No, It's Not CGI... Watch Scientists Levitate These Objects With Nothing But Sounds Waves
January 3, 2014
Photo: Everett Collection
The essence of levitation technology is the countervailing of gravity.
It is known that an ultrasound standing wave is capable of suspending small particles at its sound pressure nodes and, so far, this method has been used to levitate lightweight particles, small creatures, and water droplets.
Okay, this is not how they pulled off the famous levitation scene in the 1973 horror classic, The Exorcist, but Japanese scientists Yoichi Ochiai, Jun Rekimoto and Takayuki Hoshi have released footage of their new series of acoustic levitation experiments that demonstrate the power of sound.
Their manipulation system has two original features. One is the direction of the ultrasound beam, which is arbitrary because the force acting toward its center is also utilized. The other is the manipulation principle by which a localized standing wave is generated at an arbitrary position and moved three-dimensionally by opposed and ultrasonic phased arrays.
They experimentally confirmed that various materials could be manipulated by our proposed method, and here is the proof:
Dogs Are Forced To Wear The Things They Steal — And It’s Hilarious
Meet Nazgul: The Dog Who Crashed An Olympic Ski Race And Nearly Won
Bill Murray Says This Painting 'Saved His Life' — And It Still Inspires Visitors Today
Professor Watches His Student Compete At The Olympics After She Requested An Extension On An Assignment
He Lost Everything And Had To Give Up His Dog — Then Strangers Brought Her Back Home
10 Powerful Inventions Where Helping Others Came Before Profit
Watch This Clever Crow Solve A Cookie Problem In Real Time
James Van Der Beek Has Passed. But What He Said Before He Died, We All Need To Hear
You Have To See How This Dad Gives His Daughter A Horse Riding Experience
Snowplow Driver Spots Two Boys Shoveling — Then Reverses To Help
He Ordered A Doctor Bag — But The Size Has Him Laughing Uncontrollably
