Mechanically animated holiday greeting card from Birdbox Studios

I am not entirely sure how this works, but it looks like a motorized flipbook installed inside of a greeting card. Pretty amazing!

Find out more about Birdbox Studios on their web site.

[ Thanks Christoph! ]

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Profile of Will Matthysen hand his handmade wooden clocks

Check out this lovely profile of Will Matthysen who designs and makes clocks made almost entirely out of wood. Will Matthysen is a designer and maker of furniture. He works out of his workshop in Victoria, Australia. He has designed a variety of handcrafted clocks. Most are made largely from wood, but also may also include other materials such as brass, steel, and glass.

Visit his web site to learn more about Will Matthysen.

For more on the making of wooden clocks Wooden Clocks: 31 Favorite Projects & Patterns (Scroll Saw Woodworking & Crafts Book). The ultimate project in the book is Wooden Gear Clock shown on the cover. In addition to the scale plans, photographs and step-by-step instructions there are also cross-sections and exploded diagrams showing how the wooden mechanism is assembled. Plans for this one clock are worth the price of the book. The remainder of the projects are for clocks with wooden cases with battery movements, which may not be as glamorous, but are far easier to make for less ambitious woodworkers or those looking for handmade gift ideas.

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The Wounded Child - Wall-mounted automaton by Paul Nitsche

Check out his beautifully executed wall mounted automaton by Paul Nitsche. titled The Wounded Child. The end of the video features some tantalizing still photos of the creation process and internal mechanism.

Here is where you can see more work by Paul Nitsche.

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littleBits electronics kits -- an opensource library of electronic modules that snap together magnets!

Amazon has been creating lists of recommended toys for the holidays for years. I just discovered that they now have a specific STEM Holiday Toy Guide -- that's Science, Technology, Engineering, and Math. This list is big!


Shown above is the littleBits Electronics Deluxe Kit. This is the biggest of the littleBits electronics kits -- an opensource library of electronic modules that snap together with tiny magnets for prototyping. No soldering required. Now that's a great idea! This particular kit features 18 modules. You will have everything you need to make something that blinks, moves, makes noise, and more! these are really clever kits and the have many different ones.

While this kit is the biggest, they offer many more exciting and educational kits. They are something like the SnapCircuit kits which have been available for a while, which also don't require any soldering. Check out the full full line littlebits and SnapCircuits kits. You can have completed electronic circuits humming away on the kitchen table before the plates have been cleared!

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Gift ideas: great books for the mechanically-minded

Have yet to find a gift for that mechanically-minded person in your life? Here's a short list of books that should solve all of your problems! Need more choices? Stay tuned for more in the coming days!

Five Hundred and Seven Mechanical Movements: Embracing All Those Which Are Most Important in Dynamics, Hydraulics, Hydrostatics, Pneumatics, Steam Engines

Coming in as the top selling book by the readers of The Automata blog is Five Hundred and Seven Mechanical Movements is a great resource for interesting mechanical solutions. It is an affordable book that can provide a lot of education and inspiration. The left hand page of each spread shows 6 to 9 mechanisms or "contrivances" as they were called, while the page on the right side gives a short description of each of the mechanisms and what it does. The mechanisms are presented in a concise, interesting manner. There is something compelling about the vintage line drawings and old-fashioned phrasing. I love this little book as will anyone who finds mechanisms fascinating.

Making Things Move: DIY Mechanisms for Inventors, Hobbyists, and Artists

Published in 2010, Making Things Move: DIY Mechanisms for Inventors, Hobbyists, and Artists is one of the most comprehensive, easy-to-understand, and fun books on the topic. Author Dustyn Roberts covers every aspect of making things move, from fabrication techniques, to motors, CAD, and Arduino micro-controllers. If your interest in kinetic sculpture includes more than wood and brass, this book is fantastic resource.

Number 8: Paper Automata: Four Working Models to Cut Out & Glue Together

There is no doubt that Rob Ives is a master of paper engineering. This glossy softcover book contains all of the printed color patterns needed to make four excellent paper automata: a pecking hen, a flying fish, three bounding sheep, and a bowing jester. If you or anyone in your life wants to try their hand at making an automaton -- and I mean right away -- paper is the way to go. You only need some white glue, scissors, a hobby knife, and this Paper Automata book. I've watched someone with no prior mechanical training complete one of these models in an afternoon. A gift of this book is like giving four kits. Priced at just over $10, it is a very good deal.

Creative Kinetics: Making Mechanical Marvels in Wood

In Creative Kinetics, author Rodney Frost provides a brilliant introduction to the making of kinetic art. The book does an especially good job of explaining the mechanisms that typically make up the core of a wood automaton: levers, cams, cranks, eccentrics, pulleys, and gears. The projects are fun and wildly diverse. You won't find complete plans in this book, but if you are interested in learning to make kinetic sculptures in wood, this book provides all of the fundamentals in a fun and easy-to-read way.

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Sotheby's to auction exquisite pieces from the Frank & Lore Metzger collection

We've gotten word of an upcoming sale at Sotheby's in New York City which will features some of the exquisite pieces from the Frank & Lore Metzger collection. The sale includes several different styles of mechanical singing bird, the most astounding being a rare example by Courvoisier & Co. (Lot #63) that features caged, double singing birds that flit towards and away from each other, the cage sits on a base that contains a clock and musical movement.

From the video description:

A very rare Empire Ormolu and Mahogany musical automaton bird cage clock, with twin flying birds and a fountain. The clock is signed by Courvoisier and Comp., famous Swiss clock makers, and sets off the music and bird mechanisms hourly or at will.

This piece is estimated to bring between $150,000 to $250,000 USD.

There are many other amazing pieces in the sale including a George Pyke organ clock (Lot #62), dating to around 1765. The musical clock features an animated scene.

The catalog is online in graphical PDF form. Check out Lots 43 thru 63 for the musical and automata items. Lot 43 starts on page 40. And twelve videos of pieces from the collection can be seen on YouTube.

The preview begins this Saturday, December 6th, 2014. The sale is on Wednesday, December 10th, 2014. Here is where you can get more information on Sotheby's Important Watches sale. For further information contact Daryn Schnipper, Chairman, International Watch Division, at Sothebys, NY (212)606-7000.

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Beautiful bird automaton kit with flapping wings

Shasa Bolton wrote from Tasmania, Australia to share the news of a new flapping wing automaton kit.

This beautifully designed kit mounts on a wall or table. Once separated from the sheets, follow the instructions and slot the parts together. No glue is required! This looks like a great project or gift that one can assemble in under 2 hours.

Here is where you can get the wall-mounted flapping wing automaton kit.

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