When traveling, it is sometimes necessary to navigate by the sun, for which you need to know the approximate time. If there is no watch with a dial, you can make a sundial with your own hands. In addition to practical value, this design will be an excellent decoration. garden plot. In addition, the manufacture of a solar timer will become an exciting activity for children to follow the movement of the sun and find out the time of day. How to make a sundial You can find out more about this below.
Sundial
Solar timers are divided into three types: vertical, horizontal, equatorial. The first type is mounted on the walls of buildings, respectively, has a vertical dial, directed strictly to the south. The rod for indicating the time is located above the center of the dial with a deviation of 90 degrees minus the value of the latitude of a particular area.
The second type is located on the ground in a horizontal position. The clock rod has the form of a triangle with an angle equal to the latitude of the area, called the gnomon. It indicates the north direction. This watch shows the exact time. all year round except for winter and late autumn. The surface of the equatorial clock is tilted relative to the ground level and turned to the north. The gnomon is a rod perpendicular to the dial, located parallel to the earth's axis. The dial is marked with divisions similar to conventional clocks, every 15 degrees. The disadvantage of equatorial clocks is that they will only show information between the spring and autumn equinoxes in the northern hemisphere, and vice versa in the southern hemisphere. The advantage of this type of watch is their mobility. You can make a small structure that can be moved to the right place.
How to make a sundial with your own hands: video
The most common are horizontal and equatorial sundials, but despite this it is worth describing the manufacture of each of the three types. Before making a structure, it is necessary to determine the place for its placement. This should be an area that is not blocked by buildings, trees and other objects. It is better to pre-observe the location of the future clock throughout the year so that it is constantly sunny. Depending on the location, it will depend on what type of watch to make - vertical, horizontal or equatorial. If a lot of shadows fall on the site from pillars, fences, the best option will be the manufacture of vertical sundial, which can be attached to the wall of the house or on a decorative post.
Equatorial sundial: making
As a basis, you need to take plywood or a piece of plastic, on which divisions are applied every 15 degrees. A metal rod or pin from any other strong material. Its length varies depending on the size of the watch.
In order to give the correct tilt to the dial, it is installed on a special stand. To correctly calculate the angle of inclination, you need to subtract from 90 degrees the value of the degree of latitude of the area where the sundial is installed.
After the dial is installed, they need to be oriented so that the gnomon points to the north. You need to do this like this: some time before noon, the rod (gnomon) is fixed on a horizontal plane. The place where the shadow from the rod will fall should be marked with a dot, then draw a circle with a compass. The center of this circle will be where the gnomon is fixed. The length of the shadow at the moment of observation will indicate the radius of the circle. Next, you need to observe the movement of the shadow. Departing from the drawn circle, it will gradually decrease, then grow again, crossing the circle again. In the place where it crosses it for the second time, you need to put a mark and connect it with the first mark. The resulting segment must be divided in half. The straight line that passes through the middle of the resulting segment and the center of the circle will indicate the north-south direction. Next, you need to designate the dial, for which the base is marked into 24 identical segments of 15 degrees each, apply numerical markings.
For the correct orientation of the equatorial homemade watches conditions must be met:
- The part of the dial on which the numbers from 6 to 18 are indicated must be strictly horizontal.
- Part of the dial with the numbers 12-24 should coincide with a certain north-south direction.
- The dial must be tilted so that the angle is the value of the local latitude.
How to make a horizontal sundial
Do-it-yourself sundials with a horizontal dial are made even easier than equatorial ones.
The base is made from solid material, you can take plywood or plastic. It can be made round or square. The gnomon is made of the same material in the form of a triangle, one angle of which should be equal to 90 degrees, and the second - the latitude of a particular area. The triangular arrow is attached to the base, and is installed on the ground in the right place. In order to turn the arrow to the north, they are guided by a compass. To indicate the divisions on the dial, you need to start a timer, and mark the shadow from the hand every hour.
Making a vertical sundial
Preparing to make a sundial Vertical sundial is best placed on the south side. The manufacture of this type of sundial is more complex than the first two. The dial is parallel to the horizon in the strict south direction for the northern hemisphere. Slightly above the central part of the base of the time determinant, you need to mark the location of the arrow, and from this point lower the plumb line along which you need to draw a line. This line will indicate the time of noon. Numerical designations are located on the dial symmetrically only if the rod is in a strictly perpendicular position relative to the dial. It is not so easy to fix the rod in the wall: first you need to drill a hole larger than the gnomon in diameter. The part of the rod that will be fixed inside the wall needs to be flattened a little in order to prevent it from turning. The attachment point is moistened, a rod is inserted there so that the bending point is exactly in the wall. The rod must be rotated so that it makes an angle of 90 degrees with the wall surface before the mortar at the attachment point hardens.
