3 ms·

It is possible to make a mechanical angle bisector. Think of a compass for drawing circles but with a 3rd arm bisecting the angle. If you attach the bisector no

It is possible to make a mechanical angle bisector. Think of a compass for drawing circles but with a 3rd arm bisecting the angle. If you attach the bisector normal to a mirror, you can point one leg at the sun and the other at a target. An array of these would require linkages to aim all inputs parallel toward the sun and all outputs fixed toward the target - the outputs don't have to be parallel just have each pointing at the target. 2-axis actuation to move all mirrors as needed. Not sure if this has ever been tried, it's just an idea I had some time ago.

hakonjdjohnsen 2y ago
This is a really cool concept! The term used for connecting mirrors to rotate together is a ganged heliostat. Most papers about ganged heliostats don't do anything fancy like what you describe, but there are some patents that show a nice way of connecting the rods to give the correct angles using a slightly different concept than what you are describing [1]. I previously made a visualization of how that concept works (click and drag the sun) [2]. I've not seen exactly what you describe published anywhere, but it sounds very smular to something I thought about as well. See this 2d illustration [2]. Is this the same as what you are describing? I had a masters student try to make it mechanically. It turns out that though it's an elegant concept, you still end up with quite a few moving parts so it's a bit tricky. [1] https://patents.google.com/patent/US20060060188 https://patents.google.com/patent/US20060060188 [2] https://folk.ntnu.no/haakonjj/ganged_heliostat_illustration.html https://folk.ntnu.no/haakonjj/ganged_heliostat_illustration.... [3] https://folk.ntnu.no/haakonjj/ganged_heliostat_gear/ https://folk.ntnu.no/haakonjj/ganged_heliostat_gear/
- remipch 2y ago
  Nice interactive visualizations ! Yes, it might be complicated to build.

hakonjdjohnsen 2y ago

This is a really cool concept! The term used for connecting mirrors to rotate together is a ganged heliostat. Most papers about ganged heliostats don't do anything fancy like what you describe, but there are some patents that show a nice way of connecting the rods to give the correct angles using a slightly different concept than what you are describing [1]. I previously made a visualization of how that concept works (click and drag the sun) [2]. I've not seen exactly what you describe published anywhere, but it sounds very smular to something I thought about as well. See this 2d illustration [2]. Is this the same as what you are describing? I had a masters student try to make it mechanically. It turns out that though it's an elegant concept, you still end up with quite a few moving parts so it's a bit tricky. [1] https://patents.google.com/patent/US20060060188 https://patents.google.com/patent/US20060060188 [2] https://folk.ntnu.no/haakonjj/ganged_heliostat_illustration.html https://folk.ntnu.no/haakonjj/ganged_heliostat_illustration.... [3] https://folk.ntnu.no/haakonjj/ganged_heliostat_gear/ https://folk.ntnu.no/haakonjj/ganged_heliostat_gear/

remipch 2y ago
Nice interactive visualizations ! Yes, it might be complicated to build.