How to assemble an analog Levitron yourself. How to Create a Levitation Effect Using Arduino Homemade Levitron Schematic
Here is described and shown how to make a cool Levitron with your own hands!
I was forced to assemble this craft at the university :)
I did it in tandem with a classmate, whose task was to make a freaky body, and from me - an electronic filling.
How cool everything turned out - judge for yourself, write comments, it will be interesting to read, discuss.
I don’t remember exactly how we came to the idea of making a Levitron, the topic of the craft was free. The design seems to be simple, but it attracts the eye.
In general, the Levitron itself is a device that supports an object in an environment that does not come into contact with any surface in any way, except through the air. It will work in a vacuum too.
In this case, the electronics makes the magnet float, and the magnet can already be glued to, for example, a can of a delicious inexpensive drink :)
If you do a good search on the Internet, you can see a lot different options electromagnetic levitron, for example:
They can be roughly divided into suspended and repulsive. If in the first case it is simply necessary to compensate for the force of gravity, then in the second it is also a displacement in the horizontal plane, since, according to Earnshaw's theorem, "any equilibrium configuration of point charges is unstable if, apart from the Coulomb forces of attraction and repulsion, nothing acts on them." - quote from the wiki.
It follows from this that the suspended Levitron is easier to manufacture and configure, if any at all. I didn't want to bother too much, so for the university they made a suspended Levitron, which we are talking about here, and the repulsive one was already making a loved one for itself :) It will be written about in another article. I will delete this text a little later and give a link to it here. It works great, but it also has its drawbacks.
In turn, all suspended levitrons can also be conditionally divided into digital and analogue according to the method of keeping the object at the same distance. And according to the type of sensors, they can be divided into optical, electromagnetic, sound and, probably, everything.
That is, we receive an analog signal about the distance of the magnet to the Levitron, and we correct the force of the effect on the magnet in a digital way. Hi-tech, however.
The idea itself was borrowed from the geektimes website, and printed circuit board was already made personally for our set of parts. Also, in the original project, three-output SS49 sensors were used, but the deadlines were very tight, they cost unreasonably expensive to put it mildly ($ 4 per piece versus $ 6 for 10 pieces in China - link for an example), so we used four-output Hall sensors. I had to change the circuit and make constructive additions to the device. Also, for greater pontoiness, a block of LEDs was added, which smoothly light up when the magnet is brought up, that is, when the Levitron starts to work and smoothly turns off when the magnet is removed. All this will be reflected in the diagram.
Actually, the Levitron circuit on four-output sensors:
And the Levitron circuit on three-output sensors and a simpler backlight:
The principle of operation is quite simple. The coil, which is an electromagnet, attracts a magnet when power is applied - the object is attracted. A sensor attached between the magnet and the coil detects an increase in magnetic flux, which means that the magnet is approaching. Electronics monitors this and disconnects the coil from the voltage source. The magnet begins to fall under the force of gravity. The sensor detects a decrease in magnetic flux, which is immediately detected by the electronics and a voltage is applied to the electromagnet, the magnet is attracted - and this happens very often - about 100 thousand times per second. Dynamic equilibrium arises. The human eye does not have time to notice this. The generator frequency is set by a resistor and a capacitor at pins 5 and 6 of the TL494 microcircuit.
A second sensor on the other side of the electromagnet is needed to compensate for the magnetic field generated by the coil itself. That is, if it were not for this second sensor, when the electromagnet was turned on, the system would not be able to distinguish the intensity of the magnetic field of a neodymium magnet from the magnetic field created by the electromagnet itself.
So, we have a system of two sensors, the signal from which goes to the operational amplifier in differential connection. This means that only the difference in voltages received from the sensors appears at the output of the operational amplifier.
For example. On one of the sensors, the output voltage is 2.5 V, and on the other - 2.6 V. The output will be 0.1 V. This differential signal is at pin 14 of the LM324 microcircuit according to the scheme.
Further, this signal is fed to the next two operational amplifiers - OP1.1, OP 1.3, the output signals of which go through the diode valve to pin 4 of the TL494 microcircuit. The diode valve on diodes D1, D2 passes only one of the voltages - the one that will be higher in value. Conclusion No. 4 of the PWM controller drives as follows - the higher the voltage at this output, the lower the duty cycle. Resistor R9 is designed so that in a situation when the voltage at the inputs of the diode valve is less than 0.6 V - pin No. 4 is unambiguously pulled to the ground - while the PWM will produce the maximum duty cycle.