And we have a great opportunity to put the sunshine into action by making do-it-yourself sundial. Of course, they will not replace the traditional - mechanical and electronic - watches, but this homemade product is very entertaining, and for the younger generation it is also educational, because the model of the sundial that we will be making is the most effective one, and its manufacturing will require certain knowledge in the field of astronomy and trigonometry.
There are many varieties of this ancient instrument for measuring time. But among all the variety of sundials ever used, the following types are distinguished as basic or classic:
Equatorial (for such a sundial, the plane of the frame (dial) is parallel to the equator, and the gnomon (the part that casts a shadow), usually a metal rod, is parallel to the earth's axis);
Horizontal (the plane of the frame is parallel to the plane of the horizon, and the gnomon has the shape of a triangle, one of the sides of which is inclined to the plane of the frame at an angle equal to the geographical latitude of the place where the clock is set);
Vertical (as the name implies, the dial of such watches is placed in vertical plane usually on the walls of buildings).
Wall sundial (Ely Cathedral, England)
We will make an equatorial-type sundial, as the easiest to manufacture. Due to the fact that the dial is set parallel to the equator, and the sun moves almost uniformly across the celestial sphere, the shadow from the gnomon will shift by an angle of 15 ° every hour. Therefore, the hour divisions on the dial are applied in the same way as in ordinary watches, only the marks are needed not 12, but 24. It is clear that the upper part of the dial is unlikely to be useful, except for the inhabitants of the Arctic, when the polar day comes, and the sun will shine around the clock.
There is no need to draw the dial yourself, you can use ready-made templates - round or square (whichever is more to your liking):
Our task is to correctly orient the sundial in space. The angle of inclination of the dial relative to the horizontal plane is determined as follows:
α=90°-φ ,
where φ - geographical latitude. You can find out the latitude of your place of residence on the map or on Wikipedia.
And knowing the required angles, it is very easy to make an inclined stand made of cardboard or paper for our sundial and then stick a printed dial on it or prepare a scan of the watch case with a printed image of the dial in a graphic editor.
We know the dimensions of the dial template. The side of the case is a right triangle. Thus, we know the length of the hypotenuse C and the angles of the triangle, and the lengths of the legs A and B are calculated using trigonometric formulas:
A=C×sinα
B=C×cosα
It remains only to draw a scan according to the obtained dimensions, even without side walls.
I made a case with opening back cover(I'll explain why below):
Whatever you do, you still get the box
Well, now in the center of the dial you need to install a gnomon. To do this, you can use any rod that is suitable in size (for example, a plastic tube from a juice bag). And you can also make it out of cardboard or paper:
We cut out a rectangular strip 60 mm wide (we determine the length empirically, by eye, so that when folded we get a dense tube with a diameter of about 5-6 mm with a small hole);
We stick double-sided tape on 1 edge and fold the tube;
We cut out another rectangular strip 15-20 mm wide and also fold it into a tube with a diameter that matches the diameter of the opening of the first tube;
Cut off part of the first tube at a distance of 10 mm from the edge (it will be something like a nut)
and connect the details;
We fix the gnomon on the dial, fixing it with reverse side“Nut” (this is where the opening lid came in handy).
The sundial is ready. Now, in order for them to work correctly, you need to put them in a place lit by the sun (on a windowsill, on a balcony, etc.) so that the gnomon “looks” to the north (the direction is determined by the compass).
Of course, to wait for the exact coincidence of the readings of such a sundial with the readings conventional watches not worth it. First, a sundial showing the true solar time, do not take into account standard time in a particular area. Secondly, do not forget that the magnetic and geographic poles of the Earth have a discrepancy, and the fact that we oriented the clock along the magnetic pole will also introduce some error.
And finally, the main point, which will also have to be reckoned with, is that the equatorial clock works only between the days of the spring and autumn equinoxes. The rest of the time, the upper surface of the frame will be in shadow. But the day of the vernal equinox in the northern hemisphere is soon, so the wait is not long. Just enough time to make a sundial with your own hands and set it to work.
