Building a Maglev train for my Christmas Tree

Update (5/19/2023): STL files can be found at the link below:
www.thingiverse.com/thing:603...
In this video I'll show how i made a magnetic monorail train that uses infrared LEDs and phototransistors to trigger coils that accelerate it around a track. I built this because i wanted a train to go around my christmas tree and this seemed a lot more interesting than a regular toy train on rails.
The infrared tripwire that triggers the electromagnet coils is the same design i used for my second ball accelerator, which is described in detail in this video:
• Electromagnetic Accele...
The train technically isn't a truly "levitating" train, because it straddles the rail, and its legs prevent the instability of magnetic repulsion from throwing it off to the left or right. A true maglev would have no physical contact with anything below or beside it. I'm working on a true levitating train for a future video, but it was too difficult to implement as a christmas decoartion.
IR LED / Phototransistor set:
www.amazon.com/Gikfun-Infrare...
Music Used:
Christmas Village - Aaron Kenny
Jolly Old St Nicholas (Instrumental) - E's Jammy Jams
Jingle Bells (Instrumental Jazz) - E's Jammy Jams

[@HyperspacePirate]

STL files are available at the link in the description.

[@mx1z11]

What are the sizes of these magnets will be making this for science fair and are there files of the prototype track? really need this, excellent work

[@manonherve1818]

What coil it is?

[@Akhikesh001]

I think it will depend upon the size which you decide to 3d print on ​@@mx1z11

[@ericinla65]

NICE - Built one for my niece for her science project 15 years go. She had me add LED lights to the front. Off course she won. She did help me build it and was able to explain in detail how it worked. She was only in the 3rd grade at the time.

[@JB-pq8fc]

Your Projects are amazing

[@H3wastooshort]

Man all your 3d printed projects are designed so well. everything is thought of and fits together super well. just the cable routing grooves are so good. would have never thought of sth like that

[@mcorrade]

Man that was amazing. I dg how you left in the mistakes and the proto process. Well done man

[@ET2uscg]

Fantastic work !!

[@SamoaBeast510]

Well done.

[@alphamike5271]

As always brilliant

[@cyrillekaouche-ps7jq]

So magnetic. Amazing.

[@G.Rengarajan]

Beautiful

[@Jbird1978Qqqqqq]

This is my favorite channel you’ve got a subscriber for life

[@SnappySnapfire]

This is sooo cool!

[@Edmorbus]

Nice project thanks for sharing

[@curiousviewer5991]

Nice Christmas project!

[@QuinceDeMayo-jg5wb]

Un trabajo extraordinario excelente explicación! Gracias Felices fiestas.

[@lumotroph]

Brilliant 😊

[@miriamramstudio3982]

Funny project. Thanks.

[@amphibiland]

Your channel is seriously underrated

[@mirage3rd]

Impressive!

[@Rabb865]

Love this 😁

[@petermines3575]

Awesome.

[@dalevanderzee4086]

To reduce costs, just a thought, what would happen if you used electromagnetic coils instead of permanent magnets on the track? Your method seems like the speed of the train would vary during each full rotation around the track with the train accelerating after each pulse. If you used electromagnetic coils you could vary the speed and even the direction by using timing of the coils. I know this is a lot more involved and could be done with 555 timers to alter the pulse width and frequency or by using a micro controller. It definitely increases the complexity of the wiring however. You would not need the ir feedback system for this approach too. With this design, you could also power an LED on the train for a headlight maybe using a coil, capacitor, and diode for that part on the train. Additionally you may want to further improve this by using refrigerator magnetic tape attached to the side of the track and train with like poles repelling the sides so they dont touch. I think setting the tape on the track slightly lower than the magnetic tape on the sides of the train will also help to levitate the train but not strong enough to eject the train from the track. I think you did an excellent job btw on this very simple design which for all intents and purposes suffices for most applications. Thank you.

[@Forgottengdplayer]

Magnets are not permanent

[@mairanoor7182]

It is amazing

[@babali7588]

Your projects are amazing. Can you share more about technic details.

[@ethanslab7670]

nice

[@sergioreap]

La Capital vibes 🎶🎵

[@Fedreal_Bureau_Of_Investigaton]

It would be interesting to put magnets on the side too to cancel attrition running in it in a vacuum and seeing how many circles it does

[@tvishmaychoudhary69]

Remember us when you reach 1mil 😉

[@salilmandal872]

Wow

[@Allan_aka_RocKITEman]

(1) GREAT PROJECT! (2) There is a bit of irony there: You made a little sign that said _"NORTH POLE."_ Each permanent magnet has one...😉 (3) You obviously DO NOT have a CAT...🤭

[@JakobEslinger]

could maybe implement some kind of error correction based on the average timing of the other sensors, that way if it detects nothing it could send out a pulse based on the average time of the last laps?

