Rufus Butler Seder is an American inventor, artist, and entrepreneur, best known for his invention of “scanimation,” also called barrier-grid animation or picket-fence animation. Scanimation animates static images using vertical lines on transparent sheets, creating the illusion of motion when moved. Seder’s children’s books, such as Gallop! and Waddle!, are popular for their page-turning movement.
In this Grand Illusions video, host Tim Rowett shares Seder’s latest optical toys and inventions. From the caption:
“The first toy Tim demonstrates is a hand held battery operated fan, which has a row of LEDs along one of the fan blades. It is called JURASSIC WORLD FANIMATION, and as the fan blades spin, the LEDs are switched on and off in such a way that we see animated images when we look at the fan. As the name suggests, a variety of dinosaurs appear, walking or flying across the screen.”
“PETIT CHAT is the latest of Rufus’s animated books, this one aimed at the French market. As the name suggests, the book is full of animations showing animated cats in a variety of situations.
“Finally, the MAGNIFISCOPE (Patent Pending) is a viewer that uses six Fresnel lenses to show a series of pictures which create an animation. The pictures come on a paper strip that is wound around a central core, and can be quickly changed with a different strip, when you want to see a different animation!”
Find Grand Illusions on YouTube and at Grand-Illusions.com.
Plus, enjoy more optical toys and more from Grand Illusions:
• Magic Moving Images
• Scanimated Optical Illusion
• The Mephisto Spiral – Part magic trick, part optical illusion
• The Tippe Top
• Vintage coin banks with amusing mechanisms
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