Scioptic ball

 ( Optical Devices ) 

The scioptic ball is a universal joint allowing an optical instrument mounted on a ball to be swiveled to point anywhere in a wide arc. It was inspired by studies of the human eye. It has a number of applications. The scioptic ball may provide a firm anchor for a microscope, camera or telescope allowing it to be swiveled in all directions, for example to follow the course of an eclipse or for drawing panorama. Scioptic balls have been used as , projecting images from the outside on walls in darkened rooms. Scioptic balls have been used simply as light sources. It was an early example of a type of wide-angle lens.

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History Daniel Schwenter (1585–1636), professor of mathematics and oriental languages, developed the scioptic ball in 1636. In 1685, Johann Zahn illustrated a large workshop camera obscura for Sun observations using the telescope and scioptic ball.

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Sources

• Scioptic ball example in museum
• Scioptic ball example in museum

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