Sundial Design Tools

Description

DT Online has created online tools to help calculate the Hour Lines for different Sundial types. They are:

Sundial Calculator - a Google Sheet (Google account needed for editing)
Horizontal Sundial Designer - Parametric design tool.
Vertical Sundial Designer - Parametric design tool.
Polar Sundial Designer - Parametric design tool.

See Packaging Designer User Guide for further information.

Features and Applications

The DT Online Design Tools will calculate either the number of degrees to measure the Hour Line angle away from the Noon position or the distance away from it as appropriate to the type of Sundial.

The Google Sheets Sundial Calculator accepts the Sundial location Latitude as the main input and returns values for all Hour Lines as follows:
- for Horizontal and Vertical Sundials, the number of degrees each one falls away from the central Noon line;
- for Polar Sundials, the distances along the Dial Plate of each Hour LIne for a given height of Gnomon.

Note: In order to use the Google Sheets, you need to be logged in to a google account. You can then click on 'Make A Copy' from the 'File' menu to give you a spreadsheet you can work on.

The Horizontal and Vertical Sundial Designers accept the Sundial location Latitude and your chosen dimensions for the completed Dial Plate as inputs and output the following:
- a table showing the number of degrees each Hour Line falls away from the central Noon line;
- a CAD drawing of the resulting Dial Plate which can be used as a Template.
The Polar Sundial Designer offers a choice of either a Flat Dial Plate or a Curved Dial Plate and a table which enables inputs of your chosen dimensions for the completed Dial Plate (e.g. Gnomon height, width of plate, radius of curvature for curved plate option) and outputs the following:
- a table showing the distances each Hour Line away from the central Noon line;
- CAD drawings of elevations of the resulting Dial Plates plus Templates which can be used to transfer the Hour Lines on to your chosen material (note that curved plates can provide for a greater range of hours).