-power draw is the new norm.”
Over the years, several local people have helped Greenwood turn his ideas into reality. They include Shawn Lamb, Kurt Prentner, Jesse Norton, Jake Prentner, Joe Ninnemann, Jean Robertson and Gordon Robinson. Greenwood also received assistance from his sons Chuck and Sam, and his brother John.
Greenwood anticipates being featured in a coming issue of Popular Science magazine. He said that it should be a “fairly significant article,” based on the amount of fact-checking after his initial interview with the publication. Greenwood said that he believes the article will mention Illinois Valley’s mining history and how the area tends to attract creative people.
A film crew from the Britain-based The Gadget Show might come to Takilma in April to feature Greenwood, he said.
Greenwood and his design concepts had previously been featured on the Australian production Cool Fuel Road Trip, which was aired in the United States. Discovery Science, CNN, Planet Green and the Discovery Channel have also provided coverage in the past.
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The inventor and entrepreneur said that all the research and development that has gone into making the Imagine PS and other earlier prototypes has been self-funded. But all that may change soon.
Although Greenwood said that there are more than 100 pre-orders for his completely sustainable, part-electric and part-human propelled vehicles, he is at a crossroads of sorts regarding methods of production.
The vehicles will either have to be manufactured in lower numbers at higher prices if produced locally, Greenwood said, or put into more mass production elsewhere.
Greenwood said that he has been involved in discussions with U.S. and foreign suppliers, and is “closer and closer” to forming alliances and partnerships.
“We’re about to introduce it in some form,” Greenwood said.
He added that he hopes to have the vehicle ready for release some time this spring, but that research and development will continue between now and then.
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