Steam Powered Door












2














I'm no engineer, but I was wondering how a steam-powered door would work. I want it to be difficult to open unless you know how (not a simple "twist the doorknob and open"). There is access to plenty of water and fire in this scenario as well.










share|improve this question



























    2














    I'm no engineer, but I was wondering how a steam-powered door would work. I want it to be difficult to open unless you know how (not a simple "twist the doorknob and open"). There is access to plenty of water and fire in this scenario as well.










    share|improve this question

























      2












      2








      2







      I'm no engineer, but I was wondering how a steam-powered door would work. I want it to be difficult to open unless you know how (not a simple "twist the doorknob and open"). There is access to plenty of water and fire in this scenario as well.










      share|improve this question













      I'm no engineer, but I was wondering how a steam-powered door would work. I want it to be difficult to open unless you know how (not a simple "twist the doorknob and open"). There is access to plenty of water and fire in this scenario as well.







      engineering steampunk






      share|improve this question













      share|improve this question











      share|improve this question




      share|improve this question










      asked 4 hours ago









      BT616

      385




      385






















          2 Answers
          2






          active

          oldest

          votes


















          2














          Hero of Alexandria (c. 10 CE – c. 70 CE) was a Greek mathematician and engineer who was active in the 1st century CE in his native city of Alexandria, Roman Egypt.



          He wrote several books describing very advanced machines, including a fully automated theater play performed by marionettes actuated "by a binary-like system of ropes, knots, and simple machines operated by a rotating cylindrical cogwheel" (Wikipedia).



          More inline with the question, he described an engine which "used air from a closed chamber heated by an altar fire to displace water from a sealed vessel; the water was collected and its weight, pulling on a rope, opened temple doors". (Wikipedia)



          The construction of the machine is described in his book, Pneumatica, section 37.




          The construction of a small temple such that, on lighting a fire, the doors shall open spontaneously, and shut again when the fire is extinguished. Let the proposed temple stand on a pedestal, A B C D, on which lies a small altar, E D.



          Through the altar insert a tube, F G, of which the mouth F is within the altar and the the mouth G is contained in a globe, H, reaching nearly to its centre: the tube must be soldered into the globe, in which a bent siphon, K L M, is placed. Let the hinges of the doors be extended downwards and turn freely on pivots in the base A B C D; and from the hinges let two chains, running into one, be attached, by means of a pulley, to a hollow vessel, N X, which is suspended; while other chains, wound upon the hinges in an opposite direction to the former, and running into one, are attached, by means of a pulley, to a leaden weight, on the descent of which the doors will be shut. Let the outer leg of the siphon K L M lead into the suspended vessel; and through a hole, P, which must be carefully closed afterwards, pour water into the globe enough to fill one haif of it.



          *It will be found that, when the fire has grown hot, the air in the altar becoming heated expands into a larger space; and, passing through the tube F G into the globe, it will drive out the liquid contained there through the siphon K L M into the suspended vessel, which, descending with its weight, will tighten the chains and open the doors. Again, when the fire is extinguished, the rarefied air will escape through the pores in the side of the globe, and the bent siphon, (the extremity of which will be immersed in the water in the suspended vessel) will draw up the liquid in the vessel in order to fill up the void left by the particles removed.



          When the vessel is lightened the weight suspended will preponderate and shut the doors.



          Some in place of water use quicksilver, as it is heavier than water and is easily disunited by fire.



          (Hero of Alexandria, Pneumatica, 37, translation by Bennet Woodcroft, London, 1851.)




          Hero of Alexandria       Hero's pneumatic doors



          Left, a 17th century German portrait of Hero of Alexandria. Right, a diagram illustrating Hero's pneumatic temple doors, as depicted in the 1851 English translation by Bennet Woodcroft.






          share|improve this answer































            3














            Well, if you want a puzzle or lock of some kind, then do that yourself, but the basic action of opening a door is still "Push/Pull/Activate (Input Device).



