impromptu design & build challenge ideas - peo · pdf fileimpromptu design & build...

Impromptu Design & Build Challenge Ideas

Grade Challenge Details / Engineering principles applied Chapter Year Info incl.

7 - 8 To design and build the best helicopter rotor.

The helicopter rotor can consist of 2, 3, 4, 5 or 6 blades, and the blades can vary in shapes and sizes. However, all rotors have one thing in common: They create lift when rotated at high speed. Students are encouraged to engineer the most efficient design that will compete against other teams’ designs for the most lift that can be created.

York 2016 Yes

7 - 8 To design and build a drag racer that will compete against other teams’ designs.

The cars designed for modern drag racing are marvels of engineering. Engines are designed to maximize power output, while still needing to be light weight. The bodies need to be extremely aerodynamic, while still protecting the driver in case of an accident.

York 2015 Yes

7 - 8 To design, build, test and evaluate a crumple zone to protect the vehicle occupants.

The 2014 Engineering Design Challenge is about vehicle occupant safety. Today’s vehicles utilize crumple zones to provide occupant safety during a crash. They work by deforming and absorbing the vehicle kinetic energy and reducing the forces exerted to the occupants.

York 2014 Yes

7 - 8 To design and build a water wheel system to harness the kinetic energy from a jet of water.

The 2013 Engineering Design Challenge is about renewable energy. Working in teams of four, students will design and build a water wheel system to harness the kinetic energy from a jet of water. The kinetic energy from the water source is described by 'Torricelli's Principle'.

York 2013 Yes

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7 - 8 To design and construct a cargo boat to hold as much mass as possible without sinking any more than 3 cm.

The boat will have a minimum height of 5 cm from the bottom of the boat to the boat deck. The cargo boat must have a loading deck that is a minimum of 15 cm x 15 cm for loading of the masses.

Chatham - Kent

2008 Yes

7 - 8 To design a slowest drop vehicle.

1. The vehicle is to be dropped from a height of 3 metres 2. The vehicle must land in the marked area 3. Each design is allowed one practice drop and two timings 4. The vehicle design with the slowest drop time wins

Chatham - Kent

2007 Yes

7 - 8 To design a vehicle that will transport a penny the furthest distance possible.

The vehicle must remain in contact with the penny at all times and vehicle should be representative of an actual vehicle. The process must be continuous. The penny that travels the furthest wins.

Chatham - Kent

2006 Yes

7 - 8 To design a structure of maximum height capable of supporting a cup of water with the materials provided and within the allowed time period.

After having constructed the structure, one member of each team will be required to carry the structure, with water in the cup, a measured distance in the shortest possible time. The following formula will be used to determine the winner: (H2V)/T In the formula, H is the height of the structure measured from a reference point visible above the hand, V is the volume of water remaining in the cup when the structure crosses the finish line, and T is the time required to carry the structure between two determined points. Each structure may be constructed only with the provided materials. In order to qualify, each structure must be a minimum of 25 cm in height.

Chatham - Kent

2005 Yes

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Elementary

To construct a fan out of regular office stationary that can blow a ping pong ball down a track. The fan must be completely self supporting and cannot be powered by any sort of electrical device (like a motor).

The team that constructed a fan that could blow the ping pong ball the farthest down the track won. The challenge of this event was to, not only build a sturdy structure out of stationary that can withstand the dynamic motion of an operating fan, but to devise a way to power the fan without the use of a motor. The students also needed a basic understanding of how fan blades worked so that they could maximize the amount of air they pushed to get the ball moving.

Lakehead 2016 Yes

9 - 12 To design and construct a system that will enable a ping pong ball located above the specified mark on the floor to hit a target 2 metres away.

This target is located inside a bowl with a diameter of 30 cm and a lip 10 cm high. Each team has three turns to accomplish this task.

Chatham - Kent

2008 Yes

9 - 12 To design a vehicle to carry a piece of Play-Doh down a wire incline.

The vehicle is to carry the Play-Doh projectile to the Stop Point near the bottom of the incline wire and release it. The projectile is to be released from the vehicle so it will travel a maximum forward distance from the Stop Point. The piece of Play-Doh which travels the greatest forward distance wins.

Chatham - Kent

2007 Yes

9 - 12 To design and build a structure capable of spanning a 20 cm wide gap between two level tables.

Bridge must be a minimum width of one popsicle stick’s length. Structure will be weighed before testing. Bridge will be tested to see how much weight can be added in the centre of the span before a 2 cm deflection at the midpoint.

Chatham - Kent

2006 Yes

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9 - 12 To design and construct a cargo boat that is self-propelled and is able to carry a cargo of two golf balls the maximum distance over water.

Students do not need to use all of the materials provided but boat must contain a cargo of the two golf balls provided. The boat's propulsion system will be contained on the boat itself and external forces, such as pushing, are not allowed. The boat must travel through the water and be able to float and carry the cargo of two golf balls in order to be considered a legitimate entry.

Chatham - Kent

2005 Yes

9 - 12 To construct an apparatus that will launch the provided Play-Doh a maximum distance in the prescribed direction.

-Apparatus must be launched from a stationery position onthe floor (ie, Apparatus must use stored potentialenergy to launch projectile.)-Apparatus must be mounted on a base. Base will besecured to the table using tape by competition organizer-Maximum dimensions of the apparatus are 30 cm x 30 cm-4.5 hour construction time-Trial testing will be done one group at a time after lunch.

Chatham - Kent

2004 Yes

10 - 12 To build a solar powered car.

The goal of the challenge was for the students to design and build a solar powered car that could traverse the track as quickly as possible. The main principle of the event was to demonstrate to the students the principle of conversion of energy - from solar to electrical to mechanical. Each team was given 2 solar cells, and during the introduction to the event they were given a lesson on the difference output characteristics of the cells in a series or parallel connection, and also the corresponding difference in performance of a connected electrical motor. They were also given a brief re-fresher about gear and pulley ratios and mechanical advantage.

Peterborough 2016 Yes

10 - 12 To build a mechanism to safely land a cell phone which was dropped from a height of 5m.

This was a variation on the classic ‘egg drop’ style contest, which was presented as a ‘Mars lander’ competition, which introduced the students to the important aspects of lading a payload on a distant planet.

Peterborough 2015 Yes

More ideas: https://www.teachengineering.org/ See Appendix A for instructions on how to set up a competition

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2013 (/committees/education/design-challenge/design-challenge-2013)



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National Engineering Month - DesignChallenge 2016Design Challenge 2016 was a huge success. 16 teams from across the York Region (grade 7 & 8 students)competed to design and build the best helicopter rotor. Each team's performance was evaluated based ontheir understanding of the concept, the implementation of the concept into their design, their workmanshipand durability of the 뻬nished rotors, and of course the amount of lift that was created plus the e벟뺅ciency ofthe rotor.

Even though some team's design performed better than others, every team had a fun time watching theheavy chains being lifted by the rotor they have just created. Loud cheers were heard throughout thecompetition.

Check out the photos at the Photo Gallery (/gallery/category/35-2016-03-design).

