- #1
Joe Nathan
- 10
- 0
Hello all! I am a high school student who is taking my first physics class, Honors Physics. I have taken mechanical engineering classes prior to this class.
We have recently been assigned our major project of the year: The Dreaded (by some) Physics Car. Our goal is to design and build a vehicle that simply runs the longest amount of time. It does not matter in which direction the vehicle runs, how far, nor how fast it goes; it simply needs to keep moving. We may only use gravitational and/or elastic energy as our means of moving our vehicle, and all of the energy needs to come from within the vehicle (our system). Our size limit is 2x2x2 meters, and we will be penalized for using prefabricated materials (as in, prefabricated for our specific use (we cannot use wheels off of a toy truck, we must use something else, like cds. we also cannot use kinex/legos for support, etc...) (except for low-friction ball-bearings on our axles). One more thing: if we have any balloons on our vehicle, they can only be used as a means to eliminate friction, and may not be used to propel the vehicle itself, nor anything inside of it.
Sorry for the huge background, I simply wanted to clearly state what my restrictions are. Yes, I understand that it would be unethical for someone else to design my vehicle for me, which is why I am only coming here for feedback on my current designs and, possibly, suggestions etc...
Currently, my idea is to buy high-torsion springs, and attach a relatively long armature to one end, which would allow the force to be exerted over a longer period of time. There would be multiple such springs arranged in series, so that when one has returned to its initial state, it would trigger the next, etc. etc. The problems I am currently facing with this is my car's theoretical weight (I would need sturdy, and thus heavy, materials to mount the strong springs on), and also how I would attach each system to the rear axle to as to continue the vehicle's motion. I had toyed with the idea of one-way locking ball bearings, however I would need several, and, when I presented the thought to my teacher, he recommended I search online for another method, or even ask for help from other people.
I apologize for the long post. I had a lot to say. Any help would be much appreciated!
Thank you,
J
p.s.
I am also open to the idea of using gears/gear ratios in conjunction with gravitational energy...yet, I would probably need to make my own gears...
We have recently been assigned our major project of the year: The Dreaded (by some) Physics Car. Our goal is to design and build a vehicle that simply runs the longest amount of time. It does not matter in which direction the vehicle runs, how far, nor how fast it goes; it simply needs to keep moving. We may only use gravitational and/or elastic energy as our means of moving our vehicle, and all of the energy needs to come from within the vehicle (our system). Our size limit is 2x2x2 meters, and we will be penalized for using prefabricated materials (as in, prefabricated for our specific use (we cannot use wheels off of a toy truck, we must use something else, like cds. we also cannot use kinex/legos for support, etc...) (except for low-friction ball-bearings on our axles). One more thing: if we have any balloons on our vehicle, they can only be used as a means to eliminate friction, and may not be used to propel the vehicle itself, nor anything inside of it.
Sorry for the huge background, I simply wanted to clearly state what my restrictions are. Yes, I understand that it would be unethical for someone else to design my vehicle for me, which is why I am only coming here for feedback on my current designs and, possibly, suggestions etc...
Currently, my idea is to buy high-torsion springs, and attach a relatively long armature to one end, which would allow the force to be exerted over a longer period of time. There would be multiple such springs arranged in series, so that when one has returned to its initial state, it would trigger the next, etc. etc. The problems I am currently facing with this is my car's theoretical weight (I would need sturdy, and thus heavy, materials to mount the strong springs on), and also how I would attach each system to the rear axle to as to continue the vehicle's motion. I had toyed with the idea of one-way locking ball bearings, however I would need several, and, when I presented the thought to my teacher, he recommended I search online for another method, or even ask for help from other people.
I apologize for the long post. I had a lot to say. Any help would be much appreciated!
Thank you,
J
p.s.
I am also open to the idea of using gears/gear ratios in conjunction with gravitational energy...yet, I would probably need to make my own gears...