Obviously sterling engines have already been made widely and they are a very popular desk toy to try and create. My objective is to create a multi-cylinder sterling engine but also incorporate an industrial and mechanized aesthetic.
The sterling engine in itself is a motor, and its dynamic and cyclical movements give off a very mechanical feeling from observation. My goal is to make a sterling motor that is fully functional but also looks industrial in nature. When I think of an industrial aesthetic I think along the lines of the Industrial Revolution with lots of metal, steam jetting out of vents, hot furnaces, and hectic movement all over the place. While I most definitely will not be able to capture all of these effects, I want the dynamic portions of the motor (flywheel, crankshaft, pistons, etc) to give off the impression as if it were to fit into scenario like the Industrial Revolution. Similar to the photo below, I think that with a metallic fly wheel, and mechanical components an industrial aesthetic can be achieved with this sterling engine.
The second aesthetic that I am going to attempt to accomplish is that of a machine or mechanical aesthetic. Being a motor it has multiple moving parts all working in junction to output a certain task. In this case creating useful work through the spinning of a shaft. Like an internal combustion motor and drive train there are many extremely tight toleranced, and machined parts. It is my desire to capitalize on the mechanical aesthetic and try and feature machined parts, and a clean presentation of these parts. Using metallic parts I believe will also help achieve this. The image below perfectly depicts a creation that exemplifies the mechanical aesthetic. The use of gears and precision in placement and tolerances, and clean look of this transmission gives an awesome look.
