How does this work?

Ryan Mooney

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:huh: :huh: :huh:

Speculation welcome - I have at least two ideas but they're probably both wrong.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=m9daxtL90XY

Noticed a couple of things I think might be related so far:
  • The discoloration on the back inside of the cups
  • The half circle you can just barely see on the right inside of the cups
  • The under table mechanism seems related to the ball movement but there isn't quite enough of a sample for me to work out how.
  • Is it the same ball? I'm not positive.
 
Now listen to me very carefully . . . . stand up, turn the computer off, and go out to the shop. :rofl:

I'm with you, I would need a bit more of a sample. I thought I had a pattern starting to form based on the mechanism and the ball position but then, I realized I had a perfectly good woodshop in the next room . You tube is personally responsible for taking TV's place in wasting my time :D:D:D:D
 
I don't think it can be the same ball. The ball seems to be controlled by the position of the pegs on the roundtable to the left. I was wodering about something like rare earth magnets that slide up and down the arms to pick up the ball when they are down, and drop it when they are up the arm. Wouldn't have to move much.
 
My guess is three balls, magnets in each cup, and something (not sure what or how) in the mechanism that triggers which cup releases its ball.
 
I hit pause, play, etc, once the cameara panned down to a lower angle and you can definitely see that there is a ball in each cup. I just can't tell how they get it to egage and release. If it is magnetic, then the magnet would need to be moving in and out of the cup.
 
I hit pause, play, etc, once the cameara panned down to a lower angle and you can definitely see that there is a ball in each cup. I just can't tell how they get it to egage and release. If it is magnetic, then the magnet would need to be moving in and out of the cup.

What if there was a stronger magnet (or three) under the table that just pulled the ball out of the desired cup. Essentially each cup has a weaker magnet in it that pulls the ball up by default but a strong magnet under the table is pushed up/dropped down under the desired cup to hold the ball in place. With some extra confirmation that each cup has a ball that's my best guess so far. It also answers my other question about why the ball doesn't roll away.

Other theories:
  • airflow. with a light enough ball you could suck the ball up into the machine and then randomly drop it back down an arm. Discounted as there doesn't appear to be room in the arm reciprocation mechanism to allow that to work here.
  • per arm magnets. A rod that extends/retracts inside each arm to grab/drop the ball. I think this could work but would be a lot more complicated. I think it could even be done with the current design if you put the rods on a spring so they were by default "engaged" and used a string to pull the target rod back, wouldn't take a lot of space in the arm mechanism so I think it would fit/not be visible.
 
What if there was a stronger magnet (or three) under the table that just pulled the ball out of the desired cup. Essentially each cup has a weaker magnet in it that pulls the ball up by default but a strong magnet under the table is pushed up/dropped down under the desired cup to hold the ball in place.

I think you might just be onto something there. :thumb: Sounds pretty doable...easier than having mechanisms in each cup/arm combination to grab or release the balls.
 
The pegs on the horizontal rotating table appear to be in three different positions. Assuming those positions maneuver a positioning mechanism under the table, I could see it positioning a strong magnet under "random" cups. The stronger magnet pulls the ball out of a cup and holds it in position.
 
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