Successful experiments! And until we meet again
A couple of years ago, a master class on making a paper sundial was already published on our website. It was a simple but fully functional model, which is great for educational activities with children at home or at school. Subsequently, my husband and I had the idea to make a compact folding sundial that could easily be carried in your pocket, and which would look like those samples that are sold in souvenir shops for several thousand rubles :). In principle, it is possible to embody such an idea in paper, but the design would turn out to be rather complicated and unreliable. As a result, our favorite corrugated cardboard came to the rescue again. What we did, you can see in the photo below. And now we are ready to present a fundamentally new master class on how how to make a sundial with your own hands.
Horizontal sundial: design features
As you know (and if you don’t know, read the previous MK), there are sundial different types. Our previous model belonged to the equatorial type - in such watches the dial (kadran) is parallel to the equator, and the gnomon (i.e. pointer) is parallel to the earth's axis.
In practice, this means that the plane of the dial is inclined to the horizontal plane at an angle that depends on the geographical latitude. In this case, the gnomon is in the center perpendicular to the frame.
Such watches are good as stationary. But as a portable model, it is advisable to use a sundial of a horizontal type. Their peculiarity is that the plane of the dial, as the name implies, is located horizontally, while the gnomon is tilted to the horizontal at an angle equal to the geographical latitude of the area for which the watch is intended.
In addition, in contrast to equatorial models, in horizontal watches, the hour divisions are applied unevenly, and their location also depends on the geographical latitude.
That is, each creator of a horizontal sundial has two tasks: to fix the gnomon at the right angle and to make the correct time scale.
If the first one is solved quite simply, then the solution of the second problem is not so obvious. But there are at least 3 ways here:
1) to determine the hour marks empirically, that is, to make a sundial and during the day hourly mark the position of the shadow from the gnomon, referring to the usual clock - an interesting option, but a long one;
2) determine the positions of the hour markers for the desired latitude using geometric constructions - a simple method, but requiring at least basic theoretical knowledge (we will not dwell on it, if desired, appropriate explanations online easily can be found);
α=arctan(sin(φ)×tan(t)) ,
t is the hour angle of the Sun (for whole hours of true solar time t=... -30°, -15°, 0°, 15°, 30°, ...),
φ - geographic latitude,
α is the angle between the hour mark and the midday line (clock axis).
For example, this is how the dial marking of a horizontal sundial might look like:
But there is another solution prepared specifically for our case. It will be discussed below.
Pocket Sundial: Manufacturing Procedure
The method that we will use to create our toy is delightful in its simplicity. Corrugated cardboard itself is quite dense and bulk material. And thanks to this, it is possible to create three-dimensional forms without any developments, simply by gluing the cardboard in layers. The result is a durable, compact and aesthetic product.
To make a pocket sundial, we need:
- a little corrugated cardboard 3 mm thick;
- white office paper;
- a ruler and a clerical knife;
- glue "Moment", double-sided tape.
Plus, you will need templates for cutting out parts:
And here is the second version of the templates (with Arabic numerals on the dial):
You can see in the photo below full set parts to be cut.
Note: according to template No. 1, it is necessary to cut 2 parts - one with a slot, the other without.
Another important point: templates on cardboard should be placed with long sides along the waves of the corrugation. In this case, the fold lines will run across the waves, and this is the most convenient position.
After the blanks are cut out, part No. 2 must be punched and bent.
Then we proceed to assemble the case of the sundial. First, we glue both parts, cut out according to template No. 1, to that part of part No. 2 that relates to the base - from above and below.
Now we have come to the stage at which our cardboard blank will take on the appearance of a real sundial.
Special stickers that are included in the set of templates will help with this. There are also 6 dial options with markings for the following geographical latitudes of the northern hemisphere: 45º, 50º, 55º, 60º, 65º and 70º.
Paired with each of them is a template of the corresponding gnomon.
Thus, we get an almost universal sundial (at least for Russian latitudes). It is enough to choose the dial and gnomon of the nearest geographical latitude, and sundial it is quite possible to use.
The error that will take place is not a hindrance to the matter. Do not forget that this device itself still does not serve to determine the exact local time - there are other, more familiar possibilities for this. It shows solar time and does not take into account standard time, as well as summer time.
But as a toy as well visual aid to study some astronomical phenomena and processes, this portable sundial fits wonderfully.
So, we print stickers on a regular office paper, cut and glue them with double-sided tape, as shown in the photo.
Then we glue part No. 3 to part No. 2 (to the lid), and also glue parts No. 4 and No. 5 with each other.
