Thaumatrope GIF

Click this one to see it working

This is my finished piece for the inverntion project. I wanted to add a surround around it to loko like a theatre stage but I think it looks good like this, showing all of the inner workings.

Really Inventive

Tyree Callahan and His Amazing Chromatic Typewriter

By Spooky on December 7th, 2011 Category: Art, News

It might look like just an old typewriter, but Washington-based artist Tyree Callahan has actually converted this antique 1937 Underwood Standard typewriter into an art instrument that makes beautiful paintings.
Callahan replaced the ink pads of the typewriter with colored paint pads and the letters with color markers, to create a painting machine he calls a Chromatic Typewriter. So instead of creating paintings with brushes, he types them with his unique typewriter. While it would take a while getting used to, and although it will probably never yield the detailed results of a brush, I have no doubt this thing could produce some pretty awesome artworks. After all, artists like Keira Rathbone use conventional typewriters to create exceptional works of art using just letters and symbols. I know it sounds strange, but lets face it, artists have used stranger things to unleash their painting talent (vomit, remote-controlled cars or theirlips, just to name a few).

Tyree Callahan submitted his original creation to the 2012 West Prize competition, an annual art prize whose winner is determined by popular vote.





via Flavorwire

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Optical Toys

I spoke to Jon and he said to think about moving parts with the cog and what I could make that is interesting. I made a mind map of different things I could look into and I decided that a thaumatrope was most interesting. I didn't know they were called this until I looked it up and now I have done this research about Thaumatrpes and then found out about Phenakistoscopes, Zoetrope and Flip Books.

Our Thaumatropes

The thaumatrope is among the simplest of the "persistence of vision" toys that were introduced in the early 19th century. In its basic form it is a card with a different picture on each surface and string attached to each side. When the string is wound up then released the card spins rapidly merging the two pictures together. Less common were examples like the mechanical toy below where two images of different phases of a movement caused the image to move.

The illustration on the right below is from a booklet, "Every Boy His Own Toy-Maker" published by F. M. Lupton in 1874. A PDF of this page on making a thaumatrope can be downloaded from this link.

On the left in the row below is a clockwork toy thaumatrope called a New Mechanical Cinema. Most thaumatropes do not show motion but combine two images into one. The cards for this toy show two frames of a movement. The see saw goes up and down, a pair of boxers punch as it turns. We were lucky to find one in pristine condition with its cards in a box.

 

On the right is a trade card that shows the two sides of a bird and cage image while a boy illustrates the process of spinning the cards to unite the images. The combined image is seen below.

                       

Below you see the two sides of an early 20th century thaumatrope of a horse and circus bare back rider. Below is an animation showing the merged images.

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These are my new favourite things in the world. I knew about them before starting this project, but I am appreciating them a lot more now. They can be made really easily and are really fun.

The Phenakistoscope

Like the zoetrope this toy uses a series of images viewed though slits to create the animation. It differs from it because the images and slits are on rotating disks rather than in a drum. If the picture disk and disk with slits are back to back it is held in front of a mirror and the images are viewed in the mirror through the slits. The 19th century set on the right below is of this type. A variation, sometimes called a stroboscope, mounts the picture disk and the disk with slits separated on a spindle so that the pictures are viewed directly through the slits.

On the left below is is an early 20th century "Motion Picture Show" or "Ludoscope" which came in its box with a set of disks.

 

In our collection we have several viewers that work in conjunction with a record player. On the left is a "Gramophone Cinema" that can only date from the 1920s. An illustrated disk site on the top of a record and a disk with slots rides on a wooden spindle with rollers over it. As the record turns the animation can be seen through the slits. The cards include Felix the Cat and a Charlie Chaplanesk tramp.

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The Zoetrope

The zoetrope is by far the best know of the "persistence of vision" toys. Invented in the early 19th century, the name is now applied to almost any drum shaped motion toy. The zoetrope is a drum with a series of slits on the upper half. A strip with the same number of images is place in the lower half of the drum. When the drum spins the slits act as shutters to show the images one at a time. Each of the images shows a slightly different part of the movement and they blend into a smooth motion.

