Continuously-Variable Automatic Transmission

This is phase two of my attempt to build a continuously-variable automatic transmission for use in gradually accelerating heavy objects to a very high speed without breaking motors and/or pieces. My first attempt was over a year ago (http://knexdesigns.blogspot.com/2010/10/knex-centrifuge-work-in-progress.html) which required an operator to manually adjust the torque output and had no variable gearing ratio. This new design, which uses two differential gear boxes, automatically switches the gear ratio between 1:1 and 1:6. Because the gear ratio is continuous, any ratio between 1:1 and 1:6 is possible, and acceleration between ratios is perfectly smooth. This prototype is fully functional, but still needs to be re-enforced and stabilized. I will post more as I continue work on it.

K'nex Projection Mapping Test

I have been experimenting with projection mapping lately, here's one set to music projected on Blue Fox.

K'nex Solar Death Ray

I think I can safely say that this is BY FAR the most powerful K'nex "gun" ever constructed, even if the main component is not technically a K'nex piece. Rather than blasting its target with a white rod shot shot from rubber bands, the "death ray" hits its target with 9.6 Kilowatts of solar energy, enough to reduce pennies to puddles in seconds.

My friend Paul and I bought a 4 foot by 3 foot Fresnel lens this morning. The obvious thing to do with it, of course, is turn it into giant solar magnifier, so we constructed a 1,500 piece K'nex frame for it. By the time we were finished it was 7 in the evening so the sun was fairly low in the sky, but it still got hot enough to vaporize pennies with ease.

I plan to post a video soon when we get a chance to try it mid-day.

Paul holding the death ray, attempting to melt a railroad spike.
The welding mask is necessary to look at the spot, it would blind you otherwise.

Close-up of the death ray vaporizing pennies.

Penny: before and after.

Small summer projects

Here's a couple of small projects I built over the summer.

Blue Fox - Final Video

Ten months of construction, four days of filming, two weeks of editing, here it is. The final video of Blue Fox, nearly a year in the making.

Blue Fox Video Progress

The final video for Blue Fox is, without a doubt, the most tedious video I have ever tried to make. My friend and I shot over 11 gigabytes of HD video the other night, and after trying 4 video editors (cyberlink, sony vegas, adobe premiere pro, final cut pro) and 2 computers, I still have been unable to find a video editor that won't either throw the audio out of synch or simply crash during the editing. From the looks of it, it'll be a while yet on the final video.

Wind-Powered K'nex Ball Machine

My friend Sam and I built this ball machine over the past few days using the pieces left over from Blue Fox. This is, to my knowledge, the first 100% wind powered K'nex ball machine ever constructed. The 6 foot tall lift hill is powered entirely by a 3.5 foot diameter wind turbine made only with K'nex pieces. It has over 4,000 pieces, stands 8 feet tall and has 50 feet of track. It is equipped with an automatic transmission which ensures that no matter what direction the blades turn, the lift hill always goes the same way, doubling its overall efficiency.
We call it Don Quixote.