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Why hasn't anybody made an epicycle clock yet? (yes there are clocks with epicyclic mechanisms, but I mean the display!)

For your consideration, one with just an hour and a minute epicycle, and also one with a seconds epicycle just for fun.
a mock-up of an epicycle clock, the minute hand is attached to the end of the hour hand and together the two form a distinct spiral with repeating elements that could be read relative to one-another
Another version of the clock, this time with a little second hand that maks the day's spiral more interesting - essentially turning it into a long coil

Tek aEvl reshared this.

Spookie 🎲🧩🏳️‍⚧️🎃
Spookie 🎲🧩🏳️‍⚧️🎃  
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Honestly, I think this would be easier to read than a traditional clock.

What's that? Figuring out a mechanism so each hand spins at the end of the previous one? Eh, not my problem :p
Spookie 🎲🧩🏳️‍⚧️🎃
Spookie 🎲🧩🏳️‍⚧️🎃  
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I guess the only downside is the minutes in the middle of each hour will feel like they are going slower since the end of the hand isn't moving as fast?

honestly though who cares about those minutes? I want HD time at the start and end of the hour!
Spookie 🎲🧩🏳️‍⚧️🎃
Spookie 🎲🧩🏳️‍⚧️🎃  
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Okay, I have a working prototype (which spent way too long to make, why am I coding on an iPad???)

I have quickly realised that the hour markers are not in the wrong place because of a bug, I just misunderstood how the thing would work.

I’ll look into a fix tomorrow but for now (as you can see), it’s late. I need sleep.
Screenshot of an epicycle clock, there are dots for each minute over 12 hours, and a loop for each hour, however the dots that mark the hours are all near the uppermost point of the loop, rather than the outermost points.

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Spookie 🎲🧩🏳️‍⚧️🎃
Spookie 🎲🧩🏳️‍⚧️🎃  
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Okay I couldn’t sleep so I just solved the issue. Rotation needs to be based on ‘parent’ epicycle rotations, which is not really a behaviour of epicycles usually but whatever, this makes a cool clock. I’ll fix it up with numbers tomorrow and share it.
A screenshot of an epicycle clock that looks like the concept image in this threads first post.
Spookie 🎲🧩🏳️‍⚧️🎃
Spookie 🎲🧩🏳️‍⚧️🎃  
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I did it! I made an epicycle clock!

Check your loopy time here:
https://sophiehoulden.com/randomstuff/epitime/
Screenshot of an epicycle clock, the minute hand is attached to the end of the hour hand and traces a looping shape around the clock. The traced line is marked with the hours and quarter hours, and little dots for each minute.

Epicycle Clock by Sophie Houlden

sophiehoulden.com
Spookie 🎲🧩🏳️‍⚧️🎃
Spookie 🎲🧩🏳️‍⚧️🎃  
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If you enjoy things like this, consider supporting me on patreon!

I'm currently working on an epicycle art app, and a super in-depth jigsaw puzzle app!
https://www.patreon.com/SophieHoulden

Sophie Houlden | creating Games and Nerdy Stuff | Patreon

Patreon
Spookie 🎲🧩🏳️‍⚧️🎃
Spookie 🎲🧩🏳️‍⚧️🎃  
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quick evening update: 24 hour mode, and also a seconds cycle (it does not improve readability! :P)

https://sophiehoulden.com/randomstuff/epitime/
An epicycle clock with 24 outer loops to represent each hour of a day
An epicycle clock where each hour's loop has 60 smaller loops

Epicycle Clock by Sophie Houlden

sophiehoulden.com

wakest ⁂ reshared this.

Spookie 🎲🧩🏳️‍⚧️🎃
Spookie 🎲🧩🏳️‍⚧️🎃  
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Saw that my epicycle clock was getting noticed a bit again, so I finally took the time to make it use vector graphics - you can zoom in and it still looks good!

https://sophiehoulden.com/randomstuff/epitime/

Fun bonus: Animated time offsets, watch it go spinny!

A zoomed in view of my epicycle clock, there is a series of loops from 10-o'clock to 12, and little dots to mark each minute.

Epicycle Clock by Sophie Houlden

sophiehoulden.com
Andrew Plotkin
Andrew Plotkin  
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A friend commented that if the curve were inside out, then the hands would be coincident on the hour and opposite on the half-hour. This might feel more natural. Maybe?

(All the analog clocks in my house are counterclocks, so it’s not like I can be sure what feels natural.)
Andrew Plotkin
Andrew Plotkin  
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@jonbro What else?
A mirror-reversed clock hanging on the wall. The numbers run counterclockwise and they are drawn backwards.
@Jonathan
This entry was edited (1 year ago)
binaryphile 🥥🌴✅🇺🇲
binaryphile 🥥🌴✅🇺🇲  
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That's not a counter-clock, it's an anti-clock. You can tell because it goes anti-clockwise. That, and the fact that it disappears in a flash of light whenever it encounters a regular clock.
This entry was edited (1 year ago)
Liwott
Liwott  
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@Sophie 🎲🧩🏳️‍⚧️
I love the fact that the minutes are given by the angle between the spears (same for seconds).

Now wouldn't it be fun to do the same thing with days (of the year) and hours instead? This would approximately describe the orbit of a place on earth around the sun (I mean if it was real scale, which would make it unreadable, so that was actually a bad idea 😂 )
@Spookie 🎲🧩🏳️‍⚧️🎃
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