Team standings are listed below:

2016 NEM Design Challenge Rankings

Rank School

1 Aldergrove Public School (Phoenix)

2 Aldergrove Public School (Grove)

3 Beverley Acres Public School

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4 TMS School

5 Julliard Public

6 All Saints CES

7 Beverley Acres PS(1)

8 Silver Stream Public School

9 Beckett Farm P.S.(1)

10 Beckett Farm P.S.(2)

11 Wellington Street PS

12 Thornhill Woods Public School

13 Adrienne Clarkson PS

14 Armitage Village PS

15 Astronuts Kids Space Club

16 Bayview Hill E.S.

Location: Sir William Mulock SS, 705 Columbus Way, Newmarket, Ontario, L3X 2M7

Date: Wednesday, March 23

Time: 4 - 8pm (Pizza dinner is provided)

Apply science and technology for fun and prizes!

The Professional Engineers Ontario - York Chapter Education Committee is organizing an Engineering DesignChallenge for grades 7 and 8 students in York Region.

The Design Challenge: Helicopter Rotor

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The focus of this design challenge is for students to design and build a helicopter rotor. The helicopter rotorcan consist of 2, 3, 4, 5 or 6 blades, and the blades can vary in shapes and sizes. However, all rotors have onething in common: They create lift when rotated at high speed.

Students are encouraged to engineer the most e벟뺅cient design that will compete against other teams’ designsfor the most lift that can be created. The design requirements, limitations and materials will be provided at thestart of the challenge.

Designs will be judged in three categories:

a. Problem Solving and Designb. Constructionc. Performance Evaluation

Students will plan, build and test their designs using materials provided.

Registration is limited to a maximum of 20 teams from schools within the York Region. To maximize thenumber of participating schools, we limit registration to 1 team per school and place the additional teams on awaiting list.

Each team consist of 4 students and 1 teacher/adult representative(not contributing to the design process).

The entry fee is $80 per team and it is payable on-line. PEO is a non-pro뻬t organization and all proceeds gotowards the students and the event.

There are prizes for the top three teams, and each student will receive a National Engineering Month t-shirtand a certi뻬cate of participation.

Please read the consent form (/뻬les/education/design-challenge-consent-form.pdf) before registration. Byregistering for the Design Challenge, you agreed to the terms of the consent form.

Register between Monday February 22 and Tuesday March 22 by 8:00 p.m. at:http://peoyork2016nemdesign.eventbrite.com (http://peoyork2016nemdesign.eventbrite.com)

For more information please contact:Steve Poste ([email protected] (mailto:[email protected])), York Region District SchoolBoard, Centre for Leadership and Learning, Newmarket Education Centre, or Lui Tai, P. Eng.([email protected] (mailto:[email protected])) PEO York Chapter, Education Director.

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National Engineering Month - DesignChallenge 2015

Location: Sir William Mulock SS, 705 Columbus Way, Newmarket, Ontario, L3X 2M7

Date: Thursday, March 26

Time: 4 - 8pm (Pizza dinner is provided)


The Professional Engineers Ontario - York Chapter Education Committee is organizing an Engineering DesignChallenge for grades 7 and 8 students in York Region.

The Design Challenge: Drag RacerThe cars designed for modern drag racing are marvels ofengineering. Engines are designed to maximize poweroutput, while still needing to be light weight. The bodiesneed to be extremely aerodynamic, while still protectingthe driver in case of an accident.

The participants will need to design and build a drag racerthat will compete against other teams’ designs. The design requirements, limitations and materials will beprovided at the start of the challenge.

Judging will be in three categories:

a. Problem Solving and Designb. Constructionc. Performance Evaluation

Students will plan, build and test their designs using materials provided.

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Registration is limited to a maximum of 20 teams from schools within the York Region. To maximize numberof participating schools, we limit registration to 1 team per school and place the additional teams on a waitinglist.

Each team consist of 4 students and 1 teacher/adult representative(not contributing to the design process).

The entry fee is $80 per team and it is payable on-line. PEO is a non-proဠ†t organization and all proceeds gotowards the students and the event.

There are prizes for the top three teams, and each student will receive a National Engineering Month T-shirtand a certiဠ†cate of participation.

Please read the consent form (/ဠ†les/events/2015-03-26-nem-design-challenge/design-challenge-2015-consent-form.pdf) before registration. By registering for the design challenge, you agreed to the terms of the consentform.

Register between Monday February 23 and Thursday Mar 26 by 8:00 p.m. at:http://peoyork2015nemdesign.eventbrite.com (http://peoyork2015nemdesign.eventbrite.com)

For more information please contact:Steve Poste ([email protected] (mailto:[email protected])), York Region District SchoolBoard, Centre for Leadership and Learning, Newmarket Education Centre, or [email protected](mailto:[email protected])

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Design Challenge 2014Apply science and technology for fun and prizes!

The Professional Engineers Ontario - York Chapter Education Committee is organizing an Engineering Design Challenge for grades 7 and 8 students in York Region. The challenge will take place from 4:00 p.m. – 8:00 p.m. on Thursday March 27th, 2014 at Newmarket High School, 505 Pickering Crescent, Newmarket, Ontario L3Y 8H1.

The 2014 Engineering Design Challenge is about vehicle occupant safety. Today’s vehicles utilize crumple zones to provide occupant safety during a crash. They work by deforming and absorbing the vehicle kinetic energy and reducing the forces exerted to the occupants. Your challenge is to design, build, test and evaluate a crumple zone to protect the vehicle occupants.

Each team will discover the list of materials at the start of the challenge. Judging will be in three categories:

1- Problem Solving and Design

2- Construction

3- Performance of Product

There are prizes for the top three teams, and every student will receive a National Engineering Month T-shirtand a certiᴀ밄cate of participation.

Registration is limited to 20 teams from schools within York Region. In order to allow a maximum number ofschools to enter, there will be an initial limit of two teams per school. The decision about entering anadditional team from the same school will be communicated on Thursday March 20, 2014.

Below is a link to 2013 Design Challenge video for your viewing and sharing with team members:http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_detailpage&v=Sy5ivz9qsT8 (http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_detailpage&v=Sy5ivz9qsT8)

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The entry fee is $80 per team and it is payable on-line. PEO is a non-proᴀ밄t organization and all proceeds gotowards the students and the event.

A copy of the consent form is available here (/ᴀ밄les/events/2014-03-27-design-challenge/design-challenge-2014-consent-form.pdf).

Please contact Paymon Sani, PEO York Education Director at [email protected](mailto:[email protected]) or Steve Poste, York Region District School Board Centre for Leadership andLearning at [email protected] (mailto:[email protected]) if you have any questions.

Looking forward to seeing you on Thursday March 27,

Paymon Sani, P.Eng.PEO York ChapterEducation Director


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The Professional Engineers Ontario - York Chapter Education Committee is organizing an Engineering DesignChallenge for grade 7 and 8 students in York Region. The challenge will take place from 4:00 p.m. – 8:00 p.m.on Thursday March 28th, 2013 at Newmarket High School, 505 Pickering Crescent, Newmarket, Ontario L3Y8H1.

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2013 Design ChallengeCongratulations to the 2013 Design Challenge winning team: Our Lady of Good Counsel

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The 2013 Engineering Design Challenge is about renewable energy. Working in teams of four, students will design and build a water wheel system to harness the kinetic energy from a jet of water. The kinetic energy from the water source is described by 'Torricelli's Principle'.

Each team will discover the list of materials at the start of the challenge. Judging will be in three categories:

1- Problem Solving and Design

2- Construction

3- Performance of Product

There are prizes for the top three teams, and every student will receive a National Engineering Month T-shirtand a certiᴀ밄cate of participation.