A cutout at part No. 4 is provided so that the lid does not outweigh the base when open.
Close the clock and glue the top of the cover.
If the clock turns out to be insufficiently balanced, and the lid still slightly outweighs, you can glue another layer from the bottom to the base according to template No. 1. And the problem will be solved.
That, in fact, is all. Pocket sundial is ready. We install the gnomon in the slot, direct the midday line to the north and look. They work!:)
After the time has been determined, the gnomon is placed in the cutout on the lid.
We close the sundial with a lock and hide it in our pocket.
Now to the question: "What time is it?", - you will have a decent answer. :)
Well, seriously, I'm sure it will be very interesting for children to use such watches. And it will be even more interesting to make them with your own hands. It’s not at all difficult to make a sundial, you could see now.
Happy co-creation!
Yes, and do not forget to subscribe to site updates to learn about new ones in a timely manner. interesting crafts from corrugated board.
See you soon in KARTONKINO!
Yours Inna Pyshkina.
In the modern world, a sundial looks at least exotic, and in most cases it is a banal decor - a decoration for a summer house or a plot of a residential building. But we should not forget that in ancient times it was a very useful and functional thing, the accuracy of which even some modern products of this type may well envy. If the sundial is made correctly, then it may well compete with yours. wrist watch. You can make three different ways, which will be discussed in this article. Together with the website, we will get acquainted with the question of how to make a sundial with our own hands - we will talk about three varieties of these items and their proper manufacture.
Equatorial Sundial: DIY
This is a very simple sundial to manufacture - this is due to the fact that the divisions of their dial are the same and are 15 degrees, which corresponds to one hour. In principle, this is where everything simple in these watches ends and difficulties begin - watches of this type must be correctly installed, which in itself is difficult. You need to install such a clock simultaneously in two planes.
As for the direct manufacture of equatorial sundials, everything is very simple here. For them, it is better to use a hard material like plastic. First you make a dial with a gnomon, then you think about how you can set it obliquely, but also orient it to the north, after which the clock will work. By the way, the angle of inclination of the gnomon can be easily adjusted with a protractor with rulers - the drawing tool has a special lock that allows you to install between a pair of rulers desired angle. By the way, for our hemisphere, the clock must be directed to the true north pole, but if you make a clock while in the southern hemisphere, then the gnomon and dial should look towards the true south pole. In this case, the dial will also be a little different - it will be a mirror image of a sundial for the northern hemisphere of the Earth.
You can see what a sundial can be in this video.
DIY horizontal sundial
A distinctive feature of watches of this type is the horizontal arrangement of the dial - only the gnomon is oriented to the true pole of the Earth. On the one hand, this is good easier technology manufacturing), but on the other hand, not so much, since setting the clock looks very problematic. In such hours, the shadow from the gnomon does not move the same distance during the hour, so you need to be patient and wrist watch. Divisions will have to be applied in accordance with a mechanical or electronic chronometer. Such watches are made as follows.
In even hours, we simply put marks where the shadow of the gnomon points.
After the marking of the dial is completed, the watch can be fully used. In principle, they can be used immediately after installation, but without divisions, you can determine the time exclusively intuitively.
How to make a polar sundial for the garden
The beauty of this solar chronometer lies in its dial - it is not round, like most illogical devices, but linear. The shadow from the gnomon moves along it in a straight line, which greatly simplifies the technology of manufacturing a sundial. By and large, this is all the same equatorial sundial, only their gnomon is not a pin, but a stick located across the so-called dial. The divisions in such watches are also applied unevenly, which makes it possible to assert that this type of sundial is a kind of hybrid between the first two options. Do-it-yourself polar sundial is made as follows.
In principle, there is a fourth version of the sundial, which is very difficult to manufacture and set up - this is a vertical, or, as they are also called, wall-mounted sundial. They are more convenient to use, but for their assembly you need very accurate calculations and very jewelry (no less accurate) production.
DIY sundial photo
In conclusion, the topic of how to make a sundial with your own hands, I will say a few words about the materials. Their choice entirely depends on the purpose of manufacture. If this is pampering or just a teaching aid for children, then the chronometer can be made of cardboard. If you want to make a really working model and use it to determine the time, then you need to choose more reliable materials. In this case, the dial can be made of concrete (as an option, cut off the surface natural stone large size), and a steel gnomon - such watches can be safely left in the fresh air, and at the same time they will last a very long time.
