4 ms·

If you liked this, you'll probably also like Ferrolic: http://www.ferrolic.com/ http://www.ferrolic.com/ Super mesmerizing to watch the ferro fluid making its

If you liked this, you'll probably also like Ferrolic: http://www.ferrolic.com/ http://www.ferrolic.com/ Super mesmerizing to watch the ferro fluid making its way through the display. Edit: I remember reading that the ferro fluid used in Ferrolic would begin to lose its magnetic properties a few months in - Ferrofluids are fundamentally unstable. They're colloidal suspensions that rely on surfactants to keep the particles apart, and as the surfactants degrade, the particles start clumping together and falling out of suspension. - jpatokal [1] Is the Rhei somehow designed to last longer? If so I would be really interested in purchasing one if you ever decide to get them into production. [1] https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=10053251 https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=10053251

damjanstankovic 11y ago
If i use the regular ferrofluid it can last for quite long, however i dont like the effect of the fluid in that case, it has spikes and doesnt really look like a blob that i wanted to achieve. I have samples that are year old and work just fine so far.
- monopolemagnet 11y ago
  Higher viscosity filler fluid and/or a ferro-binding compound to dampen the "springy" vibrations and ferro "spikes"? Btw: Comes off a labor of love and insanely-awesome attention to design and detail. Outstanding. Kickstarter/indiegogo/lockitron selfstarter page yet? :)
  - damjanstankovic 11y ago
    Yeah making just any prototype should have been much easier, i really tried to make something that looks beautiful even when its not animated. KS, maybe one day :)
    - monopolemagnet 11y ago
      Dude! You did already all that hard work; make some $$, gain more freedom, while it's hot. If the cost of making another example (parts, time, skill) can be made sufficiently below (say 30-50%) of a reasonable sale price, it may be business. The real "hacking" done by contract manufacturers is cutting corners to make something beautiful, functional and inexpensive to manufacture. Challenge, should you choose to accept it, if not already: Try to assemble a similar example with mostly scrap, for the least budget imaginable. (Penny wise & pound wise.) Another possible path: Patenting and licensing to boutique clock makers / electronics firms, which frees you from nearly all the headaches of dealing with advertising, manufacturing and distribution (after negotiations, assuming one would usually seek advice/assistance of trustworthy, relevant partners). Also, people may not like patents, but it's a double-edge sword necessary to create a survivable business... without that, the newbie wantrepreneur is often shoot themselves, in not just one foot, but reloads to see if that stops the fail. It's nice to broadly claim "patents are evil," but good luck making money sustainably in an environment where anything & everything is knocked off, without recourse (usually legal) of any measurable kind.
      - paulftw 11y ago
        Dude! Do you really think that KS is a quick and easy pile of cash, or let alone has anything to do with freedom? Have you talked to anyone who got funded that way, or maybe read a postmortem on a failed hardware campaign?
chanux 11y ago
Idea: Ferrolic showing Rorschach faces until it's 'asked' to show time.
hacker234 11y ago
> Ferrofluids are fundamentally unstable But not if you are constantly stirring them up. The Ferrorfluid used in loudspeakers for instance doesn't seem to degrade.

damjanstankovic 11y ago

If i use the regular ferrofluid it can last for quite long, however i dont like the effect of the fluid in that case, it has spikes and doesnt really look like a blob that i wanted to achieve. I have samples that are year old and work just fine so far.

monopolemagnet 11y ago
Higher viscosity filler fluid and/or a ferro-binding compound to dampen the "springy" vibrations and ferro "spikes"? Btw: Comes off a labor of love and insanely-awesome attention to design and detail. Outstanding. Kickstarter/indiegogo/lockitron selfstarter page yet? :)
- damjanstankovic 11y ago
  Yeah making just any prototype should have been much easier, i really tried to make something that looks beautiful even when its not animated. KS, maybe one day :)
  - monopolemagnet 11y ago
    Dude! You did already all that hard work; make some $$, gain more freedom, while it's hot. If the cost of making another example (parts, time, skill) can be made sufficiently below (say 30-50%) of a reasonable sale price, it may be business. The real "hacking" done by contract manufacturers is cutting corners to make something beautiful, functional and inexpensive to manufacture. Challenge, should you choose to accept it, if not already: Try to assemble a similar example with mostly scrap, for the least budget imaginable. (Penny wise & pound wise.) Another possible path: Patenting and licensing to boutique clock makers / electronics firms, which frees you from nearly all the headaches of dealing with advertising, manufacturing and distribution (after negotiations, assuming one would usually seek advice/assistance of trustworthy, relevant partners). Also, people may not like patents, but it's a double-edge sword necessary to create a survivable business... without that, the newbie wantrepreneur is often shoot themselves, in not just one foot, but reloads to see if that stops the fail. It's nice to broadly claim "patents are evil," but good luck making money sustainably in an environment where anything & everything is knocked off, without recourse (usually legal) of any measurable kind.
    - paulftw 11y ago
      Dude! Do you really think that KS is a quick and easy pile of cash, or let alone has anything to do with freedom? Have you talked to anyone who got funded that way, or maybe read a postmortem on a failed hardware campaign?

chanux 11y ago

Idea: Ferrolic showing Rorschach faces until it's 'asked' to show time.

hacker234 11y ago

> Ferrofluids are fundamentally unstable But not if you are constantly stirring them up. The Ferrorfluid used in loudspeakers for instance doesn't seem to degrade.