Registration is limited to 15 teams from schools within York Region. In order to allow a maximum number ofschools to enter, there will be an initial limit of one team per school. The decision about entering an additionalteam from the same school will be communicated on Friday March 22, 2013.

The entry fee is $60.00 per team, payable on-line. Please contact Paymon Sani at [email protected](mailto:[email protected]) if you require further details.

Consent form available here (/ᴀ밄les/events/2013-03-28-design-challenge/design-challenge-2013-consent-form.pdf)



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CARGO BOAT -2008 Junior ProjectList of Materials: 4 Aluminium Cans 1 30 cm X 30 cm sheet of Aluminium foil 1 piece of cardboard 30 cm by 30 cm 4 Rubber bands 6 popsicle sticks 30 cm of duct tape 2 Paper clips 1 balloon 1 pair of Scissors 1 Project description sheet 1 ruler

Description: Design and construct a cargo boat to hold as much mass as possible without sinking any more than 3 cm. The boat will have a minimum height of 5 cm from the bottom of the boat to the boat deck. The cargo boat must have a loading deck that is a minimum of 15 cm x 15 cm for loading of the masses.

All design and construction must be done by the participants. Only those materials provided may be used. Students do not need to use all of the materials

Contest: The boat will have a minimum height of 5 cm from the bottom of the boat to the boat deck. Before judging, a mark will be added 3 cm from the bottom of the boat and masses will be added until the boat has sunk to that line, at which point the total amount of mass the boat held will be used for scoring,

Judging The contest judges will inspect each boat to determine if the contest rules have been satisfied.

75% of the score will be based upon the ratio of mass held / mass of the boat while 25% of the score will be based upon the design.

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Chatham-Kent

2007 Junior Competition Project: Slowest Drop Vehicle

You must use all the items provided (excluding the bag)

1. The vehicle is to be dropped from a height of 3 metres2. The vehicle must land in the marked area3. Each design is allowed one practice drop and two timings4. The vehicle design with the slowest drop time wins

Supplies provided:

• 2 Paper plates• 1 Dixie Cup• 2 Balloons• 3 Rubber Bands• 1 Plastic Straw• 10 Self Adhesive Labels

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Chatham-Kent

2006 Junior Design Competition Project: Vehicle to Transport a Penny

Good Luck!

List of Materials:

• 3 pieces of Construction paper• 1 Balloon• 5 elastics• 5 paper clips• 30 cm of masking Tape• 1 penny• 4 straws

Other materials such as scissors or geometric rulers that are needed for construction will be provided, but can not be included as part of the device.

Description:

Use the provided material to design a vehicle that will transport a penny the furthest distance possible. The vehicle must remain in contact with the penny at all times and vehicle should be representative of an actual vehicle. The process must be continuous. The penny that travels the furthest wins.

Rules:

All design and construction must be done by the group itself. Only those materials provided may be used, and all the materials do not have to be used in the design. The device must begin from rest and may not receive any aid once released. Anything else is legal. Only one entry per team.

Judging:

The contest judges will inspect each machine to determine if the contest rules have been satisfied. The judges will mark the furthest point traveled by the penny. 50% of the score will be based on distance and 50% will be based upon design and originality.

Engineering Principle:

The basic principal of being able to problem solve given certain limitations and requirements.

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Chatham-Kent

STRUCTURE TO SUPPORT WATER The purpose of this contest is to design a structure of maximum height capable of supporting a cup of water with the materials provided and within the allowed time period.

After having constructed the structure, one member of each team will be required to carry the structure, with water in the cup, a measured distance in the shortest possible time.

The following formula will be used to determine the winner:

In the formula, H is the height of the structure measured from a reference point visible above the hand, V is the volume of water remaining in the cup when the structure crosses the finish line, and T is the time required to carry the structure between two determined points.

Each structure may be constructed only with the provided materials.

In order to qualify, each structure must be a minimum of 25 cm in height.

The height of each structure will be determined by measuring from the top of the cup to a reference point, determined by each team, which must be visible at all times above the hand carrying the structure while the relay is being run.

Each cup on each structure will be filled to the maximum amount possible immediately before the relay is run.

Materials

30 straws 10 pipe cleaners 10 rubber bands 10 paper clips 10 toothpicks 4 popsicle sticks 30 cm masking tape 1 plastic spoon 1 piece construction paper 1 piece of playDoh 1 paper bag 1 paper cup

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Chatham-Kent: 2005 Junior

Lakehead ChapterProfessional Engineers of Ontario

National Engineering Month SchoolEvent 2016Thunder Bay, ON – The Lakehead Chapters of the Professional Engineers of Ontario (PEO) and theOntario Association of Certified Engineering Technicians and Technologist (OACETT) teamed up, onceagain, to bring elementary students from across Thunder Bay to compete in an annual competition ofingenuity. In support of National Engineering Month (NEM), this event served to promote engineeringto the students and challenged them to come up with new and di䅒�erent ideas to solve a problem.

In this year’s competition, the students were tasked with constructing a fan out of regular o䅒�icestationary that can blow a ping pong ball down a track. The fan must be completely self supportingand cannot be powered by any sort of electrical device (like a motor). The team that constructed afan that could blow the ping pong ball the farthest down the track won. The challenge of this eventwas to, not only build a sturdy structure out of stationary that can withstand the dynamic motion ofan operating fan, but to devise a way to power the fan without the use of a motor. The students alsoneeded a basic understanding of how fan blades worked so that they could maximize the amount ofair they pushed to get the ball moving. This year’s champions were a team from Edgewater ParkSchool and the winners walked away with some awesome prizes!

By challenging the students to think outside the box and come up with unique solutions, it is the hopeof PEO and OACETT that this year’s NEM message of “There’s a place for you!” was demonstrated tothe students and opened their eyes to the possibilities of engineering as a future career.

The event was hosted in the Nordmin Engineering Gymnasium on March 4, 2016.

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Here To There Using Popsicle Sticks-2008 Senior Project

List of Materials:

• 1 - Ping pong ball• 1 - Tennis ball• 1 - Package of popsicle sticks• 1 - Roll of tape• 1 - Bottle of rubber cement• 1 – Ruler• 3 elastics• 1 plastic spoon

Description:

Design and construct a system that will enable a ping pong ball located above the specified mark on the floor to hit a target 2 metres away. This target is located inside a bowl with a diameter of 30 cm and a lip 10 cm high. Each team has three turns to accomplish this task.

Rules:

Only one entry is allowed per team. Participation is limited to team members. Once the ping pong ball is placed in its initial position, all team members must be 15 cm away from the ball and must remain at that distance for the duration of the judging.

Judging:

The winner will be the team who hits the target with the ping pong ball. In the event of a tie, the group using the least number of popsicle sticks* will win. If no balls hit the target, the ball bouncing closest to the middle of the target will determine the winner.

75% of the score will be based upon completing the task while 25% will be based upon the project write-up provided to the judges.

*Remaining popsicle sticks (not used in the design) must be counted and given back tothe judges prior to device testing.

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Chatham-Kent

2007 Senior Competition Project: Play-Doh Carrier

Objective:

Design a vehicle to carry a piece of Play-Doh down a wire incline. The vehicle is to carry the Play-Doh projectile to the Stop Point near the bottom of the incline wire and release it. The projectile is to be released from the vehicle so it will travel a maximum forward distance from the Stop Point. The piece of Play-Doh which travels the greatest forward distance wins.