[@stevehartley7504]

Clear side guides Santa and sleigh instead of train Sink coils into track Have motion detectors feed into Christmas tree lights

[@user-bh6ey1ke4n]

What if you glue a couple of magnets on each side of the train skirt, facing the same pole inwards, and glue magnets to both inner and outer walls of the ring, facing the same pole away from the ring wall. This should keep the train from touching the ring and make it comletely silent.

[@madhurchandak6302]

all the thing are greatly explain but i just want to know the size of the magnet

[@stizandelasage]

Ok you're the smartest

[@woutbrysse4545]

I dont know if anyone will read this since it has been more then a year since this video has been uploaded, but would it work if I put the coil in the train instead of on the tracks?

[@kevinfinkel5536]

Do the magnets NEED to be the disc type or can they be bar magnets?

[@andrewlees9056]

Can you please explain a bit more about how you fabricated the electromagnets?

[@TantalumPolytope]

he just took some enameled copper wire and wound it around a bolt a lot of times

[@8dgrooves334]

Hi dude, Great project! Whats' the 3 dimensional design software you are using?

[@AbrahamCm]

He use CATIA

[@8dgrooves334]

@@AbrahamCm oh.. thanks

[@jagveerkang1395]

Can you tell me where you buy the structure of the track

[@brandonbarr2784]

What 3d software is that you using

[@Test-nx6yr]

Thanks for sharing your excellent project. Can you tell what grade of magnet you use? N35 or higher?

[@HyperspacePirate]

I think it's N42

[@Test-nx6yr]

Oups, N42 are not easy to find... Any chance it float with N35? Also pretty easy to find N50 ou 52. @@HyperspacePirate

[@lexi-fp3rx]

do you have links to the other materials you used. ?

[@manonherve1818]

Serait-il possible de savoir où avez-vous eu les bobines ?

[@NerdSnipingBatman]

Do you have the stl files? I kinda want to follow along.

[@bindusaniyo4667]

What will be the cost of the project.

[@paperprime7481]

What power source did u use?

[@user-mg2hh8tw4i]

hi! how many turns does the coil need? im recreating this project and i need to know

[@arturovelasco3248]

How many turns did you use? And what gauge of wire did you use friend?

[@un.TERMINATEd]

which electromagnet did you use?

[@mdgamer5017]

Is it nessecary to use the optical sensor cant we use batteries????

[@TantalumPolytope]

what do you mean? how would batteries replace the optical sensor?

[@Jkauppa]

you could have used a dc coil, like in railgun, in the train itself, running from a battery

[@Jkauppa]

wrap a coil around the track, the train will move, the track will not, because its tied to the track

[@Jkauppa]

yes specifically a dc emf coil setup

[@Jkauppa]

railgun always better than circuit logic

[@andreslopez1776]

Fixed my knews and started some tuition on a vote count driving around the country getting to know the counties and fixing this this base we’re in to know… I love the track work on cars naked them and place 50 tracks on fifty states … take all the roads off the rod-steer place magnetic railway crossing into states and out of countries. I serves this for us and better behaving world. For oems pease I’m at Idaho offering this change How are you…

[@mx1z11]

What are the sizes of these magnets will be making this for science fair 😅

[@mx1z11]

and are there files of the prototype track?

[@nanostrike_pro]

how big is the magnets

[@priyankakapoor1355]

Why did u use the coiled wires?how did it moved the train ahead??

[@cheesemonster7671]

When current passes through a wire, a magnetic field is induced. The field is stronger when wrapped as a coil. Having a ferromagnetic core (such as an iron nail) can make the magnetic field stronger, but an air core (as mentioned in the video, just air in the middle of the coil) can also work

[@clonkex]

They're electromagnets. They create magnetic fields when electricity runs through them. If you turn them on and off at just the right points, each one will pull the train forwards.

[@rroge5]

power consumption?

[@TantalumPolytope]

not much

[@pranav4269]

Plz give link to buy this products

[@ranjankumarnayak1047]

Sir, can you make this project and give it to me?

[@StopaskingformynameYouTube]

Granted it's levitating by magnets, but only bechause you're mechanically supporting it. I thought this was going to be some fun super conductor stuff.

[@SqualidsargeStudios]

You talk about magnets being unstable, but if i might say, so is your microphone.