Let's go back to the operational amplifiers OP1.1, OP 1.3. The first one is used to turn off the PWM controller while the magnet is at enough great distance from the sensor so that the coil does not idle at maximum.
Using OP 1.3, we set the gain of the differential signal - in fact, it sets the feedback depth (OS). The stronger the feedback, the stronger the system will react to the approach of the magnet. If the OS depth is not sufficient, the magnet can be brought close, and the device will not begin to reduce the power pumped into the electromagnet. And if the OS depth is too large, then the duty cycle will begin to fall before the attractive force of the magnet can keep it at this distance.
It is not necessary to install a variable resistor P3 - it serves to adjust the frequency of the generator.
OP1.2 is a 2.5V voltage generator required for four-terminal sensors. It is not needed for 3-lead sensors type SS49.
Forgot to mention elements C1, R6 and R7. Their trick is that the constant signal is cut 10 times here due to the resistors, and the variable signal, due to the capacitor, quietly passes further, thereby the emphasis of the circuit operation on abrupt changes in the distance of the magnet to the sensor is achieved.
Diode SD1 is designed to damp back emissions at the moment the voltage on the electromagnet is cut off.
The node on T2 allows you to smoothly turn on and off the LED strip when pulses appear on the electromagnet.
Let's move on to the design.
One of the key points in the Levitron is the electromagnet. We made a frame on the basis of some kind of construction bolt, on which round sides were cut out of plywood.
The magnetic flux here depends on several key factors:
- the presence of a core;
- coil geometry;
- coil current
In simpler terms, the larger the coil and the greater the current flowing in it, the more it attracts magnetic materials.
A 0.8 mm PEL wire was used as a winding. We wound it by eye until the dimensions of the coil seemed impressive. It turned out the following:
It may not be possible to find the necessary wire in our area, but it is quite easy to find it in online stores - a 0.4 mm wire for winding a coil.
And while the coil was wound, the board was prepared and etched. It was made using the LUT technology, the drawing of the board was made in the Sprint LayOut program. You can download the Levitron board at the link.
The board was etched in the remains of ammonium persulfate, an empty can of which was successfully used further in this project :)
I want to note that the placement of parts, as well as the routing of the tracks, imply a very neat soldering, since it is easy to make connections where they should not be. If you do not have such skills, it is quite permissible to do this with large components on a breadboard, such as this, and make connections using wires on the back side.
As a result, the payment turned out as follows:
The board very ergonomically fit into the dimensions of the coil and was attached directly to it with the help of powerful hot melt glue, thereby turning into a single monoblock - connected the power supply, set it up and the system works.
But that was all before the electromagnet was ready. The board was made a little earlier, and in order to somehow test the device's performance, a smaller coil was temporarily connected. The first result was pleasing.
The sensors, as already mentioned above, are used from the position tracking systems of BLDC motors, four-pin. Since it was not possible to find documentation on them, it was necessary to experimentally find out which conclusions are responsible for what. The form factor is as follows:
Meanwhile, a large electromagnet arrived in time. This thing gave me a lot of hope :)
The first tests with a large electromagnet showed a rather long working distance. There is one caveat - the sensor, which is located on the side of the neodymium magnet, should be a little further from the coil for reliable operation of the electronics.
The last photo looks more like a kind of space satellite. By the way, this is exactly how this Levitron could be designed. And for those who intend to repeat the design - everything is ahead :)
It was decided to use a can of soft drink as a levitating object. We sculpt a magnet to the bank on double-sided tape, check it.
It works great, in general, the device can be considered ready. Remains the external design. A support beam was made of bars and sticks, the body of our monoblock was made from the same empty plastic can of ammonium persulfate. Only two wires go out of the monoblock for power, as intended.
By this time, the circuit for smooth switching on of the LED line was already soldered by hinged mounting, the line itself was successfully mounted on the ubiquitous hot melt glue.
The power supply is a block borrowed from some printer, converted from 42 V to 12 V.
I will also show you the appearance of the power supply :)
Next, a stand was made of plywood, in which the power supply unit and a connector for 220 V were placed. A cloth fabric was glued on top for beauty, the whole structure was painted yellow-black. The jar was changed, as during the experiments it wrinkled a little.
From this all, in addition to the levitation effect, a very wonderful night light turned out.
I will add a video a little later, but for now, to top it all off, I want to say that my design was easily repeated by a 13-year-old student of my radio circle.
While still appearance not finished, but electronic filling works as expected. Photo of its construction:
Magnetic levitation always looks impressive and mesmerizing. Today you can not only buy such a device, but also make it yourself. And in order to create such a magnetic levitation device it is not necessary to spend a lot of money and time on it.