Rules:

1. You may use only the materials supplied in your design packet (including thepaper bag). You are not required to use all the materials.

2. The Play-Doh projectile may be formed into any desired size and shape. Theprojectile must be launched from the vehicle at the Stop Point.

3. One person from your group will attach the vehicle to the wire and release itfrom rest (no push starts).

4. Testing: Your group will be given 1 minute to attach the vehicle to the wireand release it from the release point. Once released, the vehicle must reachthe stop point and launch the projectile within 1 minute.

5. The vehicle must reach the stop point before the projectile is released.6. Your score is the horizontal distance between the stop point and the point

where the projectile first contacts the ground.

Materials Supplied

4 Clothes Pins 4 Paper Clips 3 Balloons 2 Pencils 1 Plastic Spoon 4 Straws 1 Pack Gum Play-Doh Ball 12 Rubber Bands Tin Foil 2 Pipe Cleaners

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Chatham-Kent

2006 Senior Project: Bridge Building Contest

List of Materials:

• 5 plastic straws• 1 box of dental floss• 4 rubber bands• 100 popsicle sticks• 4 paper clips• 1 length of masking tape• 1 bottle of school glue• 2 pieces of construction paper

Description:

Design and build a structure capable of spanning a 20 cm wide gap between two level tables. Bridge must be a minimum width of one popsicle stick’s length. Structure will be weighed before testing. Bridge will be tested to see how much weight can be added in the centre of the span before a 2 cm deflection at the midpoint.

Rules:

Only those materials provided in each kit can be used. All materials need not be used, however, one project can not exceed the number of materials listed on sheet. All projects must be designed and built by only those involved within each particular group. Participants should use their knowledge of physics, statics, and other engineering principles, such as: trusses, compressive loading, static loads, buckling properties, bending moments, etc...

Contest:

To judge each entry, weight will be added in the center of each structure. 75% of score will be for weight bearing while 25% will be based upon the design. The winner will be determined based upon the following calculation:

Score = (Weight Bridge Holds/Weight of Bridge) x 0.75 + Design Score x 0.25

Good Luck and Thanks for Participating!

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Chatham-Kent

SELF-PROPELLED CARGO BOATList of Materials: 1 Aluminium Can 1 6" X 8" sheet of Aluminium foil 1 25 cm x 25 cm sheet of Styrofoam 4 Rubber bands 1 Eraser 6 popsicle sticks 3 Straws 15 cm of packing tape 2 Paper clips 4 tacks 2 pens 1 balloon 1 piece of PlayDoh 2 Golf balls (to be distributed when needed) 1 pair of Scissors 1 Project description sheet

Description: Design and construct a cargo boat that is self-propelled and is able to carry a cargo of two golf balls the maximum distance over water.

All design and construction must be done by the participants. Only those materials provided may be used. Students do not need to use all of the materials provided but boat must contain a cargo of the two golf balls provided. The boat's propulsion system will be contained on the boat itself and external forces, such as pushing, are not allowed. The boat must travel through the water and be able to float and carry the cargo of two golf balls in order to be considered a legitimate entry.

Contest: Each design group will have two attempts at the transport process. The "contest distance" will be the linear distance covered by the boat with its cargo from release until the boat comes to a stop or the boat ceases to make "forward" progress. The longest contest distance of the two attempts will be recorded as the group’s entry. The team with the longest contest distance will be declared the winner. Due to maximum distance restrictions, boats will also be timed. If more than one boat is able to travel the entire distance in the pool, the team with the quickest travel time will be the winner.

Judging The contest judges will inspect each boat to determine if the contest rules have been satisfied.

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Chatham-Kent: 2005 Senior

2004 Chatham-Kent Impromptu Design Competition Project

Objective

Construct an apparatus that will launch the provided Play-Doh a maximum distance in the prescribed direction.

Design Constraints

-Apparatus must be constructed only from the provided materials-Apparatus must be operated by one person using only one hand-Apparatus must be launched from a stationery position on the floor (ie, Apparatus must use storedpotential energy to launch projectile.)-Apparatus must be mounted on a base. Base will be secured to the table using tape by competitionorganizer-Maximum dimensions of the apparatus are 30 cm x 30 cm-4.5 hour construction time-Trial testing will be done one group at a time after lunch.

Judging Criteria

Each apparatus will be scored by applying the following formula: Score = X * Y Where: X = Distance in inches

Y = Accuracy percentage Accuracy: 1 ft/30 cm from centerline = 100%

3ft/1 meter from centerline= 75% 5ft/1.5 meters from centerline = 50% 10 ft/3 meters from centerline = 25% >10 ft/3 meters from centerline = 10%

• Each team will select one team member to launch their projectile.• 2 launches will be allowed for each team• Only launches in the forward direction count.

Determination of Winner

The team with the highest score from either of their launches will be declared the winner.

Supplies

2 Styrofoam Cups 2 Plastic Spoons 6 Popsicle Sticks 10 Rubber Bands 4 Tacks (Thumb) 3 straws 6 paper clips 2 balloons 1 Sheet of Cardboard (30cm x 30cm) 20 cm tape 2 Sheets construction Paper 1 Pen Play-Doh

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Peterborough PEO/OACETT/IEEE

2016 Engineering Month Challenge

Final Report

Overview:

The 2016 Engineering Month Challenge event, which is jointly planned and hosted by the

Peterborough PEO/OACETT/IEEE chapters was held on March 2, 2016 in the multi-

purpose room at the Evinrude Centre. This year’s event challenged the students to build

a solar powered car.

The Challenge:

Appendix B contains a copy of the handout that was provided to the students which

outlines the objectives and constraints of the event. The students were given a piece of

foam board to use as a base for their cars, as well as the solar cells, motor and an

assortment of axles, wheels & pulleys. They were also presented with a wide assortment

of miscellaneous materials to use for construction (popsicle sticks, rubber bands,

cardboard, pipe cleaners, hot glue etc….)

Total time given for construction was 2.5 hours, at which point the cars were submitted

for testing. A specially lit track was built which used three, 4 foot long banks of

fluorescent lights to provide enough direct illumination to power the cars. Originally it

was intended to use a ‘guide line’ made from fishing line and a hook on the cars to keep

the cars travelling in a straight line on the track. However this did not work as intended

and during the event some modification were made to add side bumpers to the track

instead. Volunteers also helped ‘nudge’ the cars as they travelled down the track if they

became hung up on the sides.

The goal of the challenge was for the students to design and build a solar powered car

that could traverse the track as quickly as possible.

The main principle of the event was to demonstrate to the students the principle of

conversion of energy - from solar to electrical to mechanical. Each team was given 2

solar cells, and during the introduction to the event they were given a lesson on the

difference output characteristics of the cells in a series or parallel connection, and also the

corresponding difference in performance of a connected electrical motor. They were also

given a brief re-fresher about gear and pulley ratios and mechanical advantage.

Appendix A contains a number of photos from the event.

26

Attendance:

The event was attended by 95 students in grades 10-12 split into 25teams from: Lakefield

College, St Peter’s, Holy Cross, TAS, St Mary’s, Crestwood and Kenner. Several

schools from Lindsay were also registered for the event, but could not attend due to

weather related bus cancellations the morning of the event.

Approximately 20 volunteers were in attendance to run the event.

There was a special guest speaker at the event, JP Pawliw - president of Generation Solar.

JP gave part of the opening presentation to the students, discussing the solar industry and

the various ways that solar energy can be captured and used.