            Steam is pretty good at pressurizing, but as with all gases, it will want to expand before pressure starts to rise above normal. If you make it a bit longer than it needs to be to fill the doorway, you can fit a hollow space in the bottom. Place that over a chamber with valves to your boiler. When the steam is released into the chamber, it will push up the door with an action that might look similar to a trombone slide. When it's at the top, it can be locked and held in place. Lowering can be as simple as pulling a lever to release the lock.






            share|improve this answer








            New contributor




            anonymous is a new contributor to this site. Take care in asking for clarification, commenting, and answering.
            Check out our Code of Conduct.


















            • And release the pressure in your sliding piston.
              – Willk
              3 hours ago











            Your Answer





            StackExchange.ifUsing("editor", function () {
            return StackExchange.using("mathjaxEditing", function () {
            StackExchange.MarkdownEditor.creationCallbacks.add(function (editor, postfix) {
            StackExchange.mathjaxEditing.prepareWmdForMathJax(editor, postfix, [["$", "$"], ["\\(","\\)"]]);
            });
            });
            }, "mathjax-editing");

            StackExchange.ready(function() {
            var channelOptions = {
            tags: "".split(" "),
            id: "579"
            };
            initTagRenderer("".split(" "), "".split(" "), channelOptions);

            StackExchange.using("externalEditor", function() {
            // Have to fire editor after snippets, if snippets enabled
            if (StackExchange.settings.snippets.snippetsEnabled) {
            StackExchange.using("snippets", function() {
            createEditor();
            });
            }
            else {
            createEditor();
            }
            });

            function createEditor() {
            StackExchange.prepareEditor({
            heartbeatType: 'answer',
            autoActivateHeartbeat: false,
            convertImagesToLinks: false,
            noModals: true,
            showLowRepImageUploadWarning: true,
            reputationToPostImages: null,
            bindNavPrevention: true,
            postfix: "",
            imageUploader: {
            brandingHtml: "Powered by u003ca class="icon-imgur-white" href="https://imgur.com/"u003eu003c/au003e",
            contentPolicyHtml: "User contributions licensed under u003ca href="https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0/"u003ecc by-sa 3.0 with attribution requiredu003c/au003e u003ca href="https://stackoverflow.com/legal/content-policy"u003e(content policy)u003c/au003e",
            allowUrls: true
            },
            noCode: true, onDemand: true,
            discardSelector: ".discard-answer"
            ,immediatelyShowMarkdownHelp:true
            });


            }
            });














            draft saved

            draft discarded


















            StackExchange.ready(
            function () {
            StackExchange.openid.initPostLogin('.new-post-login', 'https%3a%2f%2fworldbuilding.stackexchange.com%2fquestions%2f135779%2fsteam-powered-door%23new-answer', 'question_page');
            }
            );

            Post as a guest















            Required, but never shown

























            2 Answers
            2






            active

            oldest

            votes








            2 Answers
            2






            active

            oldest

            votes









            active

            oldest

            votes






            active

            oldest

            votes









            2














            Hero of Alexandria (c. 10 CE – c. 70 CE) was a Greek mathematician and engineer who was active in the 1st century CE in his native city of Alexandria, Roman Egypt.



            He wrote several books describing very advanced machines, including a fully automated theater play performed by marionettes actuated "by a binary-like system of ropes, knots, and simple machines operated by a rotating cylindrical cogwheel" (Wikipedia).



            More inline with the question, he described an engine which "used air from a closed chamber heated by an altar fire to displace water from a sealed vessel; the water was collected and its weight, pulling on a rope, opened temple doors". (Wikipedia)



            The construction of the machine is described in his book, Pneumatica, section 37.




            The construction of a small temple such that, on lighting a fire, the doors shall open spontaneously, and shut again when the fire is extinguished. Let the proposed temple stand on a pedestal, A B C D, on which lies a small altar, E D.



