Creating a Low-Friction Box with Magnetic Tracks

[RetroSpectrum7]

Hello all,

This is my first post here, so please let me know if I'm not in the right section, as I wasn't 100% sure if this was the right place.

I'm making a box that can change volume quickly with an actuator for a small project.
But I need to minimize the friction in moving the wall of the box.

Is there a way to make a magnetic track for the wall to 'slide' on? I don't mind if there are boards sticking out the back of the 'wall' to help balance it (I was going to put wheels on it originally), I just need the inside of the box to be box-like.
I've seen small projects like this:
http://www.miniscience.com/kits/maglev/train.html

What if I basically made a track for the wall like that, placed magnets on the right and left so that it wasn't touching the sides, and pushed it? Would it get stuck?

Is there a way to maybe produce two rails that could attach to the wall that would have nearly no friction? Like below?

Thanks!

 

[NascentOxygen]

Hi RetroSpectrum7, http://img96.imageshack.us/img96/5725/red5e5etimes5e5e45e5e25.gif

Attaching magnets will increase the mass of the moving side; is that likely to upset your plans that movement be speedy? How heavy is the moveable side?

 

[Simon Bridge]

... it also won't be air-tight.

There's all sorts of stuff you can do with magnets - like you could exploit diamagnetic levitation. You pic of the railing looks interesting - just rotate the inner 45 degrees.

There's something nagging the back of my mind about rapidly accelerating magnets inducing funny fields meaning it may be counter productive.

The simple answer to your question:

Is there a way to make a magnetic track for the wall to 'slide' on?

... is "yes", there are lots of ways.

But I'm with NascentOxygen - it could be counterproductive.
I'm not sure you are addressing your design constraints - how fast do you want to move the wall? What are your energy restrictions? How big is this wall? ... and so on.

 

[RetroSpectrum7]

The box should be 3 foot x 3 foot on the open side.
I suspected that might be the case, that it might not be something I could do effectively without making things more difficult.

Thank you guys for the response, I'm going to give this one up and go with some ball bearings, and mount the box's wall on some drawer sliders instead.

 

[sardar]

Hello there,

Thank you for sharing your project idea with us. I can definitely offer some insights on creating a low-friction box with magnetic tracks.

Firstly, using magnetic tracks for the wall of the box to slide on is a great idea. This would significantly reduce friction and make the movement smoother. However, it is important to consider the strength of the magnets and the weight of the wall to ensure that it does not get stuck. You may need to experiment with different magnet strengths and wall weights to find the optimal combination.

Another option to consider is using a type of lubricant, such as a dry lubricant or Teflon spray, on the tracks to further reduce friction. This could also help with any potential sticking issues.

In terms of producing two rails with minimal friction, you could look into using materials with low coefficients of friction, such as Teflon or UHMW (ultra-high-molecular-weight polyethylene). These materials are commonly used in industrial applications for their low friction properties.

I hope this helps and I wish you the best of luck with your project. Let us know how it turns out!