Hello, dear readers of KARTONKINO.ru! Spring ... Somewhere it is already in full swing, somewhere it is only expected to arrive, in a month or two, but the sun shines brighter and longer everywhere. And we have a great opportunity to put the sunshine into action by making do-it-yourself sundial. Of course, they will not replace the traditional - mechanical and electronic - watches, but this homemade product is very entertaining, and for the younger generation it is also educational, because the model of the sundial that we will be making is the most effective one, and its manufacturing will require certain knowledge in the field of astronomy and trigonometry.
There are many varieties of this ancient instrument for measuring time. But among all the variety of sundials ever used, the following types are distinguished as basic or classic:
— equatorial(for such a sundial, the plane of the frame (dial) is parallel to the equator, and the gnomon (the part that casts a shadow), usually a metal rod, is parallel to the earth's axis);
Equatorial sundial on the banks of the Thames (London, England)
— horizontal(the plane of the frame is parallel to the plane of the horizon, and the gnomon has the shape of a triangle, one of the sides of which is inclined to the plane of the frame at an angle equal to the geographical latitude of the place where the clock is set);
Horizontal Sundial (Limassol, Cyprus)
— vertical(as the name implies, the dial of such watches is placed in a vertical plane, usually on the walls of buildings).
Wall sundial (Ely Cathedral, England)
We will make an equatorial-type sundial, as the easiest to manufacture. Due to the fact that the dial is set parallel to the equator, and the sun moves almost uniformly across the celestial sphere, the shadow from the gnomon will shift by an angle of 15 ° every hour. Therefore, the hour divisions on the dial are applied in the same way as in ordinary watches, only the marks are needed not 12, but 24. It is clear that the upper part of the dial is unlikely to be useful, except for the inhabitants of the Arctic, when the polar day comes, and the sun will shine around the clock.
There is no need to draw the dial yourself, you can use ready-made templates - round or square (whichever you prefer):
Our task is to correctly orient the sundial in space. The angle of inclination of the dial relative to the horizontal plane is determined as follows:
α=90°-φ ,
where φ is the geographic latitude. You can find out the latitude of your place of residence on the map or on Wikipedia.
And knowing the required angles, it is very easy to make an inclined stand made of cardboard or paper for our sundial and then stick a printed dial on it or prepare a scan of the watch case with a printed image of the dial in a graphic editor.
We know the dimensions of the dial template. The side of the case is a right triangle. Thus, we know the length of the hypotenuse C and the angles of the triangle, and the lengths of the legs A and B are calculated using trigonometric formulas:
A=C×sinα
B=C×cosα
It remains only to draw a scan according to the obtained dimensions, even without side walls.
I made a case with an opening back cover (I will explain below why):
Whatever you do, you still get the box
Well, now in the center of the dial you need to install a gnomon. To do this, you can use any rod that is suitable in size (for example, a plastic tube from a juice bag). And you can also make it out of cardboard or paper:
- cut out a rectangular strip 60 mm wide (we determine the length empirically, by eye, so that when folding we get a dense tube with a diameter of about 5-6 mm with a small hole);
- stick double-sided tape on 1 edge and fold the tube;
- cut out another rectangular strip 15-20 mm wide and also fold it into a tube with a diameter that matches the diameter of the opening of the first tube;
- cut off part of the first tube at a distance of 10 mm from the edge (it will be something like a nut)
and connect the details;
- we fix the gnomon on the dial, fixing it on the reverse side with a “nut” (this is where the opening cover came in handy).
The sundial is ready. Now, in order for them to work correctly, you need to put them in a place lit by the sun (on a windowsill, on a balcony, etc.) so that the gnomon “looks” to the north (we determine the direction by the compass).
Of course, it is not worth waiting for an exact match of the readings of such a sundial with the readings of ordinary watches. First, a sundial that shows true solar time does not take into account standard time in a particular area. Secondly, do not forget that the magnetic and geographic poles of the Earth have a discrepancy, and the fact that we oriented the clock along the magnetic pole will also introduce some error.
And finally, the main point, which will also have to be reckoned with, is that the equatorial clock works only between the days of the spring and autumn equinoxes. The rest of the time, the upper surface of the frame will be in shadow. But the day of the vernal equinox in the northern hemisphere is soon, so the wait is not long. Just enough time to make a sundial with your own hands and set it to work.
Successful experiments!
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By the way, a new master class on making a sundial is already ready. This time we are talking about a pocket watch model of a horizontal type.
See you soon in KARTONKINO!