            Through the altar insert a tube, F G, of which the mouth F is within the altar and the the mouth G is contained in a globe, H, reaching nearly to its centre: the tube must be soldered into the globe, in which a bent siphon, K L M, is placed. Let the hinges of the doors be extended downwards and turn freely on pivots in the base A B C D; and from the hinges let two chains, running into one, be attached, by means of a pulley, to a hollow vessel, N X, which is suspended; while other chains, wound upon the hinges in an opposite direction to the former, and running into one, are attached, by means of a pulley, to a leaden weight, on the descent of which the doors will be shut. Let the outer leg of the siphon K L M lead into the suspended vessel; and through a hole, P, which must be carefully closed afterwards, pour water into the globe enough to fill one haif of it.



            *It will be found that, when the fire has grown hot, the air in the altar becoming heated expands into a larger space; and, passing through the tube F G into the globe, it will drive out the liquid contained there through the siphon K L M into the suspended vessel, which, descending with its weight, will tighten the chains and open the doors. Again, when the fire is extinguished, the rarefied air will escape through the pores in the side of the globe, and the bent siphon, (the extremity of which will be immersed in the water in the suspended vessel) will draw up the liquid in the vessel in order to fill up the void left by the particles removed.



            When the vessel is lightened the weight suspended will preponderate and shut the doors.



            Some in place of water use quicksilver, as it is heavier than water and is easily disunited by fire.



            (Hero of Alexandria, Pneumatica, 37, translation by Bennet Woodcroft, London, 1851.)




            Hero of Alexandria       Hero's pneumatic doors



            Left, a 17th century German portrait of Hero of Alexandria. Right, a diagram illustrating Hero's pneumatic temple doors, as depicted in the 1851 English translation by Bennet Woodcroft.






            share|improve this answer




























              2














              Hero of Alexandria (c. 10 CE – c. 70 CE) was a Greek mathematician and engineer who was active in the 1st century CE in his native city of Alexandria, Roman Egypt.



              He wrote several books describing very advanced machines, including a fully automated theater play performed by marionettes actuated "by a binary-like system of ropes, knots, and simple machines operated by a rotating cylindrical cogwheel" (Wikipedia).



              More inline with the question, he described an engine which "used air from a closed chamber heated by an altar fire to displace water from a sealed vessel; the water was collected and its weight, pulling on a rope, opened temple doors". (Wikipedia)



              The construction of the machine is described in his book, Pneumatica, section 37.




              The construction of a small temple such that, on lighting a fire, the doors shall open spontaneously, and shut again when the fire is extinguished. Let the proposed temple stand on a pedestal, A B C D, on which lies a small altar, E D.



              Through the altar insert a tube, F G, of which the mouth F is within the altar and the the mouth G is contained in a globe, H, reaching nearly to its centre: the tube must be soldered into the globe, in which a bent siphon, K L M, is placed. Let the hinges of the doors be extended downwards and turn freely on pivots in the base A B C D; and from the hinges let two chains, running into one, be attached, by means of a pulley, to a hollow vessel, N X, which is suspended; while other chains, wound upon the hinges in an opposite direction to the former, and running into one, are attached, by means of a pulley, to a leaden weight, on the descent of which the doors will be shut. Let the outer leg of the siphon K L M lead into the suspended vessel; and through a hole, P, which must be carefully closed afterwards, pour water into the globe enough to fill one haif of it.



              *It will be found that, when the fire has grown hot, the air in the altar becoming heated expands into a larger space; and, passing through the tube F G into the globe, it will drive out the liquid contained there through the siphon K L M into the suspended vessel, which, descending with its weight, will tighten the chains and open the doors. Again, when the fire is extinguished, the rarefied air will escape through the pores in the side of the globe, and the bent siphon, (the extremity of which will be immersed in the water in the suspended vessel) will draw up the liquid in the vessel in order to fill up the void left by the particles removed.



