How to make a periscope with your own hands

Often in the war films one can observe how the serviceman watches from the trench behind the enemy through a cunning device. The "eyes" of this device rise above the parapet, the observer is located below, inaccessible to the bullets of enemy snipers. The name of this telescope is a periscope. Who invented it and can you make a periscope with your own hands?

Invention

The very word "periscope" in free translation from Old Hellenic sounds roughly like "looking around". It is known about the prototype of this device since the 15th century, and it was invented, as it often happens, not for what it is used for now - observations of the enemy during the military operations.

The simplest periscope with their own hands was made by Christian pilgrims, fixing on the stick at an angle of 45 ° two pieces of a mirror.

This simple adaptation was used to be able to see over the heads of the crowd at the festival in Aachen. For the time being the modest role of the amusing toy was obtained, but already in the 17th century the situation changed.

Application

Humanity fights the whole history of its existence. Moreover, the leap of development of deadly devices killing at a distance, occurred almost instantaneously from the point of view of world history. In place of spears and sling came bows and crossbows. The arrows began to reach the enemy at unprecedented distances, the power of the shot and the accuracy of the shooters grew steadily.

Not surprisingly, the handicraftsmen soon wondered how to make a periscope that allows one to observe the movements of the enemy while remaining invulnerable. In the 17th century, the periscope began to be used during the siege of fortresses to track the besiegers, without risking being hit by an arrow or an arbalest bolt.

And in the middle of the 19th century, when in many states massive attempts were made to build submarine vessels, the periscope almost immediately became an integral part of them. His device could not be better suited for surveillance of conventional surface ships. Moreover, observation could be conducted covertly, not surfacing to the surface, and this is the most important requirement in conducting military operations.

Homemade simple periscope

The simplest periscope with their own hands is not difficult at all. In order to acquire a means of secretive observation, it is necessary to stock up with two small mirrors. You can buy a round cosmetic mirror, or you can cut with a glass cutter (who owns such skills) two mirrors of a rectangular shape.

The next thing you need is a case. Here, fantasy is not limited to any framework. Any oblong object from a fairly solid, but amenable material. The box, narrow and long, from under sweets will approach.

The periscope is shown in the figure. The transformation of the box from monstrance into a means of espionage is as follows:

- At the bottom and top of the body are cut inspection holes - on opposite sides, as shown in the diagram.

- Inside the case, mirrors are mounted at an angle of 45 ° to the vertical axis. Mounting mirrors should provide for the possibility of their adjustment, it will need to be done later and to achieve that the periscope could be seen objects of observation, rather than the inside of the device.

One of the options, how to make a periscope with adjustable mirrors, is shown in an additional scheme. Mirror is glued to the base of multilayer plywood, along its edges in 3 points there are adjusting bolts. To ensure that the mirror always occupies a stable position, a compressed spring is inserted between the mounting plate and the base.

We complicate the construction

The simplest homemade periscope will not allow us to examine in detail the object located in the distance. It would be tempting to combine the capabilities of a periscope and a telescope. A variant of making a periscope with the function of approaching distant objects is shown in the diagram.

The basis is still the same simple periscope, but two new elements are added to it: the lens and the eyepiece, taken from the ready telescope. A little understanding of the basics of optics, having become acquainted with the options for manufacturing self-made telescopes-refractors, lenses for the lens can be selected and most.

When assembling a periscope with your own hands based on the details of the finished telescope, it is necessary to ensure strict execution of one rule (circled in red). The final distance between the lens and the eyepiece should be exactly the same as it was for the telescope, taken as a basis.

It is also worth taking care of the possibility of adjusting (leveling) the focal length to adjust the sharpness of the instrument. On the diagram the eyepiece is inserted into a special ocular tube.