Results:

For final testing, the cars were set at the starting section of the lit track, with a piece of

cardboard covering the lights directly above the car. When the cardboard was removed

the timer started. Points were given for how fast the cars travelled down the 12 foot track,

as well as how far past the lights they could ‘coast’ and also for written work. Appendix

B has the full details of the scoring.

The scores for the top placed teams were as follows:

1st Place: 98.85 Points: Holy Cross

Ethan Murphy

Maria Conlin

Ronan Sampson

Sarah Cowen

2nd

Place: 97.90 Points: Holy Cross

Maggie Logel

Hannah Trylinski

Jaedon McColl

Katie Cymbaluk

3rd

Place: 97.15 Points: TAS

Michael Bolin

Zack Calderwood

Luke Walsh

Nik Missiios

27

The Subaru Peterborough Award for the most innovative design was awarded to a team

from St Peter’s:

Julia Mandeljc

Regan Mahoney

Nic Bryenton Laura Connolly

The Cambium Award for the most effective team was awarded to a team from St Peter’s:

Eric vanBrank

Steve Moore

Dan Sullivan

Matt Sheward

Media Coverage:

The local media was contacted prior to the event, and representatives from the

Peterborough Examiner, SNAP and CHEX TV all attended and covered the event.

http://www.thepeterboroughexaminer.com/2016/03/03/holy-cross-secondary-school-

team-wins-annual-engineering-challenge

http://snapd.at/eeusn7.

http://www.chextv.com/2016/03/02/chex-daily-wednesday-march-2-2016/

(starting at 5:08)

http://www.chextv.com/2016/03/03/chex-daily-march-3-2016/

(We were featured in several segments, starting at 1:46 and 18:33)

Funding & Donations

As in past years, we had many generous sponsors who donated towards the event:

- Peterborough IEEE Chapter (trophies – approx. $350)

- Cambium Environmental ($200)

- Canadian Solar (Solar panels for event)

- Costco (drinks & snacks)

- Peterborough Subaru (design innovation trophy)

- Tim Horton’s (coffee and snacks for volunteers)

- Teva Canada (water bottles for give-aways)

- McCloskey International (Tote bags and pens)

- Central Smith (ice cream for snack)

- PrimaIP (juice boxes & snacks for students)

28

NEMOC also provided subsidized T-shirts for the volunteers, as well as Engineering

Month posters and some small prizes for the students.

NEM 2016 Income & Expense Summary

Expenses Evinrude Centre Rental $ 618.11

Trophies $ 395.33

Food (Kenner) $ 550.00

Building Supplies $ 910.34

Printing Expenses $ 102.80

Debrief Meeting $ 370.68

Total Expenses $ 2844.46

Funding

NEMOC $ 750.00

PVNCCDSB $ 500.00

IEEE $ 395.33

Cambium $ 200.00

OACETT $ 250.00

Total Funding $ 2095.33

Note: The difference between the funding and expenses above was covered by the

budgeted amounts allocated by the Peterborough PEO & IEEE chapters.

29

Appendix A: Event Photos

Figure 1: Students Working on Their Solar Car

Figure 2: The Completed Cars Prior to Final Testing

30

Figure 3: The Test Track and Timer

Figure 4: A Successful Run

31

Figure 5 Event Day Volunteers

32

Appendix B: Instruction Sheet

Engineering Challenge 2016

Questions and Evaluation

March 2, 2016

Objective

Design and build a solar powered car. Your will test your car on a purpose built lighted track. Your kit provides you with various construction materials as listed below. Marks are given based on the time your car takes to complete the lighted part of the track. You will receive bonus marks for the distance it moves beyond the lighted part of the track. Marks will also be given for your calculations, your diagram and answering some multiple choice questions. Marks can be earned for partial success and for your calculations.

Assignment:

Today you are building a solar powered car to race on a lighted track.

1) Your solar cars will be built using:

solar panels,

motor, pulleys,

wheels,

axles,

13 cm by 15 cm base,

L-brackets,

eye-hook.

The car must meet the following dimensions:

maximum length - 40 cm

maximum width - 20 cm

maximum height -18 cm

2) You must have one (1) eye hook (provided) mounted to the front underside of yourcar at a maximum height of 2.5 cm above the floor for a string line to pass through onthe lighted track.

3) Your car will be marked on how fast (timed) it completes the lighted part of the trackand how far (distance) it moves past the lighted part of the track. Both marks will bebase on scaled system (to be determined based on the results).

33

Use the equations to calculate the velocity of an example solar car.

Draw a diagram of your solar car showing dimensions.

Answer the multiple choice questions related to the physics of the solar cars on the reporting sheets. (See reading material included in these instructions.

Competition Rules

Scoring based on:

time to complete 12' lighted part of the track (on a scale)

distance covered past lighted part of the track (on a scale)Starting the car:

your car will be placed on the track by a volunteer with a piece of papercovering the solar cells

When told to do so you will start your car by removing the piece of paper

General Safety Rules

The car will be placed on the track by one or more of the volunteers.

Keep well clear of the test area when testing is going on.

Marking:

# Description Points

1 Car meets all of the required dimensions 10

2 Car makes it to 12' distance 10

Time to complete 12' distance (on a scale) 60

Distance past 12' mark (on a scale) 10

3 Velocity and time Calculations 5

4 Diagram 10

5 Multiple Choice questions 5

Total 110

34

Timeline:

Activity Start Time

Introduction and Overview 10:00am

Construction Begins 10:30am

Lunch Arrives 12:00pm

Testing Begins 12:30pm

Written Work Submitted – Designs To Be Finalized 12:30pm

Testing ends and Results Announced 2:15pm

35

Pulley systems

Pulleys are used to change the speed, direction of rotation, or turning force or torque. A

pulley system consists of two pulley wheels each on a shaft, connected by a belt. This

transmits rotary motion and force from the input, or driver shaft, to the output, or

driven shaft.

Figure 5: General Pulley Diagram

If the pulley wheels are different sizes, the smaller one will spin faster than the larger

one. The difference in speed is called the velocity ratio. This is calculated using the

formula:

Velocity ratio = diameter of the driven pulley ÷ diameter of the driver pulley

If you know the velocity ratio and the input speed of a pulley system, you can calculate

the output speed using the formula:

Output speed = input speed ÷ velocity ratio

Worked example Work out the velocity ratio and the output speed of the pulley shown in the diagram

above.

Velocity ratio = 120mm ÷ 40mm = 3

Output speed = 100rpm ÷ 3 = 33.3 rpm

Torque

The velocity ratio of a pulley system also determines the amount of turning force or

torque transmitted from the driver pulley to the driven pulley. The formula is:

output torque = input torque × velocity ratio.

36

How Electric Motors Work

Magnets

The fundamental driving force behind all electric motors, whether brushed or brushless, AC or DC, is magnetism. We’ve probably all played with magnets at some time or other, and have learned about them in science class in elementary school.

Recall that any magnet has a north pole and a south pole (it just so happens that the earth is a magnet whose poles happen to correspond very roughly to the geographical poles, hence the names for the magnet’s poles). If you take two bar shaped magnets and line them up, they will be attracted to one another if one’s north pole is next to the other’s south pole. If you line them up north to north or south to south, they will repel each other. Opposites attract.

Consider an assembly of three magnets, as shown in Figure 2. The left and right hand magnets are fixed to some surface, and the center magnet is free to rotate about its center.

Figure 6: The central rotating magnet will turn until it is aligned with the two fixed magnets, north pole to

south pole.

Because of the attraction of opposite poles, the center magnet will rotate until it is aligned as in Figure 3.

Figure 7: Once aligned, it will resist being turned further.

Because the magnet has weight, and thus momentum, it would actually overshoot slightly, and then come back, overshoot again, and so on a few times before settling down.

37

Now, imagine we could work some magnetic magic and swap the center magnet’s north and south poles just as it overshoots the first time, as shown in Figure 4.

Figure 8: If we magically reverse the poles of the central magnet just before it comes to rest, it will keep turning.

Instead of coming back, it would now be repelled by the fixed magnets, and keep turning so it can align itself in the other direction. Eventually, it would reach the state in Figure 5, which looks suspiciously like Figure 2.

Figure 9: Eventually, it will get back into the position it started from in Figure 1.

If we perform this pole-swapping every time the center magnet just finishes overshooting the aligned position, it would keep turning forever.

The problem is how to perform this feat of magnetic motion.

Electromagnets

The magnets we play with are called permanent magnets. These objects have a fixed magnetic field that’s always there. The poles are fixed relative to one another and relative to the physical magnet.

Another kind of magnet is the electromagnet. In its simplest form, this consists of an iron bar, wrapped in a coil of wire, as in Figure 6.

Figure 10: An electromagnet is just a piece of iron or other magnetic metal with a wire coil wrapped around it.

38

By itself it does nothing. However, if you pass an electric current through the wire, a magnetic field is formed in the iron bar, and it becomes a magnet, as in Figure 7.

Figure 11: Applying current in one direction will produce a magnet.

If you turn off the current, it stops being a magnet (that’s a bit of a simplification, since in reality, it ends up remaining a weak magnet, but we needn’t concern ourselves with that for the moment).

So far, the electromagnet already seems quite useful, since we can use it to pick up iron, steel, or nickel objects, carry them somewhere, and then drop them by just turning off the power (wrecking yard cranes do this with entire automobiles).

The really interesting thing about an electromagnet is that its polarity (the location of the north and south poles) depends on the direction of current flow. If we pass the current through in the opposite direction, the electromagnet’s poles will be reversed, as shown in Figure 8.

Figure 12: Applying current in the opposite direction will produce a magnet with opposite polarity.

Eureka!

If we replace the central magnet in our set of three magnets with an electromagnet, as in Figure 9, we have the beginnings of an electric motor.

39

Figure 13: Replacing the central magnet in Figure 1 with an electromagnet gives us the beginnings of a motor.

Now we have two problems to solve: feeding the current to the rotating electromagnet without the wires getting twisted, and changing the direction of the current at the appropriate time.

Both of these problems are solved using two devices: a split-ring commutator, and a pair of brushes. Figure 10 illustrates these.

Figure 14: By adding a commutator (the semi-circular arcs) and brushes (the wide arrows), we can change the

polarity of the electromagnet as it turns.

The two semicircles are the commutator, and the two arrows are the brushes. The current is applied to the brushes, indicated by the "+" and "-" signs.

With the current as shown, the electromagnet will be repelled by the two permanent magnets, and it will turn clockwise. After it has turned almost half way around, it will be in the state shown in Figure 11.

Figure 15: The magnets are almost aligned, but soon, the polarity will reverse, sending the rotating

electromagnet on its way around once again.

Then, just as the magnet reaches the aligned state, the split in the commutator passes under the brushes, and then the current through the electromagnet reverses, which takes us back to the condition in Figure 10. As a result, the magnet keeps turning. We have a motor!

40

Connecting Solar Cells in Series or Parallel

Since you will have 2 solar cells to work with to build your car, you need to make a decision on whether to connect them in series or parallel. To illustrate the difference, let’s say that each cell has an output voltage of 0.5 Volts and an output current of 2 Amps.

A series connection puts them in a ‘chain’ or series and results in an increase in the overall output voltage:

Figure 16: Series Connection Example

A parallel connection connects them ‘side by side’ or in parallel, and results in an increase in the overall output current:

Figure 17: Parallel Connection Example

41

Note that since power is voltage X current (P = V x I), in each case the total power delivered to the motor terminals is the same.

That is: Series: P = V x I = 1V x 2A = 2W Parallel: P = V x I = 0.5V x 4A = 2W

So why does it matter how they are connected then??

It matters because the DC motor you are using will behave differently with the different types of connections.

For a DC motor like this one, the speed is proportional to the voltage, and the torque is proportional to the current. So if you want a higher speed, you need to provide more voltage, and if you want to be able to produce more torque, you need to supply more current.

So as you’re building your car you can experiment with the 2 different connection types to see which one gives the best performance with the design you’ve come up with.

42

2015 Peterborough PEO/OACETT/IEEE

Engineering Month Challenge

Final Report

Overview:

The 2015 Engineering Month Challenge event, which is jointly planned and hosted by the

Peterborough PEO/OACETT/IEEE chapters was held on March 4, 2015 in the multi-

purpose room at the Evinrude Centre. This year’s event challenged the students to build

a mechanism to safely land a cell phone which was dropped from a height of 5m. This

was a variation on the classic ‘egg drop’ style contest, which was presented as a ‘Mars

lander’ competition, which introduced the students to the important aspects of lading a

payload on a distant planet.

The Challenge:

Appendix B contains a copy of the handout that was provided to the students which

outlines the objectives and constraints of the event. The students were provided with a

wide variety of materials to build their landers, including:

- Garbage & recycling bags

- Sponges

- Egg cartons

- Bubble Wrap

- String & tape

- Popsicle sticks & straws

- Balloons

Total time given for construction was 2.5 hours, at which point all landers needed to be

submitted for testing. Each team was given a wooden ‘mock payload’ which was a piece

of wood approximately the same dimensions as an iPhone 3GS which needed to be able

to be quickly installed and removed from their landers. The students were also provided

with a rubber washer, approximately 2.5cm dia which needed to be installed at the top

point of their device and which was used as the attachment point to the launch

mechanism.

The launch mechanism consisted of a long wooden arm, hinged against a wall with a

solenoid mechanism at one end which was actuated by a 12V car battery and switch.

When the switch was engaged the solenoid retracted, and the plunger was placed tough

the centre of the attachment washer. The arm was then raised up to 5m off the floor to

drop the landers.

43

The goal of the challenge was for the students to design a lander which would protect the

iPhone during landing (as measured by the accelerometers in the phone) and also kept the

phone in the initial orientation and landed in the designated target area.

The main principle the challenge was trying to demonstrate was the transfer of energy

during an impact. The lander + payload had a certain potential energy when lifted to the

5m height, and the students were challenged to design a lander which would 1) dissipate

the energy as the lander fell (i.e. through a parachute) and would cushion the payload

during the impact by having the energy absorbed in the lander.

There was a ‘mock up’ drop fixture available, which allowed the students to test their

landers during construction.

Appendix A contains a number of photos from the event.

Attendance:

The event was attended by 113 students in grades 10-12 split into 29 teams from

Lakefield College, St Peter’s, Holy Cross, Adam Scott, Crestwood, and St Stephen’s.

Approximately 15 volunteers were in attendance to run the event.

There was also a special guest speaker at the event, Steven Morley - president of

OACETT, who gave part of the opening address to the students.

