Art Engineering - Dave Bruckenstein


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Artwork Engineering

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David Bruckenstein
"Tall Dots" Clock
18" wide X 72" tall
March 2022

This is the third in a series of clocks that we refer to as "Dots", it uses an almost identical display scheme for showing time, except that the white dot that fades up and down increments upwards after each cycle.

If you wave your hand near-or touch the metal plate below the dots it "wakes up" and starts displaying time by lighting up LEDs in sequence from the bottom. First it shows the number of hours, and then the number of minutes in five minute increments. So for instance, to show a time of 3:20 it would first light three LEDs, pause and then light for LEDs. At the bottom of this page is a video that shows how it works and how it was made.

Above are the original aluminum "Dots", and the 3 wood versions we make later for Dave's adult children.

Early concepts for this clock took the form of a pole that looked a little like a coat rack. Then Dave came up with the renderings below which were a complete departure, and after exploring these ideas we finally settled on the design that we used.

Dave does these excellent CAD renderings for every idea that he or I develop. But what is always interesting to both of us is that his final CAD rendering looks a great deal like what I end up fabricating. This clock is no exception, and his rendering (at right) is very close to the final construction. We just changed the base to solid aluminum to give it weight at the bottom (15lbs!).

I produced a 40 minute video for YouTube about the making of this clock:

Visit Dave's web site:
DAB's Clocks

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This is the third in a series of clocks that we refer to as "Dots", it uses an almost identical display scheme for showing time, except that the white dot that fades up and down increments upwards after each cycle. If you wave your hand near-or touch the metal plate below the dots it "wakes up" and starts displaying time by lighting up LEDs in sequence from the bottom. First it shows the number of hours, and then the number of minutes in five minute increments. So for instance, to show a time of 3:20 it would first light three LEDs, pause and then light for LEDs. At the bottom of this page is a video that shows how it works and how it was made.

Above are the original aluminum "Dots", and the 3 wood versions we make later for Dave's adult children.

Early concepts for this clock took the form of a pole that looked a little like a coat rack. Then Dave came up with the renderings below which were a complete departure, and after exploring these ideas we finally settled on the design that we used.

Dave does these excellent CAD renderings for every idea that he or I develop. But what is always interesting to both of us is that his final CAD rendering looks a great deal like what I end up fabricating. This clock is no exception, and his rendering (at right) is very close to the final construction. We just changed the base to solid aluminum to give it weight at the bottom (15lbs!).
I produced a 40 minute video for YouTube about the making of this clock: