Whenever we show you a new engine, the designer usually has an animation of some sort to demonstrate how it works because a static drawing or display can be a bit obscure, but being true gearheads, you can certainly look at some gears and figure out how they work, after all, they’re just gears. Well, for the most part, that’s true, but every now and then, even with what appears to be a relatively simple arrangement, if the gears have a complex shape, the actual movement can take a bit of spatial imagination to figure out exactly what happens as things begin to rotate.
507 mechanical movements is one of those sites with drawings of gears and levers of varying complexity and even a quick glance will show you it’s not always easy to accurately predict how things will work. They have been slowly going through the drawings and animating some of them so you can see the gears in action. (Just note, only the diagrams in color are animated so as you go through the pages you can quickly pick them out.)
It’s a nice bit of work, but I see an opportunity here for someone to make some kits of all of these movements for the mechanically inclined student. There’s nothing like seeing a real mechanism you can touch and feel, moving in some unexpected way, to capture a little bit of the wonder lost as kids experience everything through a computer screen.
Kids need some hands on experience
I had some neat plastic gear sets when I was a child that I could rearrange and turn to see how the motion transferred from one to the next and then there were all of the mechanical alarm clocks that eventually fell prey to my screwdriver. What a wonder those were inside! But who has a mechanical alarm clock these days? It’s a pity, because many kids learned a lot and careers were started because of early explorations inside those and similar devices common to every home 50 years ago. Now, it’s computers, all day and everywhere.
This 507 website has a companion site called animated engines which is also pretty cool, showing engines in action, but there are not very many to choose from, the 507 site will keep you busy longer.
Analog Computers
The 507 site we’re talking about here was mentioned a few days ago on Hacker News and one of their comments led to this video about analog fire control computers. Gotta love it, especially when the intro to the video says “Shafts Gears Cams and Differentials.” How could you not like that? The multi variable problems these computers were designed to solve were very complex and doing it with shafts and gears just makes me smile.
Sometimes I think you guys might need a little diversion. Have fun!
Bicho says
The video reminds me of the 2000+ years old, Antikythera mechanism….the first known geared computer….
Bicho says
….from Sicily
Paulinator says
…a daily compound interest calculator?
Paulinator says
I fixed an old type-writer when I was a kid. Then my mother brought me an old cash register…she didn’t see me for a year.
rohorn says
Check out the LEGO Technic books by Yoshihito Isogawa and another by Pawel “Sariel” Kmiec. They are EXCELLENT for kids of all sizes. Available on Amazon…
Dano says
When I rebuild the old gas pumps with price and gallons displayed by the old rotary numeral dials I am always amazed at the complexity of them. They are fairly simple but if you have to take them apart the fun begins. They are nothing but gears and shafts.
I was surprised that they called them computers, the first time I heard it, but after fiddling with them I can understand why they do.
Great video, it brings back not so fond memories of my time in the Air Force.
Grumpyrelic says
I remember the Curta portable mechanical calculator known as the “pepper mill” good for 8 digits. This was used create jets, rockets, bombs, buildings and bridges from about 1950 into the 1970s. What do you think was used to make the calculations to build the SR-71 and the Saturn 5?
Have a look on Wikipedia.
geardrvn8 says
3-D printing anyone?
blackbird says
One of my aunts was in the group of mathematicians who did the calculations to put a man into space-with slide rules.
Sixteenth century, and earlier, clocks and astronomical instruments are also impressive.
Chris Krohn says
I kept hearing this is Troy McClure ‘you may remember me from such …..at the beginning of that.
robb kingsbury says
My comment/question is not related to the above post and for that I apologize. I am working in Kizlyar Dagestan and have come across a 1941 Russian made bike with the original sidecar. It looks military to me but I am hoping that a knowledgeable reader can tell me if it would be worth my time to pursue more info on bike and possibly look into ways to get it home