Results:

For final testing, an iPhone 3GS was loaded into the landers, and the software to measure

the peak ‘g’ force experience by the phone was reset. The lander was connected to the

launch arm, raised to 5m and then dropped onto the floor in free fall. The phone was

carefully removed and the maximum ‘g’ load was recorded.

Points were awarded for minimizing the ‘g’ load as measured by the iPhone, maintaining

the orientation of the phone during the drop, landing in the designated target area,

maintaining the total weight of the lander within the prescribed limits and also for written

work. Full scoring details are given in appendix B.

Landers from all teams were tested, with the 5 highest scoring teams being re-tested in a

final round.

44

The scores for the top placed teams were as follows:

1st Place: 101 Points: Adam Scott

Grace Duffey

Chris Preston

Damien Hill

Ayden Gibson

2nd

Place: 90 Points: Adam Scott

Sebastian Kay

Aidan Hickie-Bentzen

Lydia Mills

Tristan Hilker

3rd

Place: 89 Points: St Peter’s

Will Trebbne

Greg Guinto

Theresa Kennedy

John Webster

The Subaru Peterborough Award for the most innovative design was awarded to a team

from Lakefield College:

Greta Liu

Asic Chen

Mingze Lin

Edward Tian

Media Coverage:

The local media was contacted prior to the event, and representatives from the

Peterborough Examiner, Peterborough This Week, CHEX TV all attended and covered

the event.

http://www.mykawartha.com/community-story/5459653-give-our-teenagers-a-bag-

sponges-and-some-popsicle-sticks-and-they-can-build-some-amazing-things/

http://www.chextv.com/2015/03/04/it-all-comes-down-to-the-landing/

http://www.thepeterboroughexaminer.com/2015/03/05/adam-scott-st-peter-teams-win-

mars-lander-challenge-at-annual-high-school-engineering-championship

45

We were also contacted by CBC radio, and a student who participated in the event was

interviewed the following morning on the CBC radio “Ontario Morning” show. The

interview is near the end of the following podcast:

http://podcast.cbc.ca/mp3/podcasts/ontariomorning_20150305_17682.mp3

Funding & Donations

As in past years, we had many generous sponsors who donated towards the event:

- Peterborough IEEE Chapter (trophies – approx. $350)

- Costco (snacks and drinks for students, garbage and recycling bags for building

landers)

- Peterborough Subaru (design innovation trophy)

- Tim Horton’s (coffee and snacks for volunteers)

- PrimaIP (juice boxes for students)

NEMOC also provided subsidized T-shirts for the volunteers, as well as Engineering

Month posters and some small prizes for the students.

NEM 2015 Income & Expense Summary

Expenses Evinrude Centre Rental $ 618.11

Trophies $ 367.08

Food (Kenner) $ 500.00

Building Supplies $ 288.60

iPhone & Sensor Costs $ 270.45

Debrief Meeting $ 214.42

Total Expenses $ 2,258.66

Funding NEMOC $ 750.00

PVNCCDSB $ 500.00

IEEE $ 367.08

OACETT $ 200.00

Total Funding $ 1,817.08

46

Appendix A: Event Photos

Figure 1: Steven Morley – OACETT President - Giving Opening Address

47

Figure 2: The Final Landing Zone Under The Drop Mechanism

Figure 3: A Lander Under Construction

48

Figure 4: A Chute Being Tested

Figure 5: A Lander Being Loaded

49

Figure 6: A Lander Ready to Launch (Launch Arm is Not Yet Raised)

Figure 7: Event Day Volunteers

50

Appendix B: Instruction Sheet

Engineering Challenge 2015 – Questions and Evaluation March 4, 2015

Objective: Design and build the payload delivery mechanism to safely land a payload on

a surface, the floor. You will be required to launch your payload (a cellphone) from a

height of 5m (16ft.) to a landing area on the floor. You will be provided with various

construction materials including a "template block" to represent the payload (cellphone).

You will be marked on the weight (more marks for using less weight) and the accuracy of

your landed payload staying upright. You will be marked on your calculations. You will

be marked for your diagram and answering some multiple choice questions. Marks can be

earned for partial success and for your calculations.

Assignment:

Today you are building a payload delivery mechanism designed to safely land ( minimum

g-force) a payload on a surface.

1. Landers are not built with unlimited resources.

Your structure will be marked based on its overall weight. Points will be given

for lesser weight. 20 marks will be given for a weight of 100g or less(without

cellphone). 1 point deduction for every 2g over 100g.

Landers also must hang a maximum of 0.75m below the launch point.

Landers are allowed a maximum footprint of 1 (one) sq. ft. (900 cm2).

2. Landers are designed to land a payload at a target

You will be marked on how accurate your lander is at maintain its original

orientation on landing. 10 points keeping the payload in the same orientation.

Also points will be given for landing within a designated target area on the

floor. You will get 1 landing attempt from the 4.9 m height once your design

is finalized. Your score will be based on the g-force achieved in the landing

attempt (points based on a sliding scale).

Use the equations to calculate the velocity and time of the fall at the floor.

Draw a diagram of your structure showing dimensions.

Answer the multiple choice questions related to the physics of the landers on the

reporting sheets. (See reading material included in these instructions)

51

Competition Rules

Only one lander may be launched at a time

Only the provided cellphone payload may be launched – no modifications to the

cellphones are allowed

The landers must provide sufficient protection to the cellphone as determined by the

judges. If there is a question about this the test area will be used to verify it.

In the final competition each team will get one launch attempt. The score will be

based on the orientation, hitting the target area and g-force on landing.

After the first launch attempts the top 5 (five) teams based on TOTAL score will be

given a second attempt to improve their score for the landing part only. The

remainder of their score will not be changed. The best result of these second attempts

will be declared the winner.

General Safety Rules

The payload (cellphone) must be easily installed and removed from your lander.

An eye-hook (provided) must be used to attach the lander to the release point. Keep

well clear of the test area when testing is going on.

No one is allowed near the target area while a lander is falling.

Marking:

# Description Points

1 Weight of lander (100g or less) 20

2 G-force measurement 30 (on a scale)

Points for Orientation 10

3 Points for hitting target area 10

4 Velocity and time Calculations 10

5 Diagram 10

6 Multiple Choice questions 20

Total 110

Timeline:

Activity Start Time

Introduction and Overview 10:00am

Construction Begins 10:30am

Lunch Arrives 12:00pm

Testing Begins 12:30pm

Written Work Submitted – Designs To Be Finalized 12:30pm

Testing ends and Results Announced 2:15pm

52

How does a parachute work in theory?

Throw a ball up in the air and, sooner or later, it always falls back to the ground. That's

because Earth pulls everything toward it with a force called gravity. You've probably

learned in school that the strength of Earth's gravity is roughly the same all over the

world (it does vary a little bit, but not that much) and that if you drop a heavy stone and a

light feather from the top of a skyscraper, gravity pulls them toward the ground at exactly

the same rate.

If there were no air, the feather and the stone would hit the ground at the same time. In

practice, the stone reaches the ground much faster, not because it weighs more but

because the feather fans out and catches in the air as it falls. Air resistance (also called

drag) slows it down.

What causes air resistance?

Just because the air's invisible, doesn't mean it's not there. Earth's atmosphere is packed

full of gas molecules, so if you want to move through air—by walking, in a car, in a

plane, or dangling from a parachute—you have to push them out of the way. We only

really notice this when we're moving at speed.

