Engineering Fundamentals 151Fall 2008 Final Project“Ode to Phil”

Created by:Jeremy BrooksbankEssa SharifPrice CollinsAlex Zadell

Project DescriptionOur project utilizes track, small “basket”, and a loop to create a roller coaster. A gumball travels down three segments of track and finally lands in a small basket. This drop causes the basket to fall and a piece of sting to move. After the string moves, a marble travels down a very short ramp onto a segment of tubing. It travels around the device and finally lands.

Construction1. Constructed the

correct box size for the project.2. Cut the segments of track down to

size and attached them to the box.3. Constructed a “basket” out of a piece

of cardboard, rubber tubing, and string.

4. Cut the tubing into pieces then split them down the middle.

5. Glued the tubing together then taped for extra support.

6. Cut small piece of wood up and placed in the box to support the tube-track.

7. Obtained a long piece of wood for further support of the track.

8. Placed bumpers on the track to slow the marble and gumball down.

9. Tapped plastic pieces to the tubing to keep the ball from flying off the track.

Calculations

L = 18.625 inL2 = 16.75 inL3 = 16.5 inhi1 = 16.75 inhi2 = 14.00 inhi3 = 11.00 inhf1 = 15.25 inhf2 = 12.75 inhf3 = 10.125 in

hi1

L

hf1

hf2hi3

L2

Problems EncounteredOriginally, we started off with a completely different design. We had to change the design due to the size constraints. After the materials were purchased, we started to build. After we had our second design, we still had a few problems. We made slight modifications throughout the building process to make the device work correctly and achieve the time we needed. The hardest problem we encountered during the process was slowing down the gumball/marble so we could get a time as close to 15 seconds as possible. To do this we set up several bumpers on the track to help slow the balls down. Another problem we encountered was supporting the track. The rubber tubing we used was slightly heavy so we had to be careful. A combination of glue and tape worked nicely. The wood we placed in the box also stabilized the track very well.

Financial Information

Plastic Track- $12Rubber Tubing- $15Cardboard- $2Marble- $.50Gumball- $.50String- $2Wood- $3Tape- $3Total Cost- $38.00

Building something that looks nothing like a roller coaster- Priceless

For everyone else there’s EF 152