Tom's Hardware: Topic Cheap motion sensor
Tom's Hardware: Over 1.4 million members in 6 different countries available to answer all your high-tech questions.
Sign up now! Its free!
Depending on your permanency you can reduce the costs by creating an efficient design.
If you are looking at multiple sensor points along a straight line rail it would be somewhat easy to do with 1 laser and multiple photometers hooked up to a recording oscilliscope (for recording), or whatever method of recording you had in mind in the first place. If it's for actuation then of course you would hook them up in a similar fashion.
One laser pointing down the line could be split at each sensor area with a prismatic lense or block (that directs the beam at 90 degrees while also allowing it to pass through in a straight line at the same time). Set up enough of these down the 'straight' line and then you have no need for multiple lasers. Of course the initial laser has to be more powerful than a laser pointer, but even that should be relatively easy to get.
Now I assume this isn't to calculate a ballistic track as that would be much more difficult to do since you would have to predict the path of the projectile perfectly before hand.
If you are using it to pulse the rail gun you could use the description above which should work, but you will need to adjust your timings with the increase in speed, and remember to stagger them properly (you may already have considered this, just making sure).
If you are looking for 'muzzle/barrel' velocity, then you could even have just 2 sensors at the opening just a short distance apart. You would just need a timing device able to record those small differences in time.
Good luck, and don't kill someone else! Killing oneself isn't as bad as killing others due to our ineptitude.
- You need a licence to buy a gun, but they'll sell anyone a stamp <i>(or internet account)</i> ! - <font color=green>RED </font color=green> <font color=red> GREEN</font color=red> GA to SK 
This single laser idea may just do the trick
Another idea that popped into my head as I was going to this website was that since the particle will have a charge, I could also have 2 pieces of metal very very close to together and makes sure that they will touch only when the particle is directly perpendicular to them. This way I don't even need that accurate a calculation of the projectile's path.
As for safety concerns...yeah...lol, my friends and I have been spending more time on the safety part than anything else. The basic idea will be we'll make it too clunky/ heavy to pick up so if someone gets the idea of using it as a rocket launcher they won't be able to... Then, there's the tube, but if for some unGodly reason something overheats (this thing will get hot!) and our water cooling systems can't take care of it, expect a serious malfunction that can electricute, explode, or otherwise burn. We're thus gonna have quarter inch steel around the whole thing, and multiple layers of that. There will be insulation between the layers to prevent electricity from travelling. In terms of heat, we hope the heat resistance foam will take care of necessary issues, but on the outside more can always be placed. Finally, the launching will be done remotely, at least 15-20 feet away. Lastly, in case someone does something stupid and the device decides to backfire, there will be a 5 inch steel plate on the back. Testing will be done on a large field, aiming it at paper targets to see how accurate and powerful it is.
To keep it out of the hands of people other than myself and 1-2 other close friends, it'll have several key parts which must be put together on the spot, perhaps something like multiple keys.
The one and only "Monstrous BULLgarian!"
Already got one and use it for vegetables. Hell, atm, we're making a potato gun . This project is for after, once I get all the physics work and simulations done (realistically 2 days of work, but I have school so....)
The one and only "Monstrous BULLgarian!"
Please mind
You are about to answer a thread that has been inactive for more than 6 months.
If you still wish to proceed, please ensure that your posting is original and does not duplicate or overlap any prior responses to this thread.
Sponsored links
Ad
They won a badge
Join us in greeting them
- 16:05 pertshire won the Freshman badge
- 16:01 rmirwin2 won the Freshman badge
- 16:00 jtabler won the Sophmore badge
- 15:47 DZeroENT won the Uniformed badge
- 15:47 MetalMagic86 won the Uniformed badge
- 15:47 robertbjohn won the Uniformed badge
- 15:47 MasterRinswind won the Uniformed badge
- 15:47 -iain- won the Uniformed badge
- 15:47 Snow_crash won the Uniformed badge
- 14:42 mofogo won the Sophmore badge