K'nex Ball Machine Gets a Wheel Lift

I have completed a working prototype of my first Ferris Wheel style K'nex ball lift. The lift measures slightly over four feet in diameter (a far cry from my last K'nex Ferris Wheel), which was the largest I could make it and still have it fit within the space provided. I still have lots of ideas for new lifts and paths, whether or not they end up constructed depends on how much time I have between my classes, and how many Arduinos I can spare for this project.

Automated K'nex Ball Machine Prototype 3

I have a fully automated working prototype of the overhead crane completed. It is fairly slow, but it will only be one mechanism of many. I am currently in the process of building a ferris wheel lift, which, though common in many ball machines seen on Youtube, will be a first for me.

New K'nex Ball Machine in Progress

I am about a week into the construction of my newest and most complex ball machine, which is currently unnamed. The machine centers around a massive two-axis overhead gantry which covers my entire room. When finished, the gantry will be able to automatically detect when a ball has been loaded into it, then deposit it in one of several tracks by the use of a random number generator. This video is the first test of bi-directional motor control in this machine. I will post a new video when I have a test of ball loading and depositing completed.

Continuously Variable Automatic Transmission - Finished

This is the finished model of my earlier Automatic CVT prototype. It contains 31 gears and roughly 2,500 pieces. The mechanical design has remained unchanged since the prototype, but numerous structural enhancements have been made to allow for operation at much higher speeds and torques. I plan to post a video of the transmission soon.

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.