Osaka Water Clock [Saturday Timewaster]

by 27 Comments

The water clock

Osaka Station (大阪駅), the third largest train station in the world, has undergone enormous renovations over the last couple of years, expanding, building up, and improving what’s already there.

Part of that renovation included the installation of an awesome water clock. What makes this clock unique is that it release organized drops of water to make shapes and words. So not only does the clock tell time, but it also makes shapes like musical notes and flowers! It’s definitely something that you’ve gotta see in action:

[yframe url='http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gusJeslMbLc']

Check out the two little kids at 2:30 who find the clock and get excited in the way only little kids can!

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  • http://twitter.com/Samufugu Sam Barrow

    Geez, if I were there, I’d be acting just like those kids at 2:30. I could probably prop myself somewhere and watch it for hours.

  • http://twitter.com/Samufugu Sam Barrow

    Geez, if I were there, I’d be acting just like those kids at 2:30. I could probably prop myself somewhere and watch it for hours.

  • Kincaid42

    sugoi!!!

  • Kincaid42

    sugoi!!!

  • http://twitter.com/Ball_Tazer The Ball Tazer

    Now we won’t have to waste energy on electric clocks.

  • ヽ(´ー｀)ノ

    Shame the watch model doesn’t work quite as well.

  • Hailey

    What do you mean excited in only the way little kids can? I’m pretty sure I’d be right next to them. lol

  • http://twitter.com/shollum Christopher

    It’s almost 20:00, why aren’t those kids at home getting ready for bed?

    I’m still thinking of how to make dirty pictures with it… well, I can’t manage that so I’ll have to stick to making it curse at guests.

  • Anonymous

    That’s really neat; whenever I get around to going to Japan, this would be a cool thing to look for.

  • Anonymous

    Hmm? Wasn’t there already a post about this at Tofugu?

  • http://www.tofugu.com/ Hashi

    I don’t think so. I quickly looked through all of Koichi’s posts and didn’t see anything…

  • Anonymous

    Oh. . .I must be going crazy xD Sorry for the trouble.

    2011/10/9 Disqus

  • Hinoema

    OMG OMG OMG EEEEEE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

    *stares*

    This MUST have a bank of programmable colored LED lights added to ‘paint’ the water as it falls. It must! Then I will move there and watch the pretty all day. XD

  • ヽ(´ー｀)ノ

    It’ll take them 9 years to come out with the Osaka Water Clock Color, but then only 3 years after that to come out with the Osaka Water Clock Advance, which features much more detailed water graphics. Weird how that works.

  • http://www.tofugu.com/ Hashi

    Don’t forget the next generation, the Osaka Water Clock DS, or Dual Stream.

  • Anonymous

    Wow, that is so AWESOME!!!!

  • Leesy

    There’s been one of these near Kyoto Station (in the food area on the way to Aeon) for a while. Though I don’t think they use it as a clock! Very cool though.

  • Dude Man Bro

    Wow this is fucking cool.

  • Mac @ JLPT Boot Camp

    I guess I need to visit Osaka more often.  This thing looks awesome.

  • http://pulse.yahoo.com/_RC3XMUCEZRUAQ36PVX6UJSZT6Q Fernando Ursine

    I think I would be as surprised as (or even more surprised than) the children when seeing that clock :P

  • OneEyedMe

    Awesome! I was just there on October 7th staring at it in amazment! C:

  • http://profiles.google.com/jonadab.theunsightlyone Jonadab the Unsightly One

    I don’t know about color, but there’s definitely special lighting involved.  Specifically, all the lighting in the vicinity of the clock has to flicker at a carefully controlled rate, and the timing of the flicker must be carefully coordinated with the timed release of the water drops (or vice versa) so that the droplets are only lit for very short intervals when they’re in exactly the right position.

    Well, either that or you need antigrav technology, but the flickering light is easier.

    There’s a much simpler demonstration of the same principle at COSI (sort of a combination between a science museum and small indoor amusement park, located in Columbus).  Theirs only uses a single drop of water at a time, so it doesn’t make any pictures or show the time, but they’ve controlled the timing so it looks for all the world like one drop of water is dripping very slowly, and then it appears to hover in midair and then start to levitate back upward…

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