              When the vessel is lightened the weight suspended will preponderate and shut the doors.



              Some in place of water use quicksilver, as it is heavier than water and is easily disunited by fire.



              (Hero of Alexandria, Pneumatica, 37, translation by Bennet Woodcroft, London, 1851.)




              Hero of Alexandria       Hero's pneumatic doors



              Left, a 17th century German portrait of Hero of Alexandria. Right, a diagram illustrating Hero's pneumatic temple doors, as depicted in the 1851 English translation by Bennet Woodcroft.






              share|improve this answer


























                2












                2








                2






                Hero of Alexandria (c. 10 CE – c. 70 CE) was a Greek mathematician and engineer who was active in the 1st century CE in his native city of Alexandria, Roman Egypt.



                He wrote several books describing very advanced machines, including a fully automated theater play performed by marionettes actuated "by a binary-like system of ropes, knots, and simple machines operated by a rotating cylindrical cogwheel" (Wikipedia).



                More inline with the question, he described an engine which "used air from a closed chamber heated by an altar fire to displace water from a sealed vessel; the water was collected and its weight, pulling on a rope, opened temple doors". (Wikipedia)



                The construction of the machine is described in his book, Pneumatica, section 37.




                The construction of a small temple such that, on lighting a fire, the doors shall open spontaneously, and shut again when the fire is extinguished. Let the proposed temple stand on a pedestal, A B C D, on which lies a small altar, E D.



                Through the altar insert a tube, F G, of which the mouth F is within the altar and the the mouth G is contained in a globe, H, reaching nearly to its centre: the tube must be soldered into the globe, in which a bent siphon, K L M, is placed. Let the hinges of the doors be extended downwards and turn freely on pivots in the base A B C D; and from the hinges let two chains, running into one, be attached, by means of a pulley, to a hollow vessel, N X, which is suspended; while other chains, wound upon the hinges in an opposite direction to the former, and running into one, are attached, by means of a pulley, to a leaden weight, on the descent of which the doors will be shut. Let the outer leg of the siphon K L M lead into the suspended vessel; and through a hole, P, which must be carefully closed afterwards, pour water into the globe enough to fill one haif of it.



                *It will be found that, when the fire has grown hot, the air in the altar becoming heated expands into a larger space; and, passing through the tube F G into the globe, it will drive out the liquid contained there through the siphon K L M into the suspended vessel, which, descending with its weight, will tighten the chains and open the doors. Again, when the fire is extinguished, the rarefied air will escape through the pores in the side of the globe, and the bent siphon, (the extremity of which will be immersed in the water in the suspended vessel) will draw up the liquid in the vessel in order to fill up the void left by the particles removed.



                When the vessel is lightened the weight suspended will preponderate and shut the doors.



                Some in place of water use quicksilver, as it is heavier than water and is easily disunited by fire.



                (Hero of Alexandria, Pneumatica, 37, translation by Bennet Woodcroft, London, 1851.)




                Hero of Alexandria       Hero's pneumatic doors



                Left, a 17th century German portrait of Hero of Alexandria. Right, a diagram illustrating Hero's pneumatic temple doors, as depicted in the 1851 English translation by Bennet Woodcroft.






                share|improve this answer














                Hero of Alexandria (c. 10 CE – c. 70 CE) was a Greek mathematician and engineer who was active in the 1st century CE in his native city of Alexandria, Roman Egypt.



                He wrote several books describing very advanced machines, including a fully automated theater play performed by marionettes actuated "by a binary-like system of ropes, knots, and simple machines operated by a rotating cylindrical cogwheel" (Wikipedia).



                More inline with the question, he described an engine which "used air from a closed chamber heated by an altar fire to displace water from a sealed vessel; the water was collected and its weight, pulling on a rope, opened temple doors". (Wikipedia)



                The construction of the machine is described in his book, Pneumatica, section 37.




