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That's very clever, but wouldn't a simpler way to track the sun without electronics be to use a mechanical clock set to local solar time? You'd have to rewind
by perilunar 6y ago
That's very clever, but wouldn't a simpler way to track the sun without electronics be to use a mechanical clock set to local solar time?
You'd have to rewind it and adjust the time slightly every few days, but then the mechanism in the video doesn't appear to have any way to return at the end of the day, so probably has to be reset daily anyway.
- 14 6y agoIf you read the comments on the video he states he doesn’t have return mechanism set up yet but has some firm ideas on how to do it but just needs the time to do it.
- dmos62 6y agoThat's a cool idea, though a mechanical clock could be hard to come by in certain places. Most of the things this guy makes are meant to be very cheap and accessible in the third world. I recommend his channel. A lot of fun low-tech stuff like DIY water filters in Uganda, a vertical wind turbine, a "Kiwi" DIY wind tunnel for that wind turbine (mounting it on a car and going for a drive).
- carapace 6y agoYou can make crude mechanical clockwork out of wood. E.g. https://www.lisaboyer.com/Claytonsite/Claytonsite1.htm https://www.lisaboyer.com/Claytonsite/Claytonsite1.htm These are obviously more elaborate than you'd need because they're artwork as well as functional clocks. (Some are just kinetic sculptures.)
- oh_sigh 6y agoOr you could just have a length of black hose in the sun without the solar collector at all. When the area of hose seen by the sun is the same area as the collector opening, the hose will be receiving the same amount of solar energy as the collector could provide.