47 replies to this topic

[Helmut]

The mechanics are simple yet effective, which makes it look very neat and clean. I think the system will be pretty reliable as well. Good innovation Max!

[Maxlaam]

I can see where you're coming from with all the possible applications: shuttle coasters and backward lifts, drop towers obviously. Maybe even, with help of small guide, automating one of those crazy sky swing things you went on at Oakwood. I think it can be done.

Hadn't thought of a shuttle coaster yet, but that would probably work amazing!

Thank you for tat explanation. It makes a whole lot of sense now. I agree with what you talked about at the end of the video; the reason why you're so excited. I think this design can be utilized for many things, it's just going to take some creativity to see what people can do with it.

Again, great work on this. It's so simple, yet so innovative.

Cheers

Your english is pretty good!

So you mentioned the pin needs to be in line with the catchcar, but what is the maximum angle before the system stops working?

Heh, thanks, my voice is a bit crackly atm because of a cold/flu.

I put it against a chart real quick and pulled it, the maximum angle is about 20 degrees. But try to aim for <10 degrees just to be safe.

The mechanics are simple yet effective, which makes it look very neat and clean. I think the system will be pretty reliable as well. Good innovation Max!

Edited by Maxlaam, 04 September 2013 - 10:46 AM.

[Jogumpie]

Updatez be comin'!

[-=Zach=-]

Ooh can't wait! I really like the mechanism, I feel it will be used quite often in the future.

[Maxlaam]

I'm not sure if update is the right word for what I'm about to show you...

Yesterday I went over to Gump's place for a day of building. Here's the day in chronological order.

First thing on the list, getting the K'NEX which is quite the challenge in such a crowded room.

Knexie, as introduced by KBP2000:


Once that is all downstairs and on the table we can start building. Track, lots of track.



















Track is done, phew, a few hours of repetitive clicking green and yellow pieces togheter.

Coaches!



Which was soon followed by a quick test using surgical tubing as a brake/trampoline.





You know something is tall when Gump needs a stepladder.

We settled with this instead of a proper brake system, the surgical tubing is stiff enough to always ensure that the coach is at the same position when the catchcar needs to pick it up, absolutely critical when we add the electronics in the end. The bouncing noise is hilarious


Tower parts were joined togheter.





The floors started to take shape after this.



Followed by the wheels that guide the wires up and down the tower.



And ofcourse the top of the tower.



In a burst of boredom I decided to make the photocameras at the top that snap a picture right as the coach releases.





Which finished up the work done yesterday, here's the tower at half length, just held in place by Gump to see what the final product would look like.



The parts of the tower provide some really funky shots from above.



This is how we left the tower after a good 11 hours of work:



Just look at that awesome shadow!

All that there is left to do is install winches which will go roughly under the floors. Meanwhile I can work on my own single tower to experiment with electronics and their placement.

Cheers!

Edited by Maxlaam, 26 February 2014 - 01:24 PM.

[-=Zach=-]

Looks stunning, I love the attention to detail. You got quite a bit done in one day, I'm impressed.

[Jumpge]

The triangular tower shape is genius... I can't wait to see a completely automated free-fall ride.

[Helmut]

The triangular tower shape looks awesome. You did a lot of work in one day. As far as I could see on the test video, the coach slides downwards pretty smoothly. How tall do you think the tower will be when finished?

[maarten12]

That Knexie made me laugh ! The tower is looking great so far. I love the attention for details and I'm very curious in the electronics you're going to use to control this ride (some led lightning maybe?).

[Maxlaam]

Looks stunning, I love the attention to detail. You got quite a bit done in one day, I'm impressed.

It's a lot of doing the same thing over and over again. It helps if you work together, I doubt we would've gotten this far if I hadn't spotted a test launch track from Gump using the Tera-band tubing we use as a trampoline/brake.

The triangular tower shape is genius... I can't wait to see a completely automated free-fall ride.

It's very sturdy too. We actually started with a single tower to test out the Tera-band tubing to see if it was capable of slowing down the coach, without flying into a million pieces. When that worked we ended up with a giant piece of Tera-band that Gump preferably didn't want to cut. The idea sparked to make 3 towers and form them into a triangle, not only making it a proper tower, but also because Gump could loop the Tera-band tubing around the tower so he didn't need to cut it. The result is much, much better than expected. However, we did cut the Tera-band in the end.

The triangular tower shape looks awesome. You did a lot of work in one day. As far as I could see on the test video, the coach slides downwards pretty smoothly. How tall do you think the tower will be when finished?

The coach uses the wheels purely as guidance, it's as free-fall as can get. With a bouncy surprise at the bottom, which would kill you in real life. The tower is Gump-tall + a bit. Something like 2.30m or 7.5ft. It isn't much taller than what you saw in the test video, only a small section was added for the wheels at top, but coach won't go any higher than what you've seen in the video. Because of the weight of the tower we considered it better to have the tower sit on the ground and extend the platforms outwards from that. Using a base would probably make it unstable.

That Knexie made me laugh ! The tower is looking great so far. I love the attention for details and I'm very curious in the electronics you're going to use to control this ride (some led lightning maybe?).

Nothing special, just sensors, motors and an Arduino. All this system needs is a catchcar that runs up and down the tower.

No lighting is planned and I doubt it will ever be planned. Making something like this look good with LED's is expensive. We simply don't have the time for it either.

Edited by Maxlaam, 28 February 2014 - 06:06 AM.

[Muzz135]

Doesn't Gump look so, so happy in these pictures?

[Maxlaam]

I've installed a motor in my own droptower now, it works great! Next thing to do is to install the electronics so Gump can copy that 3 times for the big tower.

[Jumpge]

I am at a loss for words. It's so realistic and there is no way it can screw up because the design is so simple. Yet again you've amazed me.

[Mister Piglette]

Wow this works great! And a big bounce too

[Jogumpie]

While Max' design for the mechanics is rather simple as it is only one tower, I have three of those rides crammed into one tower. This had some consequences for the lifting speed and cable tension. Both cables, connecting to the top and the bottom of the catch car, are winded around two winches that are on one and the same axle. Mainly due to the stretching of the cable (or rope), it is hard to guarantee tension on the rope that is currently not pulling. I have tried many things, like tensioners, but these all resulted in a more jerky motion. My current setup is rather simple and I will show it in a later update. I want to adjust one more thing. When the rope does lose its tension, it may be able to come off of a guiding wheel. When it regains tension, it may slide over a K'NEX rod instead of the guiding wheel, creating major problems with tension and wear and tear... Quite technical talk so far, especially when I have no pictures of the mechanism to show you.

However, I can show you what a complete tower would look like.

[Kool Coaster Kid]

Cool! To help from the cable slipping off the pulley, you could try something like this : https://dl.dropbox.c... 8 10 07 AM.jpg

Good luck. Also, there are drop towers on all 3 sides right?

[Jogumpie]

I've used a similar technique somewhere else in the tower, but yours is definitely a good suggestion. I'll try and implement it next time.

Yes, there's three drop rides on the tower.

23-4

[timtimlaz]

What does 23-4 mean? This is so realistic and amazing I just don't know what else to say! I cannot wait until this is finished!

[TheSUCKCrew]

^ Google gave me some amazing results, apparently 23-4 equals 19. So I'm guessing this will be 19 feet tall!

Edited by TheSUCKCrew, 14 April 2014 - 05:18 PM.

[Jumpge]

That tower looks beautiful. Both in structure and in color.