The first new compass since 1936 | Hacker News Reader

The first new compass since 1936

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67 points1970-01-0155 comments

In the demo there is a cut in the video where the needle abrubtly stops. The cut is visible because the lighting is slightly different.

That's a really good catch. Didn't notice it my first time watching it. I suppose that either way it beats the old method but that's very weird to do that to the test.

Might possibly be a new I frame, the embedded video doesn't seem to be all that high quality.

nah, go frame by frame, you can see light reflecting differently from the needle

And from the copper around it...

That cut is so obvious they're not even trying.

maybe it isn't nefarious

Well, based on the speed of the needle and what I know of damped motion because of the generation of eddy currents that did not at all look like the same thing.

It's been the source of a lot of headaches for me (specifically: windmill cogging), there is no way that that needle stopped in the way it did in the video.

Re-watched on computer monitor this time. The cut is between 00:00:19 and 00:00:20 of the demo.

i asked about this in the comment section and my comment got deleted

Agree, I've also seen other comments that note this getting removed. I'm now shadowbanned from commenting on the video. It would be great if more people noted this issue so that some of them might not be moderated and blocked.

The inhibition of movement via eddy currents works best while the needle is moving fast, so you can still end up with smaller oscillations for a while - the apparent jump-cut to a stationary needle could be hiding that.

It's far easier to just use a compass with a needle brake - manually dampen the oscillation using the brake (and let go to ensure you aren't holding an incorrect reading) and you get a reading quickly.

Not sure holding a break and making sure to release it to have a correct reading is any easier than something like this (if this is real).

No, they're right and besides the video is fake so there is a fair chance this is a scam.

a scam? like, a dishonest stunt to take our money?

i do see the comments about the mysterious needle stop edit

Would you mind checking again? I haven't found any new comments that note the spliced video and old ones I have replied to as well got removed. If someone knows a way to unremove comments, this is the link to one: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eiDhbZ8-BZI&lc=UgzCu8FPM4CtR...

The comments on this site (HN) may be what most people are talking about. Youtube comments are too easily censored, so they probably will never manage to stick around.

What's the scam? Bad guerrilla marketing? There isn't a call to action or advertisement or product to buy.

What’s with the period thing? Do people edit that into their comments after the fact or something?

I think so as you can't delete a comment once it has children.

Ah so saving face

publicity stunt, maybe a lie but based on what we currently know, i wouldn't call it a scam

Somehow YouTube inserted this video into my feed when it had an extremely small number of views. I am not a compass technology fan or outdoor orienteering person or anything, but I do like novel and elegant technology. People complain about the YouTube algorithm but it's actually pretty good most of the time, I think.

Sometimes it's pretty great and pops a video with only a few views into my feed that totally fits my interests. Sometimes my entire feed is Kitchen Nightmares episodes because I happened to watch one or two yesterday.

It's possible that you got the recommendation because other people with similar interests to you were following the link posted on HN.

Yeah it came up on my feed four days ago.

The author released the design as public domain, very commendable.

Why is this called a new type of compass, while its the same compass with an additional component. I have no interest in compasses and but looking at the video, its so simple it should already exist.

Because it's not a fluid filled compass and it's not one that has a disk blocking the map, or any other existing compass. What would you consider it? And yeah most the of the best inventions are that way. Imagine somebody had to invent a wheel. So simple it should already exist

well, it doesn't work as he described, there is cut in the middle where the needle is stopped offscreen

knock it off. make the observation about the edit and suspicion. do not say it doesn't work

yes, everyone in this thread knows there is a mysterious edit and many are suspicious

the effect he describes exists, but it is far smaller than he wants to so he cheated instead of being honest. No time for liars

What else do you call a compass that uses a different mechanism to achieve a new feature? Weird thing to be upset about?

I posted this 5 days ago and it was marked [dupe].

https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=46462742

This post appears to be karma farming.

I posted this 6 days ago and it was reposted today via the second-chance pool. No karma farming here.

https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=26998308

I am not a compass-nerd at all, and wonder: why don't we all use electronic compasses these days? Or, why use compasses at all? easier ways of navigating have been developed.

Multiple reasons:

1. A traditional compass is cheaper. They are so cheap they are built into the caps of ultra-cheap hiking sticks.

2. Traditional compasses don't need recharging.

3. Traditional compasses don't seem to be as easily fooled by stray EM noise. It could be the inertial dampening of the mass of the needle, but I've been in the woods where expensive electronic compasses misfired, but the old-fashioned one still worked just fine.

4. Dedicated devices have far lower usage hurdles. If I'm hiking, a glance at the top of my stick tells me the general (8-point) direction I'm going. An electronic compass at a minimum requires me to fish out a device and turn it on, or open an app.

5. If you aren't navigating by precise map measurements, all you really need is 8-point information (that is, "northwest" instead of 281 degrees). Needles in a circle are perfect for this; digital degrees are not.

The reasons listed already, plus many events that involve navigation (like fell running) specifically ban electronic equipment.

We do use electronic compass. That’s how google maps on your phone knows which way you are pointing.

Untrue. Google maps infers direction from multiple time-separated locations - that is, your velocity vector. If you don't move, it guesses - and is quite often wrong.

No. You can see blue emit from your position in the direction your phone is pointing. If you turn around, it will turn around too. It uses the built in compass for this.

Magnetic induction damping compasses are widely available???

I think Brunton invented them in 1894.

Magnetic induction damping compasses have traditionally used a flat plate under the needle in order to arrest the motion of the needle. This component is not transparent. By removing the plate and adding the ring, you can see through the face, providing the benefits of a liquid damped compass without the possibility of a bubble forming.

Interesting, maybe new for pocket compasses. I had a marine plotting compass that used a massive copper cylindrical housing, with a sapphire glass bottom and window. It was very well damped. It was made in the 1940s, presumably when yachts were mostly wooden. (More modern boats would usually need significant compensation) or maybe it wasn’t for marine use? But anyway, it was a great plotting compass that I used extensively on my little fiberglass weekender sloop. Better than the westmarine garbage mounted on the cabin bulkhead by a long shot.

Lots of liquid damped compasses do not have a transparent base. The liquid is very good at protecting the needle (induction compasses often use a lock), prevents condensation, stabilises temperature, and is noncompressible for diving. Induction compasses tend to be used for fast reading whilst off-level, so tend only be useful for sighting compasses. TBH I am not sure even map compasses grain a lot from transparent dials, it is more that they are making the baseplate and top from transparent plastic and have no need to make the bottom from something else.

That's because the magnetic needle's orientation will only induce meaningful flux in a cross section large enough for it to have any damping effect. That braking effect is more or less proportional to the number of fieldlines cut and diminishes (from memory) to the cube of the size of the air gap.

Yes that's stated clearly in the video

Yes, but aren't transparent.

I think there are better ways of admitting you didn't even manage to watch the first few mins of the video.

I don't know about the authenticity of his claims, but his enthusiasm is really infectious!

I don't know either, but why fake the video if it is real?

Because humans are interesting creatures that do unexpected things.

The cut in the demo (12:18) is very odd and makes me wonder if it’s real.

Why was this flagged?

It looks like it’s because people latched on to that supposed “cut” in the video.

I’ve watched this guys stuff for years, and was excited about this making it to the front page. Very disappointing.

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