Driven spinning top

Abstract

A modified classical spinning top ( 1 ) and its horizontal driving ( 6 ) without mechanical restraining elements are disclosed. The modified classical spinning top has a small permanent magnet ( 2 ) on the rotation axis ( 3 ), at its upper part and coaxial with it. A second permanent magnet ( 4 ) with the opposite polarity to the first one, it means in an attraction configuration, is manually moved horizontally ( 7 ) above the top of the spinning top. The interaction of attraction of the two permanent magnets determines a horizontal driving ( 6 ) of the spinning top without modification of the rotation movement. The new toy is more interesting, interactive and attractive than the classical one.

1 . I claim that using the last generation of commercially available permanent magnets (based on Neodimium with small dimensions and strong interactions at distances up to 40 mm) a horizontally driven spinning top can be realized. The horizontal driving is more than 5 mm/sec and up to 15 mm/sec in a desired direction without any mechanical contact. 
   
   
       2 . The said driven spinning top uses the interaction between a small permanent magnet on the rotation axis, at its upper end a second bigger permanent magnet manually moved horizontally above the top of the spinning top at a distance more than 10 mm and up to 40 mm. We call this configuration two permanent magnets configuration. 
   
   
       3 . In the said two permanent magnets configuration it is essential to be used two permanent magnets and not a permanent magnet and a magnetizable body. In the second case the interaction is noticeable at much smaller distances and the driving is hard or impossible to be obtained because the two bodies stick together (pick up) ending the horizontal driving. 
   
   
       4 . The magnets of  claim 1 , wherein said driven spinning top, using the said two permanent magnets configuration is interactive and has a richer dynamics (possible with a chaotic component) that rises the interest for fun and curiosity and educational and didactic and scientific investigation at different levels of understanding of different ages; the new dynamics should be deeply investigated both experimentally and theoretically by using numerical methods for solving the equations of motion adapted to the new said two permanent magnets configuration.