Algodoo

Pure awesomeness to the 10th power

Thanks.

whooo. this is what i need!

there is a bug with RACK. if i use it in another scene - its move free only in one axis

Dvorkin,

I don't see the problem, unless you happened to copy the frame around the rack that is already in this scene. Also, a rack that is generated is automatically glued to the background, so you may need to loosen it before use.

Automatically glued to the background, that was a problem. Already understand this. thx

Nice job overall.

I did notice a problem which I'm pretty certain is due to the poor precision of the Algodoo polygon generator. I generated a large gear which had 106 teeth, and then I cloned it and carefully meshed the two gears with axles at their exact centers. It was almost impossible to mesh the two gears so that they moved very smoothly. The driven gear kept jamming along certain sections of groups of teeth, and I had to increase the torque of the drive gear to such a high value in order overcome the jamming at the rough sections of teeth. If I moved the gears apart sufficiently to eliminate the jamming, they then become so poorly meshed that there was unacceptable backlash. When zoomed way in to view the area where the teeth meshed, I was able to see the poorly formed teeth, and I realized right away what was causing the jamming.

Not your fault, of course. Just bringing it to your attention in case you hadn't noticed that particular issue.

Statement: I did notice a problem which I'm pretty certain is due to the poor precision of the Algodoo polygon generator.
Response: Yes, Algodoo automatically reduces the resolution of large polygons.
S: I generated a large gear which had 106 teeth, and then I cloned it and carefully meshed the two gears with axles at their exact centers.
R: The gear generator automatically puts the axles at the exact center of the gears and also creates pitch circle to aid in alignment.
S: It was almost impossible to mesh the two gears so that they moved very smoothly.
R: I was able to get them to mesh relatively smoothly (speed set at 60 RPM (6.28 rad/sec) resulted in speed variation of 5.7 to 6.7 rad/sec). Motor torque was set at 8000 Nm. Gear diameter ~ 10m. 106 teeth. Sim.frequency = 240 Hz. 60 RPM is 1 rev/sec or 106 teeth/sec. If 2 contacts per tooth then 212 Hz minimum sim frequency.
S: The driven gear kept jamming along certain sections of groups of teeth.
R: An off-center hinge could cause this.
S: When zoomed way in to view the area where the teeth meshed, I was able to see the poorly formed teeth.
R: The teeth are not quite as bad as they look. Cut out a tooth and look at it. You will see the tooth's true form.

If anybody knows how to increase polygon resolution, then please explain how to do it below.

P.S. I cut each gear into eight pieces and then glued them back together. The angular velocity variation was a lot less. The speed was 6.280 to 6.283 rad/sec.

That's the difference between a Mechanical Engineer (you) and a Mechanical Hack (me).