                The construction of a small temple such that, on lighting a fire, the doors shall open spontaneously, and shut again when the fire is extinguished. Let the proposed temple stand on a pedestal, A B C D, on which lies a small altar, E D.



                Through the altar insert a tube, F G, of which the mouth F is within the altar and the the mouth G is contained in a globe, H, reaching nearly to its centre: the tube must be soldered into the globe, in which a bent siphon, K L M, is placed. Let the hinges of the doors be extended downwards and turn freely on pivots in the base A B C D; and from the hinges let two chains, running into one, be attached, by means of a pulley, to a hollow vessel, N X, which is suspended; while other chains, wound upon the hinges in an opposite direction to the former, and running into one, are attached, by means of a pulley, to a leaden weight, on the descent of which the doors will be shut. Let the outer leg of the siphon K L M lead into the suspended vessel; and through a hole, P, which must be carefully closed afterwards, pour water into the globe enough to fill one haif of it.



                *It will be found that, when the fire has grown hot, the air in the altar becoming heated expands into a larger space; and, passing through the tube F G into the globe, it will drive out the liquid contained there through the siphon K L M into the suspended vessel, which, descending with its weight, will tighten the chains and open the doors. Again, when the fire is extinguished, the rarefied air will escape through the pores in the side of the globe, and the bent siphon, (the extremity of which will be immersed in the water in the suspended vessel) will draw up the liquid in the vessel in order to fill up the void left by the particles removed.



                When the vessel is lightened the weight suspended will preponderate and shut the doors.



                Some in place of water use quicksilver, as it is heavier than water and is easily disunited by fire.



                (Hero of Alexandria, Pneumatica, 37, translation by Bennet Woodcroft, London, 1851.)




                Hero of Alexandria       Hero's pneumatic doors



                Left, a 17th century German portrait of Hero of Alexandria. Right, a diagram illustrating Hero's pneumatic temple doors, as depicted in the 1851 English translation by Bennet Woodcroft.







                share|improve this answer














                share|improve this answer



                share|improve this answer








                edited 2 hours ago

























                answered 2 hours ago









                AlexP

                35.4k779136




                35.4k779136























                    3














                    Well, if you want a puzzle or lock of some kind, then do that yourself, but the basic action of opening a door is still "Push/Pull/Activate (Input Device).



                    Steam is pretty good at pressurizing, but as with all gases, it will want to expand before pressure starts to rise above normal. If you make it a bit longer than it needs to be to fill the doorway, you can fit a hollow space in the bottom. Place that over a chamber with valves to your boiler. When the steam is released into the chamber, it will push up the door with an action that might look similar to a trombone slide. When it's at the top, it can be locked and held in place. Lowering can be as simple as pulling a lever to release the lock.






                    share|improve this answer








                    New contributor




                    anonymous is a new contributor to this site. Take care in asking for clarification, commenting, and answering.
                    Check out our Code of Conduct.


















                    • And release the pressure in your sliding piston.
                      – Willk
                      3 hours ago
















                    3














                    Well, if you want a puzzle or lock of some kind, then do that yourself, but the basic action of opening a door is still "Push/Pull/Activate (Input Device).



                    Steam is pretty good at pressurizing, but as with all gases, it will want to expand before pressure starts to rise above normal. If you make it a bit longer than it needs to be to fill the doorway, you can fit a hollow space in the bottom. Place that over a chamber with valves to your boiler. When the steam is released into the chamber, it will push up the door with an action that might look similar to a trombone slide. When it's at the top, it can be locked and held in place. Lowering can be as simple as pulling a lever to release the lock.






                    share|improve this answer








                    New contributor




                    anonymous is a new contributor to this site. Take care in asking for clarification, commenting, and answering.
                    Check out our Code of Conduct.


















                    • And release the pressure in your sliding piston.
                      – Willk
                      3 hours ago














                    3












                    3








                    3






                    Well, if you want a puzzle or lock of some kind, then do that yourself, but the basic action of opening a door is still "Push/Pull/Activate (Input Device).