On the left below is a large 19th century zoetrope on a red base. It holds strips as well as disk shaped cards that sit on the floor and give a second "movie".

On the right below is one of our three record player motion toys. "The Whitte's Moviescope" is called "4 in 1" because it can be used in a number of ways. The wooden spindle can be used in several configurations so that it can be hand held or sit on the record player at different heights. The delightful graphic on the box shows a family enjoying the show.

 

On the right is a 1905 supplement to the New York Sunday American and Journalnewspaper. A zoetrope pattern with instructions and two strips are included. You can make your own by downloading a PDF of the page and sizing it to fit your printer. Enjoy!

Today the zoetrope is available in several model kits. We have several different fast food toys like the 1996 Wendy's toy seen on the right.The base is a figural Felix the Cat and the strips are all of Felix.

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Some of the Flip Books in our Collection

The flip book is a series of pages where each page shows a slightly different phase of a motion. This, of course, is the way frame by frame animation is accomplished in movie cartoons. The viewing mechanism can be as simple as your thumb or as complex as the Kinora and Mutoscope from our collection shown below.

 

Above are a selection of our flip books which range in age from the 1890s to contemporary. They include several late 19th and early 20th century books such as a Jack Johnson boxing match, a serpentine dance, and Felix the Cat cartoons. We also collect artist's flip books like "We have a Daughter!" by Charles Swedlund, advertising and reproduction items.

While the selection of flip books shown above are viewed by fanning them past your thumb the object on the right uses a much more elaborate means of viewing. It is our Kinora viewer. This turn of the last century English viewer with a selection of flip book reels was an elegant parlor accessory and could view both commercially produced reels and amateur reels made with a special camera.

On the right is our Mutoscope, a very heavy cast iron arcade machine that contains a large flip book. Drop a penny in the slot and turn the handle and a lady in tights gives a hanging punching bag a very vigorous workout. We know that the title of this reel is "Bag Punching by Sadie Leonard" and it was published by the Mutoscope Company in 1897. This information came to us from an internet visitor to our site and we have since found the title listed in early motion pictures archives.

The picture on the far right shows the interior with the side door open. The reel of the large flip book can be seen as it slips past a block that allows the frames to be seen one at a time.

Our Mutoscope dates from the turn of the last century. It has been modified to sit on a counter rather than the original cast iron base. This was the practice for traveling shows where weight was an issue. When we bought it we thought the detail was worn and damaged but when we cleaned off layer after layer of old paint in many colors we found the detail was perfect but had been blurred and filled over the years. Restored to the color and decoration we found in the bottom layer it is a treasured part of our collection.

 

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Today I...

Today I took apart a remote control toy helicopter. It looked something like this and I got two motors from it and a cog. I want to look at what I can do with these. Me and Gemma were going to make a mircowave robot from it but it has already been made and wouldn't actually work.





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Chindogu

We were first asked to think of an invention that is useful but not necessarily could be made well mine wasn't anyway.


I first started looking at a shower that could be used anywhere. So thought about using a umbrella, shower curtain and a camping shower.

About chindogu & the awards

CHINDOGU is originally a Japanese concept of seemingly useful inventions that on second thought are either totally counterproductive, an unbearable social embarrassment or just a nuisance in that it creates more problems than it actually solves. The Chindogu is not necessarily useless, they are rather “unuseless” – they usually do solve a problem, but in real life and practically they are usually ineffective and hopeless inventions. Often times the concept of “The Mad Scientist” comes to mind in dealing with the concept of Chindogu. The vision is there, but some critical, sane, component is lacking.

THE CHINDOGU AWARDS is annual competition sponsored, hosted and created by EG Electronics. It aims to promote visionary thinking and endeavours, primarily within the field of electronics. And, of course, it also aims to promote EG Electronics and our motto “You have the vision. We have the components.”

