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The classic bobbing or drinking bird toy has amused kids and adults for years. It appears to be perpetual motion (impossible) but is actually a heat engine with a lot of thermodynamics going on. Although the bird is often thought to be a recent invention it was invented in 1945 and patented in 1946. The "toy" was the brainchild of to PHD candidates, Miles V. Sullivan and George H. Shackley. The science is so complex that it has been the basis of several thermodynamics courses.

The classic bird is made from two glass bulbs joined by a glass tube. The tube extends almost to the bottom of the bottom bulb. It is joined to the top bulb but only at the end. The bulb contains some fluid which evaporates and condenses easily at about room temperature. The bird so far is similar in construction to the "love meters" which move fluids from one bulb to the other based on the heat of your hand.

The other parts of the bird are a bird beak or head made of absorbent material, a pivot which lets the bird balance on a stand, and a glass of water for the bird to dip its beak into. The actual operation of the bird is the result of several gas laws, evaporative cooling and, pressure changed due to heat, leverage and showmanship!

What happens is:

  • The birds felt (or similar) head is dampened with water and positioned in front of a glass of water located so that the beak will swing down into the water if it moves forward about the pivot.
  • The water on the felt evaporates cooling the head, creating a vacuum in the gases (through condensation of the gas there) and subsequently sucking up fluid from the bottom bulb
  • This makes the head heavier and it swings down dipping the nose into the water.
  • The water absorbs into the beak fabric, warming the fabric and the bulb, which in turn warms the gases in the head.
  • The warmed gases expand increasing the top bulb pressure and expelling the fluid back into the bottom bulb
  • The head (now lighter as the fluid is gone) raises, the water starts to evaporate cooling the head and restarting the cycle
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15y ago

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