Ligyrophobiac Torture

EF 151 Team Project Section A2

Group Members

Brent NanneyJeff Pipkin

Tanaysha MappBenjamin Strength

Overview

• Device’s purpose: the device is designed for the simple task of popping a balloon.

• Materials used: plywood, dowel, string, marbles, a safety pin, mouse trap, popsicle sticks, hot glue, one large box, one Kleenex box, two bottle tops, scissors, a small hand saw, and a balloon.

• Total cost of purchased materials: $16.42

Overview cont.• The device consists of four distinct steps.1. A marble starts from rest and rolls down a ramp.2. The marble strikes another marble hanging from a

string, causing the marble to swing up and out like a pendulum. The marble strikes another marble at the top of a second ramp.

3. The second marble rolls down its ramp and down a funnel to trip a set mousetrap.

4. The trap springs, which in turn pops the balloon with its popsicle stick-extension armed with a safety pin.

Energy Conversions

• Step 1 (ramp 1): Ugravity KE

• Step 2 (pendulum): KE KE + Ugravity

• Step 3 (ramp 2 to mouse trap): KE + Ugravity KE

• Step 4 (mouse trap):Uelastic KE

Conclusions• The device turned out to be very successful, mostly

efficient, and a good idea.• It’s simple and completes the task in a reasonable

amount of time.• Each of us learned about rube-Goldberg devices, how to

work together as a team on a big project, and how energy can be converted in various everyday tasks through the use of ordinary objects.

• Our biggest hurdle was making minor changes and compromises with individual ideas, pertaining to how we would build our device and what materials to use.