Operating Instructions
- The device switches on automatically, along with other elements of knowledge and entertainment in the MOTIO Centre.
- Gently insert the light bulb, one at a time, into the electromagnetic field. When you feel the slightest resistance, carefully release it from your grip.
- If it hovers above (or below) the centre of the electromagnetic field, you can turn the filament on or off using the switch on the wooden platform.
- The levitating bulb can also be gently spun around its vertical axis.
Before turning off the electricity in the room, please place the bulbs freely on the table so that they remain disconnected even shortly after the power is turned back on (e.g., in the morning before the centre opens).
Interactivity
The device demonstrates the principle of magnetic levitation combined with wireless power transmission. When the inductor is connected to the power grid, the floating bulb lights up. An added feature is the ability to spin the levitating light source. This practical demonstration illustrates the principle behind charging modern electronics (e.g., smartphones), enhanced by an aesthetic experience.
Educational Significance – Exhibit Concept
In technical practice, non-stationary magnetic fields are highly significant. These fields are characterized by physical quantities that vary over time – meaning their magnitude or direction changes.
Sources of non-stationary magnetic fields include:
- time-varying current through a stationary conductor (or a moving charged particle),
- a moving conductor carrying current (regardless of whether the current is constant or time-varying),
- a moving magnet or electromagnet,
- a time-varying electric field.
Since the second half of the 19th century, it has been known that processes in non-stationary magnetic fields are always accompanied by the emergence of non-stationary electric fields. These are electromagnetic phenomena, where the electric and magnetic fields are inseparably linked, forming a unified electromagnetic field.
The most well-known example is the phenomenon that occurs when a permanent magnet moves inside a coil. The moving magnet generates a non-stationary magnetic field, which induces an electric field. This results in an induced electromotive voltage between the ends of the coil, and an induced electric current flows through the closed circuit. This phenomenon is known as electromagnetic induction.