USB Heating Slippers

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Floor heaters are bulky, expensive, and dangerous to have under your computer desk because they can make your computer overheat. That's why your cold feet need these amazing USB heated slippers! Just slide these one size fits all slippers on your freezing feet, plug them into a USB port on your computer, and your feet will suddenly become super nice and toasty! The cord is nice and long, so you'll still be able to dance around your work area, and the front of the slippers can even become detached so you can run to the bathroom or get a snack without removing your feet from these wonderful heated cocoons! Choose from 3 different styles - Blue or Brown Mules, or the adorable Bear slippers that have an adorable tail at the back.

360º panorama camera

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A popular pastime amongst holiday photographers these days is the construction of the panoramic view. Conventionally this is achieved by taking one picture of the view, turning a little bit, taking another, until the complete view has been covered. It is, at best, an optimistic and inaccurate procedure which often yields patchy results. The Panorama Camera puts panoramic photography on an altogether more dependable footing. Seven outwardly pointing cameras are perfectly angled to ensure that all pictures will fit together neatly. They are also fired simultaneously, highly disireable feature which eliminates the embarrassment of having, for example, the same bird flying through two different sections of the panorama. For maximum enjoyment of your panarama, tape the seven pictures togther with the images facing inwards and place your head in the center of the loop. Then revolve the loop slowly around your head.

Tuttuki Bako

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Tuttuki Bako is probably one of the strangest electronic games I have ever seen. It has low resolution LCD screen and one button. The only way to play with it is to insert your finger. In some sort of augmented reality way, your finger appears on the display to interact with the games.

THE LOO READ

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THE LOO READ: This ridiculous gadget is supposed to be 'perfect for reading papers in the loo'. Available in broadsheet or tabloid versions, it seems you can also use it to 'do puzzles or apply your make-up'. It 'provides a platform for almost anything'. £59.99, www.lazyboneuk.com Although we don't usually read the newspaper on the crapper, this Loo Read is a fantastic idea for people who do. It's an extendible shelf that gives you a sturdy platform for reading papers or books, and can even sustain your arm for writing if you don't push down too hard. Hopefully these things are strong enough to support lightweight laptops—though it doesn't seem like they are—so we may have to stick to playing with our Pokeballs while we're on the toilet. 

67. Message Toaster

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Honey I Left It On The Toast Nothing gets your morning going like a cup of joe and a piece of toast slathered in your favorite spread. Of course, it can also be the time of day when things are hectic to start. Kids running around, people in and out, everyone trying to remind everyone else about the super important soccer meet after school. Next time, put it on toast. This toaster by Sasha Tseng incorporates a little message board where one can read quick notes. The message also gets “toasted” into the toast itself so it gives new meaning to “read while you eat”. Of course if I had it my way, I’d use it as a scathing reminder to friends suffering from hangovers. Yes, this piece of toast will help settle your stomach buy not without first reading my warnings about binge drinking.

Paper E-mail

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If you have ever gotten the urge to send an email to, say your grandmother who does not own a computer little less an email adress, this is completley usless product is for you. With this you can send a e-mail paperstyle.

Cell Phone Booth

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The Portable Cellular Phone Booth provides a visual image of social sacrifices and opportunities to interact with one another lost due to our own self-involvement. The sculpture is a retractable phone booth that is carried on your back and can slide up and over your head to completely isolate you from society, kind of like the way a cell phone does. The action is fast and slick just like the flip action of a cell phone. Historically the iconic phone booth represented a place where one could go to be alone for a private conversation, transform into superman or travel through time. Today, it’s obsolete in most cities. With the Portable Cellular Phone Booth, one can transform from a member of society to one that is closed off. By delivering my sculpture to an unsuspecting public, anyone who notices the piece receives a myriad of messages from self deprecating humour to the neglecting of friendship in real time for the hope of something better.

94. Remove plugs without yanking!

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Pull A Plug Remove plugs without yanking! Now you can safely and easily remove electrical plugs without damaging the cord. Pull-a-Plug is especially handy when removing plugs from a tightly packed power strip.