Portal Gun That Actually Levitates A Companion Cube

well it can't be done to scale since the surrounding frame would have to be way bigger, and then it wouldn't look right, this way at least the gun can be made the proper size. but then I would rather have done it with the piano string method (much stronger magnet up top with barely visible chord anchored below), then at least you could run around with it and not be afraid of losing levetation. very cool project nonetheless.
 
Is there a technical reason why you couldn't "push" the companion cube up from the bottom instead? I suppose it may drift a little in the magnetic field, but at least then it wouldn't have that arm over the top of the cube.

Pretty sweet though. One of my favorite games...
 
c4v3man said:
Is there a technical reason why you couldn't "push" the companion cube up from the bottom instead? I suppose it may drift a little in the magnetic field, but at least then it wouldn't have that arm over the top of the cube.
Click to expand...
My guess is the magnet is simply at the top of the cube, so if you tried to mount this upside down you'd basically get a cube (or globe) that's too top heavy and would flip easily.
 
sfsuphysics said:
My guess is the magnet is simply at the top of the cube, so if you tried to mount this upside down you'd basically get a cube (or globe) that's too top heavy and would flip easily.
Click to expand...

My guess is there's a magnet under sheet as well. From the looks of it, they just took the spinning globe system, removed the globe, placed the top magnet on the gun, the bottom magnet under the sheet and the globe magnet inside the cube.

You can do it with just a single magnet mounted below, and maybe a single mounted above (maybe? I assume it'd have to have some crazy control system, as having it below if the object drops, the field strength increases and pushes it back up so the control mechanism is simply to stop it sliding off sideways, where as if the magnet is above, if the object drops so to does the field strength and the object will fall, so the control mechanism would have to control it both laterally and vertically).

http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=qsnJe1sauEU
 
Tudz said:
You can do it with just a single magnet mounted below, and maybe a single mounted above (maybe? I assume it'd have to have some crazy control system, as having it below if the object drops, the field strength increases and pushes it back up so the control mechanism is simply to stop it sliding off sideways, where as if the magnet is above, if the object drops so to does the field strength and the object will fall, so the control mechanism would have to control it both laterally and vertically).
Click to expand...

Well there absolutely needs to be a "control system" since permanent magnets can not make things levitate without any sort of feedback mechanism otherwise they'll topple. (Top of a hill analogy, go a little bit in any direction and poof you fall off). They did mention microcontroller in the video so I'm guessing they do in fact have that. Now I know you can get away with a gyroscopic effect as well, but none of these items looks like they're spinning fast enough to really do it.

IT'S MAGIC!
 
meh, they spent more time on the design of the gun than any fancy science behind the levitation. nothing new here.
 
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