
This wobbly-looking spline had encoded the
Cartesian X-Y coordinates of the circle on the
plane into polar coordinates around an axis of
rotation. The Y dimensions of the circle were now
encoded as deviations in radial distance from the
axis, and the X dimensions of the circle were now
encoded as movement back and forth parallel to
the axis.
DOING THE BEST I CAM
Once I had the magic spline, the rest was
just hours and hours of tedious CAD work! I
encircled the spline with a track that would hold
and guide the ball-shaped end of a follower. I
added structural elements to allow the track to
rotate around its original axis of rotation. Then I
cr ...