Evidence of Work
Over the course of our project, we had some issues with getting certain parts to work. We were one of the the two groups in our class that did our project horizontally, so right away, we were different. We had to find away to keep refreshing our main energy source which is gravity. In simpler terms, we had to keep making the project increase in right before it got to the point where we had nothing to work with. To solve this problem we used two pulley systems, one right in the beginning and one about half way through the project. Also at one point we used a series of dominoes that got taller and taller as they went on. At the end it hit a ball which fell down hitting a lever triggering another ball one foot higher.
When are project was done, I think it looked and worked pretty darn well. It started off with a tube in a screw like formation. The tube then spit out a marble which knocked over a cup. The cup is attacked to our first pulley system so when the cup fell, it pulled up a wedge holding a marble in place. The marble then went down a series of inclined planes, through a tube, and started the chain reaction of dominoes. The last domino then hit a marble down into a tube that shot the marble out into a lever. That lever then triggered a marble above it causing to knock into another cup. That cup then activated our second pulley system and pulled up a block which allowed another marble to start rolling. The marble that started rolling was to big to fit into the tube so the marble hit a smaller marble that could fit. The smaller marble then traveled through a set of two tubes. Finally, the marble came out hitting a stick attached to a CD with a knife on it which buttered bread.
When are project was done, I think it looked and worked pretty darn well. It started off with a tube in a screw like formation. The tube then spit out a marble which knocked over a cup. The cup is attacked to our first pulley system so when the cup fell, it pulled up a wedge holding a marble in place. The marble then went down a series of inclined planes, through a tube, and started the chain reaction of dominoes. The last domino then hit a marble down into a tube that shot the marble out into a lever. That lever then triggered a marble above it causing to knock into another cup. That cup then activated our second pulley system and pulled up a block which allowed another marble to start rolling. The marble that started rolling was to big to fit into the tube so the marble hit a smaller marble that could fit. The smaller marble then traveled through a set of two tubes. Finally, the marble came out hitting a stick attached to a CD with a knife on it which buttered bread.
Content
Over the course of our project, we calculated the velocity, maniacal advantage, work, and potential to kinematic energy. For our very first tube, we calculated a velocity of 0.55m/s. This is the velocity of when the ball started at the top of the tube to where it ended, knocking over a cup. Next we had a pulley system and since there was only one pulley, it had a mechanical advantage of one. Next we found the mechanical advantage of the bottom two inclined which were both 3.1. Then the ball went into a tube which spit it out onto a domino, this then caused what is called the toppling to the dominoes. The last domino then fell into a marble which then had enough force to push the domino down another tube. That ball then knocked into a lever which then pushed a marble down another inclined plane. That marble then then hit a cup which was a attached to a pulley system with a mechanical advantage of one. That pulley then let a marble go down an inclined with a mechanical advantage of 8.5 with a force of 0.21J.
Reflection
Over the course of this project, I didn't only learn about how to make a great machine, but also about myself. I learned that I could rise up
to take a leading role when know one else would. I learned how to be more empathetic and to ask for more opinions before we got concrete with our final idea. Together, my team and I ended up making a great Robe Goldberg Machine, one that worked almost every single time. In the end, we were all very proud of what we had made and couldn't wait to present it to the judges.
to take a leading role when know one else would. I learned how to be more empathetic and to ask for more opinions before we got concrete with our final idea. Together, my team and I ended up making a great Robe Goldberg Machine, one that worked almost every single time. In the end, we were all very proud of what we had made and couldn't wait to present it to the judges.