                    Steam is pretty good at pressurizing, but as with all gases, it will want to expand before pressure starts to rise above normal. If you make it a bit longer than it needs to be to fill the doorway, you can fit a hollow space in the bottom. Place that over a chamber with valves to your boiler. When the steam is released into the chamber, it will push up the door with an action that might look similar to a trombone slide. When it's at the top, it can be locked and held in place. Lowering can be as simple as pulling a lever to release the lock.






                    share|improve this answer








                    New contributor




                    anonymous is a new contributor to this site. Take care in asking for clarification, commenting, and answering.
                    Check out our Code of Conduct.









                    Well, if you want a puzzle or lock of some kind, then do that yourself, but the basic action of opening a door is still "Push/Pull/Activate (Input Device).



                    Steam is pretty good at pressurizing, but as with all gases, it will want to expand before pressure starts to rise above normal. If you make it a bit longer than it needs to be to fill the doorway, you can fit a hollow space in the bottom. Place that over a chamber with valves to your boiler. When the steam is released into the chamber, it will push up the door with an action that might look similar to a trombone slide. When it's at the top, it can be locked and held in place. Lowering can be as simple as pulling a lever to release the lock.







                    share|improve this answer








                    New contributor




                    anonymous is a new contributor to this site. Take care in asking for clarification, commenting, and answering.
                    Check out our Code of Conduct.









                    share|improve this answer



                    share|improve this answer






                    New contributor




                    anonymous is a new contributor to this site. Take care in asking for clarification, commenting, and answering.
                    Check out our Code of Conduct.









                    answered 3 hours ago









                    anonymous

                    311




                    311




                    New contributor




                    anonymous is a new contributor to this site. Take care in asking for clarification, commenting, and answering.
                    Check out our Code of Conduct.





                    New contributor





                    anonymous is a new contributor to this site. Take care in asking for clarification, commenting, and answering.
                    Check out our Code of Conduct.






                    anonymous is a new contributor to this site. Take care in asking for clarification, commenting, and answering.
                    Check out our Code of Conduct.












                    • And release the pressure in your sliding piston.
                      – Willk
                      3 hours ago


















                    • And release the pressure in your sliding piston.
                      – Willk
                      3 hours ago
















                    And release the pressure in your sliding piston.
                    – Willk
                    3 hours ago




                    And release the pressure in your sliding piston.
                    – Willk
                    3 hours ago


















                    draft saved

                    draft discarded




















































                    Thanks for contributing an answer to Worldbuilding Stack Exchange!


                    • Please be sure to answer the question. Provide details and share your research!

                    But avoid



                    • Asking for help, clarification, or responding to other answers.

                    • Making statements based on opinion; back them up with references or personal experience.


                    Use MathJax to format equations. MathJax reference.


                    To learn more, see our tips on writing great answers.





                    Some of your past answers have not been well-received, and you're in danger of being blocked from answering.


                    Please pay close attention to the following guidance:


                    • Please be sure to answer the question. Provide details and share your research!

                    But avoid



                    • Asking for help, clarification, or responding to other answers.

                    • Making statements based on opinion; back them up with references or personal experience.


                    To learn more, see our tips on writing great answers.




                    draft saved


                    draft discarded














                    StackExchange.ready(
                    function () {
                    StackExchange.openid.initPostLogin('.new-post-login', 'https%3a%2f%2fworldbuilding.stackexchange.com%2fquestions%2f135779%2fsteam-powered-door%23new-answer', 'question_page');
                    }
                    );

                    Post as a guest















                    Required, but never shown





















































                    Required, but never shown














                    Required, but never shown












                    Required, but never shown







                    Required, but never shown

































                    Required, but never shown














                    Required, but never shown












                    Required, but never shown







                    Required, but never shown







                    Popular posts from this blog

                    Ellipse (mathématiques)

                    Quarter-circle Tiles

                    Mont Emei