Electormagnetic drive method and apparatus for driving a rotationally stabilized magnetically levitated object

DETAILED DESCRIPTION The present invention is directed to further improvements in the aforesaid methods and apparatus for extending the duration of levitation of a rotationally stabilized magnetic levitation device, such as the levitated spinning top disclosed in U.
S.
Pat.
No.
5,404,062 and U.
S.
patent application Ser.
No.
08/413,949, from its normal duration of several minutes to durations of many hours, or essentially indefinitely using a horizontal magnetic field.
Although the present invention may have other applications not specifically described herein, an important object of the invention is to increase the educational, recreational and commercial capabilities and uses of the aforesaid rotationally stabilized magnetic levitation devices and to extend their utility to many fields of endeavor.
According to the present invention, a flat base magnet is magnetized such that the field lines of its magnetic field are substantially perpendicular to the flat surfaces of the base magnet and the magnet of the spinning top is magnetized such that the field lines of its main magnetic field are substantially parallel to the spin axis of the spinning top.
A horizontal component of a magnetic field is located in the region of the spinning top and is pulsed at a selected repetition rate of about 15-30 pulses per second (pps), or at multiples of the selected repetition rate, e.
g.
, 20 pps or 40 pps.
The pulsed magnetic field is preferably achieved by locating one or more conductive wire coils in an appropriate position or positions with respect to the magnet of the spinning top so that when a pulsed dc voltage is applied to the coil a pulsed horizontal field is generated at the spinning top.
The pulsed magnetic field may be applied before or after the top is spun either manually or by any other means.
To operate the system, the spinning top is subjected to the horizontal component of the pulsed magnetic field at a pulse repetition rate less than the spin rate.
As the rotational speed or spin rate of the top decreases naturally because of drag, the top will couple to the pulsed magnetic field generated by the coil or coils