Newton’s cradle

Thu, 29 Oct 2009
prototype

Part of the office automata project. A newton's cradle made from card. The spacings need sorting out a bit and I reckon the hangers could do with being maybe 50% longer but the principle is there. Obviously it isn't going to work like a conventional Newton's cradle which rely on the inelastic collisions of steel balls. This one will rely on the centre ball being driven using a linkage in the framework.

Just noticed a scalpel blade lying on my desk in the picture. Must go and remove it before the cat sits on it!


Comments (4)

  • Shelley Noble October 30, 2009 at 12:31 am

    Neato. What’s the office

    Neato. What’s the office automata project? Are you re-designing typical desk toys in your own paper image?!

    • robives October 30, 2009 at 4:33 pm

      The office automata project

      The office automata project is a prospective project I’m doing with Ivy Press. The idea being to create a selection of paper automata that will appeal to the disaffected office worker. Things that can be made to put next to your computer, infront of the photo of the cat.

      • Shelley Noble October 30, 2009 at 7:27 pm

        Ah! Wonderful series idea!

        Ah! Wonderful series idea! It’ll be a hit! BUT! I have to inform you, Mr. Ives, that’s it’s YOUR models that are already on my husband’s desk at work! He’s got the Cat Walk and the Motely Man there now (He’s given the Exercising Fool to our ballet teacher because it makes a proper plie as he teaches us to do!) And he’s got a feast of other Ives kits only waiting for his time to build! Plus your great book, Paper Automata, sits there tantilizingly.

        Not everyone is brave enough to have a paper cat on their office desk though, so this series should be great fun for everyone to make and show off!

  • Ed Eckel November 2, 2009 at 11:30 am

     The collisions of the metal

     The collisions of the metal balls used in a conventional Newton’s Cradle are elastic, indicating kinetic energy and momentum are conserved during the collision.  The card version would be considered inelastic.  In reality, so are the steel versions (not nearly so much as paper) but that is the difference between conception and execution.  That is, even the power of creation has trouble getting around physics.  Incidentally, my high school students love the engineering of your creations!  Cheers!

     

     

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