This material will present a diagram and instructions for assembling a magnetic levitator from inexpensive components. The assembly itself will take no more than two hours.
The idea behind this device, called the Levitron, is very simple. The electromagnetic force lifts a piece of magnetic material into the air, and in order to create a hovering effect, an object is raised and lowered in a very small range of heights, but with a very high frequency.
To assemble a Levitron, you need only seven components, including a coil. A diagram of the magnetic levitation device is shown below.
So, as we can see from the diagram, in addition to the coil, we need a field-effect transistor, for example, an IRFZ44N or another similar MOSFET, a HER207 diode or something like 1n4007, 1K ohm and 330 ohm resistors, an A3144 Hall sensor, and an optional indicator LED. The coil can be made independently, for this you need 20 meters of wire with a diameter of 0.3-0.4 mm. You can take a 5V charger to power the circuit.
To make a coil, you need to take a base with the dimensions shown in the following figure. For our coil, 550 turns will be enough. After finishing the winding, it is advisable to insulate the coil with some kind of electrical tape.
Now solder almost all of the components except the Hall sensor and the coil to the small board. Place the Hall sensor into the hole in the coil.
Fix the coil so that it is above the surface at a certain distance. After that on this device magnetic levitation can supply power. Take a small piece of neodymium magnet and bring it to the bottom of the coil. If everything is done correctly, then the electromagnetic force will pick it up and keep it in the air.
If this device does not work for you, then check the sensor. Its sensitive part, that is, the flat side with the inscriptions should be parallel to the ground. Also for levitation, the tablet shape, which is inherent in most of the sold neodymium magnets, is not the most successful. To prevent the center of gravity from "walking", you need to transfer it to the bottom of the magnet, attaching something not too heavy, but not too light to it. For example, you can add a piece of cardboard or heavy paper like in the first image.
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In this article, Konstantin, How-todo workshop, will show us how to make a Levitron.
So, Levitron. The principle of operation of this pribluda is simple, like a self-tapping screw. Using an electromagnet, we lift a piece of some magnetic material into the air. To create a floating effect, turn the electromagnet on and off with a high frequency.
That is, as it were, we raise and throw a magnetic sample.
The scheme of such a device is surprisingly simple, and it is not difficult to repeat it. Here, in fact, is the diagram.
The materials and components we need.
LED of any color, it is optional.
An IRFZ44N transistor, almost any field controller similar in parameters will do.
Diode, here the author uses HER207, some 1N4007 will work with the same success.
Resistors for 1 kOhm and 330Ohm (the latter is optional).
Hall sensor, I have it A3144, it can also be replaced with a similar one.
Copper winding enameled wire with a diameter of 0.3 0.4 mm, 20 meters. The author has a wire of 0.36 mm.
A neodymium magnet like a tablet, 5 by 1 mm, is also not particularly important, within reason.
An unnecessary five-volt phone charger is suitable as a power source.
Glue, paper, soldering iron, solder ... standard soldering iron kit.
Let's get down to assembly. First you need to make a cardboard coil for the body of the future electromagnet.
The coil parameters are as follows:
6 mm diameter of the inner sleeve, the width of the winding layer is approximately 23 mm and the diameter of the jaws, with a margin of about 25 mm.
As you can see, Konstantin built a case for a coil of cardboard and a cut of a notebook sheet, thoroughly lubricating them with superglue.
Let's fix the beginning of the wire in the frame, be patient and start winding about 550 turns.
The winding direction is irrelevant. You can even wind it in bulk, but this is not our method.
We wind 12 layers, turn by turn, insulating each layer with electrical tape.
After spending an hour and a half, we fix the end of the wire and put the coil aside.
We proceed to soldering, everything is according to the scheme, without any differences.
The conclusions of the Hall Sensor are lengthened with wires and insulated with heat shrinkage, because it must be placed inside the coil.
Actually, everything, it remains only to configure, for this we install the Hall sensor inside the coil and fix it with improvised means.
We hang the coil, turn on the power.
Having lifted the magnet, we feel that it is attracted or repelled, depending on the polarity.
At some distance, the magnet tries to hang, but does not hang for a long time.
We study the documentation for the sensor, where it is specially shown in pictures on which side it has a sensitive zone.
We take it out and bend it so that the flat side with the inscriptions ends up being parallel to the ground.
We shove it back, this time everything is much better.
But it still does not float.
The problem lies in the shape of the magnet, namely the flat "tablet" shape.
