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Science Project ideas.

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Post  Flyerboy10 Thu Mar 10, 2011 5:53 am

Ok so I was wondering if I could have some suggestions for this science project I have to do. So, by Monday I have to make a car out of random stuff like cardboard, or anything really. For me to get an A it must travel around 10-15 meters down a ramp. These are the rules. It must be under 500g (around 1.1 lb if Im not mistaken). For the wheel, I may not use anything that is meant to be wheels, so I have to think of something to use. I must have a minimum of 3 wheels and 2 axis'. Nothing can power the car except the gravity pushing it down the ramp. I may also not use something like a pine car.

Have any suggestions? Many thanks in advance.
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Post  ginga-ninja Thu Mar 10, 2011 6:05 am

I'd say maybe something simple like plastic lids for wheels, and made of a luchbox or something. Make it streamlined somehow, and maybe add an extra bit of weight to make it go faster down the ramp.
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Post  Patty Thu Mar 10, 2011 6:19 am

Is there a limit on size? Or a minimum size?
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Post  Flyerboy10 Thu Mar 10, 2011 6:21 am

He said nothing about maximum size but obviously dont have it huge. The body of the car must be large enough to hold a small toy person. Like an army man so it can be quite small but not like super skinny.
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Post  Patty Thu Mar 10, 2011 6:22 am

What is the incline of the ramp?
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Post  Flyerboy10 Thu Mar 10, 2011 6:24 am

He didnt say nor show us so I'm not sure. I get to do a practice run on friday but before then I have no idea. Sorry
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Post  mellow(802) Thu Mar 10, 2011 6:25 am

It's not going to be going fast so it doesn't need to be sleek or aerodynamic.
You want the rolling resistance to be at a minimum though so you want your wheels to be very small at the contact point. You also want the wheels to be as hard as possible. I think four wheels may be your best bet but i think three wheels with two in the front and one in the back might also be a winning combination.

good luck
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Post  Patty Thu Mar 10, 2011 6:34 am

Here are my thoughts then.


You want this thing to have decent mass, so that it will have enough potential energy to get all the way down the ramp, and in a straight enough path. I would recommend making the body out of wood, and the wheels out of some hard material, like mellow said.

You want to make a sort of drawer, so that you can put additional weights in it if needed. For the wheels and axels, I would say drilling holes in the drawer shape, and putting thin, metal rods through them. You want the axels to be loose so that they can spin, rather than just relying on wheel spin with a static axel. I would have snug wheels.

For wheels themselves, I'm not sure what the best material would be.

Bottom line, you want this motherfucker to be heavy, so that it will have enough mass to get down the ramp.
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Post  MegaMonkeyChunk Thu Mar 10, 2011 11:54 am

Car and Wheels made out of Wisconsin cheese.

Problem solved.
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Post  mellow(802) Thu Mar 10, 2011 7:15 pm

My best advice would be to use the "KISS" technique meaning....

KEEP
IT
SIMPLE
STUPID

Keep the design really simple, that way any modifications will be relatively easy to make.
instead of going through the trouble of making a drawer (good idea btw)....just make the "car" itself a wooden box with axels going through it. now you can adjust the weight by putting things in the box.
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Post  L4MB Thu Mar 10, 2011 8:42 pm

How about jar lids for wheels? It might be a bit tough to find the exact centre, but they'd probably work pretty well for wheels.
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Post  ginga-ninja Thu Mar 10, 2011 11:02 pm

L4MB wrote:How about jar lids for wheels? It might be a bit tough to find the exact centre, but they'd probably work pretty well for wheels.

Theres a technique where you draw a chord on the circle ( a line that cuts the circle twice but but not the diametre) and you then get the pepindicular bisector of that cord (figure it out) and another chord, and there the two bisectors meet is the centre. This may be unneccesary though.
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Post  o0 KEV1N 0o Fri Mar 11, 2011 12:28 am

ginga-ninja wrote:
L4MB wrote:How about jar lids for wheels? It might be a bit tough to find the exact centre, but they'd probably work pretty well for wheels.

Theres a technique where you draw a chord on the circle ( a line that cuts the circle twice but but not the diametre) and you then get the pepindicular bisector of that cord (figure it out) and another chord, and there the two bisectors meet is the centre. This may be unneccesary though.

JuniorCertMathsLol
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Post  ginga-ninja Fri Mar 11, 2011 12:29 am

o0 KEV1N 0o wrote:
ginga-ninja wrote:
L4MB wrote:How about jar lids for wheels? It might be a bit tough to find the exact centre, but they'd probably work pretty well for wheels.

Theres a technique where you draw a chord on the circle ( a line that cuts the circle twice but but not the diametre) and you then get the pepindicular bisector of that cord (figure it out) and another chord, and there the two bisectors meet is the centre. This may be unneccesary though.

JuniorCertMathsLol

T.G. actually lol, and I'm doing it for leaving cert as well.
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