celestial globe simulator

Celestial globe simulator's designer and creator, is Nikos Giannakopoulos gianakop@gmail.com
http://3lyk-patras.ach.sch.gr/globe_eg.htm
Celestial Globe Simulator is a completely new design robotic Suntracker.
It consists of a translucent globe and a specific robot arm in the center of this globe. A laser light is applied on the robot arm and its light spot simulates the solar orbit on the internal surface of the vault.
The Celestial Globe Simulator can also locates Solar position in the sky, supported by a personal computer, which instructs the robot arm using an appropriate software, called: 'Algorithmic solar shot system'
The robot arm is connected to the computer via the parallel port, through which the special software program guides it to its position. This software constitutes a very serious part of the system.
The software calculates solar position by observing the astronomical rules which govern the Sun's orbit. The only data it needs is the longitude, the geographical latitude of the place and the date and time; this data already exists in the program.
As a result the lasers spot targets the Sun successfully without depending on beam radiation. (Makes no use of sensors). This permits the simulator to locate the Sun regardless of the weather -- even when direct normal irradiance is non-existent, even if the simulator is in a building. This novel apparatus possesses and some others important advantages which are summarised below:
It can draw quickly and easily a lot of sun orbits in the globe surface in no real time and in a variety of latitudes from different places from were we are.
It can predict the position of the sun in a hypothetical day (date) and place (latitude)
The new software has the faculty to calculate the sun's position and to draw its orbit on the PC
The globe has a reverse operation from a common suntracker (or a common sundial). The common suntracker (or a common sundial) makes use of the sun's position and help us to find the time and to draw the solar position on the vault. Celestial globe simulator uses exactly the opposite procedure. It uses the hour, the date and the latitude and it can locate the sun's position. In addition it is not necessary to wait a whole day to draw a sun path. In a few seconds we can draw all the different sun paths we can imagine!
The robot arm with the laser light can follow the sun, any day, any time, any place, no matter the weather!!!
Celestial globe simulator's designer and creator, is Nikos Giannakopoulos gianakop@gmail.com
http://3lyk-patras.ach.sch.gr/globe_eg.htm

Category:

Science & Technology

Tags:

• Suntracker
• sundials
• simulators
• simulation
• globe
• robotics
• astronomy
• sky
• dome
• sun
• orbit

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