In Making Things Move, you'll learn how to build moving mechanisms through non-technical explanations, examples, and do-it-yourself projects--from art installations to toys to labor-saving devices. The projects include a drawing machine, a mini wind turbine, a mousetrap powered car, and more, but the applications of the examples are limited only by your imagination. A breadth of topics is covered ranging from how to attach couplers and shafts to a motor, to converting between rotary and linear motion. Each chapter features photographs, drawings, and screenshots of the components and systems involved. Emphasis is placed on using off-the-shelf components whenever possible, and most projects also use readily available metals, plastics, wood, and cardboard, as well as accessible fabrication techniques such as laser cutting. Small projects in each chapter are designed to engage you in applying the material in the chapter at hand. Later in the book, more involved projects incorporate material from several chapters.
[...]... be expanded to a book of its own, and there are many other places to look for detailed technical explanations This book is about getting things made, and it includes the necessary information for you to do just that The small amount of theory and background presented will help you understand how mechanisms work, so you can concoct and manipulate your own creations If these sections get too heavy for. .. the book has two sections: shopping list and recipe I’ve heard that baking is more of a science, and cooking is more of an art Making things move is a bit like baking in the beginning You want to make sure you measure every ingredient just right, follow every step, and do everything by the book But once you get used to xiii xiv Making Things Move making things move, it becomes more like cooking After... inconvenient direction At the very least, have a pair of safety glasses and earplugs around and use them Safety precautions should always be the first step of any project you do 1 Introduction to Mechanisms and Machines 2 Making Things Move M echanical systems come in many shapes and forms, and they have various definitions Before we can start making machines, we need to know what we’re talking about: • A... to make things move, be sure to spend some time studying how other things move. ” • Making things requires parts and tools You will most likely need to order some of these things online Although you can do a lot with cardboard boxes and straws, you may not have a local big box store that sells DC gearhead motors for your Not Lazy Susan (Project 10-1 in Chapter 10) Luckily, you can order parts and tools... autoranging and can measure higher current than cheaper models, so it will come in handy when working with motors A basic soldering iron (RadioShack 64-280 pictured) and wire stripper (SparkFun TOL-08696) will help when you start working with circuits 3 Measuring tools A tape measure for large things, a metal ruler for small things and to use as a cutting edge, and a caliper for even smaller things I...x Making Things Move I’m sure neither of them will forget Chapter 6 or the Not Lazy Susan any time soon Thanks to the other residents, fellows, and staff for making it an inspiring place to work To everyone who helped edit remotely or made it to my Book & Bribe parties (and Tom for seeding the idea), where I stealthily convinced friends and colleagues to read through early drafts by serving food and. .. Introduction 1 Hand drill You will use this for drilling holes in wood and thin metal for screws and dowels during project construction I prefer the cordless, rechargeable kind like the Dewalt model pictured, but any drill will do Make sure it can hold small drill bits (down to 1/16 in diameter) A Dremel rotary tool will also do the trick for most small jobs, and can be used for cutting and sanding small... explained in this book, and the dozens of websites devoted to examples of converting rotary to linear motion, to inspire the mechanism you need to realize your idea Borrow the idea, and then customize it to make it your own, and always give credit where credit is due As Aiden Lawrence Onn and Gary Alexander say in their book Cabaret Mechanical Movement: Understanding Movement and Making Automata (London:... Making Things Move Or maybe you didn’t grow up making things move but want to learn The students in the class I teach at New York University’s (NYU’s) Interactive Telecommunications Program (ITP) in the Tisch School of the Arts have been all of these things, and they gave me the inspiration to write this book The class is called Mechanisms and Things That Move, and was created to fill a gap in the program... The rope moves the same distance that the flag does when pulled However, it does allow you to change the direction of movement On the other hand, one unfixed pulley does magnify force Unfortunately, as with levers, we don’t get something for nothing The ability to decrease the effort we put in comes at the expense of needing to pull the rope or belt on the pulley a longer 11 12 Making Things Move distance .