Re: Questions for those who really know their physics . . .

Wayne Throop wrote: 
: Wildepad <noreplies@>
: It would be appreciated if you could also come up with an elegant way
: of building such a thing with readily available parts!  :)

Heh, I wouldn't know whether parts I'd imagine for an ordinary escalator
were readily available, let alone one with cupped steps and a
cupped path.

However... slinkys will walk down an inclined plane. So, just a belt over shaped rollers. Not as eye-catching
as an escalator, but maybe easier to get working.


Wayne Throop throopw@xxxxxxxxx http://sheol.org/throopw
Well over here, they used to build escalators out of wood with a steel frame for each step. It would probably be worth researching old escalator designs then scaleing one down. As to the variable step height bit, CONSIDER WHAT HAPPENS AT THE BOTTOM OF A NORMAL ESCALATOR :-)

Your nest step <Groan -> VBG> is to make a fixed set of variable height steps. Maybe some prismatic blocks of rectangular section with two pins in each end resting on a pair of rails at each side with provision to elavate all the rails equally at one end. The pins of the bottom block would be fixed to the ends of the rails. Then start videoing a slinky going down it for various step height settings. You could also check the cupped step centering stuff by tilting the setup and seeing if the slinky's path is deflected.

--
Ian Malcolm. London, ENGLAND. (NEWSGROUP REPLY PREFERRED)
ianm[at]the[dash]malcolms[dot]freeserve[dot]co[dot]uk [at]=@, [dash]=- & [dot]=.
*Warning* SPAM TRAP set in header, Use email address in sig. if you must.
.