[CP5670]

The shape is very important...after the top stops being pulled by gravity, it is helped along by gravity when the gravity pulls the heavy end that is up in the air down.

No, like I said, I'm not talking about the acceleration within a single rotation, but rather that between consecutive rotations. If it was going with the initial slope energy alone, each rotation would take longer than the ones before it, which is not the case if you look really carefully.

uh.. I don't think so. If it does, it seems negligible to me. At least nothing the weight system couldn't do.. still though, where would the extra help come from if it isn't natural?

as I said, a motor with a stationary weight should do the trick nicely.

Ok, seriously dude, there isn't a way you could get a miniature motor in there that would be able to make it go marginally faster and then stop when it gets to the next thing. It would be moronic anyways as they could just move the entire contraption closer together and not have to motorize anything.

um, as I said, I have done it before; it's pretty easy. As for the stopping, that could just be controlled remotely.

[Knight Templar]

See above post:

It would be retarded to go to such an extent just to make it get an extra inch or two closer when they could just shorten the length.

Another thing about the commerical, it's emphasized by using parts entirely from a car, and from my knowledge, a motor with a weight on it small enough to fit inside the muffler would have no purpose in a car.

[Anaz]

or they put the whole thing on a slight angle and tilted the camera

(just an idea...)

[CP5670]

It would be retarded to go to such an extent just to make it get an extra inch or two closer when they could just shorten the length.

It actually goes on forever, or well, until the batteries run out.

Another thing about the commerical, it's emphasized by using parts entirely from a car, and from my knowledge, a motor with a weight on it small enough to fit inside the muffler would have no purpose in a car.

Why not just modify that particular muffler to have it? nobody will see it anyway...

or they put the whole thing on a slight angle and tilted the camera

That is the other possibility I had in mind; it would work well too, especially if the entire building in which the thing is being operated is built on a slope so nobody will notice any problems with the walls or anything.

Anyway, I'm going to go to sleep now; need to get up for tests tomorrow morning...

[Knight Templar]

It actually goes on forever, or well, until the batteries run out.

Ok, so you're saying you fit an entire miniature engine inside an oversized muffler, complete wth a battery, balance it perfectly, all just to make it look like its real when they could make it real in the first place?

Why not just modify that particular muffler to have it? nobody will see it anyway...

true, but people like you would try to, and that would defeat the cleverness of the add.



Besides, it's already on an incline, it has the main body, and the pipe sticking out, it gets tapped and blwon at, and it also has a nice oblong shape that could carry it the distance via gravity. I think it works out just fine without any mods.


and tests on a Saturday? You seriously need to go over your life man

[Goober5000]

The reason it slows down and speeds up on each cycle is because of its shape.  Roll a hard-boiled egg and it'll behave the same way - but a muffler rolls farther because it has more mass and hence more inertia.

[Blue Lion]

Originally posted by Knight Templar


and tests on a Saturday? You seriously need to go over your life man

Man this is CP were talking about, the boy who hasn't left his house since 1998

[Nico]

Originally posted by CP5670

That is the other possibility I had in mind; it would work well too, especially if the entire building in which the thing is being operated is built on a slope so nobody will notice any problems with the walls or anything.
 

no, all the things that are on tigh balance would fall, and all the actions that use fluids would be screwed.
very nice ad btw, I love the idea ( of the thing being made only with parts of the Accord )

[CP5670]

Ok, so you're saying you fit an entire miniature engine inside an oversized muffler, complete wth a battery, balance it perfectly, all just to make it look like its real when they could make it real in the first place?

Sure, since they could then increase the distance by as much as needed, which would increase its apparent ingenuity. Besides, it is pretty easy to get the balance right and so on; as long as you make the weight heavy enough to offset the motor acceleration, you should be fine. heck, if you have the parts, I can tell you how to make such a motor assembly for a circular wheel out of lego pieces.

true, but people like you would try to, and that would defeat the cleverness of the add.

Well it's just an ad, not some complex engineering prototype. I doubt they would go to great lengths to make it unrecognizable as long as most people don't see it.

Besides, it's already on an incline, it has the main body, and the pipe sticking out, it gets tapped and blwon at, and it also has a nice oblong shape that could carry it the distance via gravity. I think it works out just fine without any mods.

that wouldn't account for speed ups between rotations, though. The shape would actually work against it; a cylinder (round wheel) would work better when rolling like that and of course, a perfect sphere would give the optimal combination.

and tests on a Saturday? You seriously need to go over your life man

didn't have a choice; the SAT IIs are always on Saturdays for some reason. Then again, I don't really care too much.

[Tiara]

j/k

But how can you people get into a scientific debate over an ad? I mean, you guys just take stuff like this too serious.

[Petrarch of the VBB]

oh, it that.

I've seen that myriad times on TV, and it is incredible. I don't care about your highly scientific discussions of it, it just looks cool!

It's all very Heath Robinson really.

[Tiara]

Originally posted by Petrarch of the VBB

I've seen that myriad times on TV, and it is incredible. I don't care about your highly scientific discussions of it, it just looks cool!
 

[Knight Templar]

Originally posted by Tiara


j/k

But how can you people get into a scientific debate over an ad? I mean, you guys just take stuff like this too serious.

I just find it funny that CP thinks there's some uber mysterious alien lego piecies at work making a muffler roll when all it is is simple shape..

[Goober5000]

I already said - roll a hard-boiled egg; you'll see the same thing.

[CP5670]

But how can you people get into a scientific debate over an ad?  I mean, you guys just take stuff like this too serious.

because I like arguing!

I just find it funny that CP thinks there's some uber mysterious alien lego piecies at work making a muffler roll when all it is is simple shape..

uh, you haven't told me why it accelerates in the manner I stated...

I already said - roll a hard-boiled egg; you'll see the same thing.

acceleration between multiple rotations? I think that is only possible in some alternate universe without certain physics laws.

[Knight Templar]

uh, you haven't told me why it accelerates in the manner I stated...

Sure I have. Remember I told you the whole about it's shape , it starts on an incline, has the initial tiny push of the wire and the fan, along with its own odd shape and weight

[CP5670]

so that allows it to disobey that second thermo law and accelerate between cycles?

[Knight Templar]

I'm still trying to figure out where you think it actually accelerates... looks more like it comes to a peak speed and dies down to me

[CP5670]

between rotations. it would have to accelerate, since at one point it completes one rotation faster than the one before it.

[Knight Templar]

ok yea, so it accelerates from all the initial force and then it decelerates as the force dies down (for lack of a better term.. I just woke up )

I'm obviously not a physicist, but It makes sense. Most things do that.