Not the best one you can think of for levitation. It is enough just to shift the center of gravity down. We will organize this with a piece of thick piece of paper.
By the way, before gluing the counterweight, do not forget to first look at which side the magnet is attracted to the coil.
Now everything is more or less working on its own, it remains only to center and fix the sensor.
What other features were there. An attempt to power the device from a 12V adapter leads to a strong heating of the electromagnet.
I had to switch to 5V, while no deterioration in performance was noticed, and heating was almost completely eliminated.
Another LED and its limiting resistor were almost immediately excluded from the circuit, because there is no sense from them.
The final touch, the blue paper tape didn't seem aesthetically pleasing enough.
In some advanced stores, you can see stands with advertising, which show interesting effects when some thing from the window or an item with a brand image levitates. Rotation is sometimes added. But such an installation is quite capable of making even a person without much experience in homemade products. To do this, you need a neodymium magnet, which can be found in spare parts from computer equipment.
The properties of the magnet are amazing. One of these properties of repelling the same poles is used in objects that are used as magnetic levitation trains, fun toys or the basis for spectacular design objects, etc. How to make a levitating object based on magnets?
Magnetic levitation on video
Top levitation over five point neodymium magnets. Magnetic Levitation, magnétismo, magnetic experiment, truco magnética, moto perpetuo, amazing game. Entertaining physics.
Discussion
hawk
When the magnet rotates, levitation is present, and if the magnet's revolutions decrease, it falls from orbit ... justify this effect. The interaction of magnetic fields between magnets is clear, but what is the role of rotation. Can be variable magnetic field from the coils to keep the magnet in the air as well.
pukla777
Please work on the topic - flywheel generator. I think she will be useful practical application... In addition, it was filmed for a long time in your video, but very little and without information.
RussiaPrezident
What if:
Launch this top and some kind of cube and create a Vacuum there, according to the idea there will be no air resistance and it will spin almost endlessly! And if not it, and copper is properly wound and remove energy?
Evgeny Petrov
I read the comments, I'm surprised what a thread !? Everything is there as a magnetic top, he was given a fur. energy is the constant magnetic field of the top during the rotation of which the magnetic field rotates, but the main thing is how! Domains in magnets are packed not equally distributed, this is technically not possible, therefore the passive magnet itself cannot stay on the magnetic cushion, it will go to the stronger side where the difference is generally scanty, so the rotation of the field does not allow this to be done.
Viacheslav Subbotin
Another idea, what if the laser is constantly shining from one side? Will the spinning time of the top change due to the pressure of light? If you take a strong laser, it may be possible to make the top not stop at all.
Nobody Unknown
An old toy ... I remember this top and the plate under it on ferrite magnets, on neodymium it is already boring, and the bottom magnet of the base was one solid plate, not five separate magnets, only it was magnetized in a clever way ...
Aligarh Leopold
Igor Beletsky, you can make a cap on which the top will land, so as not to catch it. Can a rotating magnetic field be added to it to maintain rotation? for example, if its magnetic table is rotated ..
Timur Aminev
And please tell us how the Earth's magnetic field slows down the top? In the sense which moments of forces directed against rotation arise and why.
Alexander Vasilievich
If you attach a coil above the magnet (or below it would be generally gorgeous!) And twist the top with it, you get a kind of motor on a magnetic suspension. The thing is absolutely goofy, but beautiful. It will spin until the power source is removed))
Ivan Petrov
Well, we have already seen this. Make the magnet levitate without rotating! (and without supports and liquid nitrogen of course).
High elf
Divorce for poor students, this could be called levitation if the magnet did not need to be untwisted. The magnet itself, which is on top, will slide off if it is not given rotation.
Andrey Solomennikov
And what if you attach fire to the platform, and propellers to the gyroscope (Yulia), so that it rotates while the fire is burning below. I don’t remember the name of the engine, but its essence is the rotation, so to speak, of the rotor with the help of heat.
Volzhanin
Igor, there is such an idea ... You have not a uniform magnetic field on your table, but if you make a top out of several magnets, and spin the table ... Maybe the top will not lose momentum ... What do you think? ..
Anton Simovskikh
Igor Beletsky, have you figured out the physics of the process? Why is levitation possible only in dynamics? Do the foucault currents that arise in it affect the stabilization of the top?
Simplest installation with a levitating object on a magnet
To do this, you will need: a box for CD-disks, one or two disks, many ring magnets and super-glue. You can buy any magnet in a Chinese online store.
When your friends come to visit, they will be amazed at the spectacular design that you have created yourself.