Air resistance is a bit like the way water pushes against your body when you're in a

swimming pool—except that air is invisible! If you jump off a diving board or do a belly

flop, the awkward shape of your body will create a lot of resistance and bring you rapidly

to a halt when you crash into the water. But if you make a sharp pointed shape with your

arms and dive in gracefully, your body will part the water cleanly and you'll continue to

move quickly as you enter it. When you jump or belly flop, your body slows down

quickly because the water can't get out of the way fast enough. When you dive, you part

the water smoothly in front of you so your body can glide through it quickly. With

parachutes, it's the slowing-down effect that we want.

If you fall from a plane without a parachute, your relatively compact body zooms through

the air like a stone; open your parachute and you create more air resistance, drifting to the

ground more slowly and safely—much more like a feather. Simply speaking, then, a

parachute works by increasing your air resistance as you fall.

Terminal velocity

When a force pulls on something, it makes that object move more quickly, causing it to

gain speed. In other words, it causes the object to accelerate. Like any other force, gravity

makes falling objects accelerate—but only up to a point.

If you jump off a skyscraper, your body ought to speed up by 10 meters per second (32ft

per second) every single second you're falling. We call that an acceleration of 10 meters

per second per second (or 10 meters per second squared, for short, and write it like this:

10m/s/s or 10m/s2). If you were high enough off the ground, then after about a minute

53

and a half (let's say 100 seconds), you'd theoretically be falling at about 1000 meters per

second (3600km/h or 2200 mph), which is about as fast as the fastest jet fighters have

ever flown!

In practice, that simply doesn't happen. After about five seconds, you reach a speed

where the force of air resistance (pushing you upward) increases so much that it balances

the force of gravity (pulling you downward). At that point, there is no net acceleration

and you keep on falling at a steady speed called your terminal velocity. Unfortunately,

the terminal velocity for a falling person (with arms stretched out in the classic freefall

position) is about 55 meters per second (200km/h or 125 mph), which is still plenty fast

enough to kill you—especially if you're falling from a plane!

How much does a parachute slow you down?

Feathers fall more slowly than stones because their terminal velocity is lower. So another

way of understanding how a parachute works is to realize that it dramatically lowers your

terminal velocity by increasing your air resistance as you fall. It does that by opening out

behind you and creating a large surface area of material with a huge amount of drag.

Parachutes are designed to reduce your terminal velocity by about 90 percent so you hit

the ground at a relatively low speed of maybe 5–6 meters per second (roughly 20 km/h or

12 mph)—ideally, so you can land on your feet and walk away unharmed.

Other factors to consider is the distance over which an object stops (de-accelerates ) when

it hits a surface such as the Earth, another planet or a comet (or a floor). This called shock

and can be measured as a force in "g" units as described in the following sentence.

FAfter a free fall from a height the shock on an object during impact is g, where

is the distance covered during the impact. For example, a stiff and compact object

dropped from 1 m that impacts over a distance of 1 mm is subjected to a 1000 g

deceleration. Free

fall with air resistance (time and velocity) Calculator

54

Equations for free fall without air resistance:

The following equations calculates the free fall time and

velocity ignoring air resistance (for simplicity) from the free

fall distance.

Equation 1: d = vi •t + 1/2• g •t2

Equation 2: vf = vi + g •t

Equation 3: vf 2= vi

2 + 2• g •d

Variables:

g = acceleration due to gravity = 9.8 m/s2

d= distance of drop, [d = 5 m (16 ft.)]

t = time (in sec, s)

vi = initial velocity (in m/s)

vf = final velocity (in m/s)

Note: The above equations do not account for air resistance so the actual

results your lander experiences will be different from the

calculated numbers.

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Impromptu Design Competition Guide

There are a variety of engineering design competitions for students. This guide is written for a half a day impromptu design competition. However, some elements of this guide could be used for competitions with different formats as well.

The preparation for this event should be started no later than January since March is the National Engineering Month, and ideally the event should be held at some point on that month. This event normally has a duration of approximately four hours. Consequently, a Saturday would be the ideal day to hold the event. The event could be held for a longer time depending on the complexity of the task for the competition.

The date of the event should be chosen in combination with the location. Generally, this event needs enough space for the participants to work in isolated groups, and a room with enough space to perform the judging and registration. This could vary depending on participation, but a school provides the space needed for the event. A large room such as the school cafeteria should be booked, for registration, lunch (if provided), and potentially final testing. In addition, several classrooms should be booked for the groups to work independently. The gym of the school can be used for final testing as well if the competition requires a large space.

The next step is to design/choose the actual competition project. There are a number of online tools to help the design of the competition. A competition can have different characteristics, and that could influence a great deal of the preparation of the event. The following links provide a guide of the competitions that are held in North America:

Asme Competitions Engineering Education Service Center Bridge Contest (Also see Appendix of this document for Chatham-Kent’s previous competition examples)

It is highly advisable that the sample competitions are only taken as models for the design of your own competition. Students tend to be at the vanguard of information technology. Hence, since these competitions can easily be accessed online, using a recycled challenge can compromise the validity of the competition. Try to use supplies of everyday use, which can be purchased at the local dollar store to save costs and add complexity. It is also suggested to provide multiple items to allow for variation of design. When picking a project, try to ensure there is no easy solution, such as a person throwing an item: our first year project was to transport a penny the furthest distance possible by creating a vehicle….the winning team attached a penny to an elastic using a paper clip, pulled back the elastic and let it fly. Our scoring tolerances were not strict enough and they were done “designing” after 5 minutes…they beat other teams who had actually built vehicles as distance was worth 50% of the score.

Once there is a date and a place, a communication to the local schools, local radio stations, and newspapers should be sent to advertise the event. Any form of free local communication is a good avenue of promotion. An example of the registration form sent to the schools can be found at the end

APPENDIX A56

Chatham-Kent

http://www.asme.org/events/competitions

http://www.engineeringedu.com/competitions.html

http://bridgecontest.phys.iit.edu/public/documents/school_contests

of this document. There is a charge for registration to guarantee that the teams that register come to the event.

Volunteers are crucial to the success of your event. Resultantly, once the advertisement for the event is sent out, volunteers need to be recruited. This event requires a minimum of one volunteer for every 8 students. An event with a lower ratio of volunteers to students can be challenging to the organizer. The volunteers will have the following tasks: judging, registration, team advising, cleaning, and lunch set up (optional).

Prior to the event there are number to things that need to be prepared, and they are included in the following checklist:

1. Team kits (supplies needed for the competition for registered teams plus a couple of extra)2. Registration sheets3. Judging Sheet (It will be given to the judges at the beginning of the day along with the rules of

the competition)4. Extra sign up sheets (for teams that were not previously registered)5. Confirm the school contact (usually custodian)6. Confirm lunch for the participants (optional)7. Competition Sheets (One for each group, one for each judge, and a couple of extras)8. Prizes for the winners9. Contact local radio stations, and newspapers to covert the competition

On the day of the event, arrive at least half an hour prior to the competition, to set up the registration desk and post signs/directions to registration desk. Also, assign each room to a specific team, and keep track of the location of each team. This is a sample schedule for the event:

9:00-9:20am: Registration 9:20-9:30am: Welcome speech and sending teams to their corresponding room 9:30-11:30am: Project time 11:30am-12:00pm: Lunch 12:30-1:00pm: Testing, and prizes

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Sign Up Sheet for the 2012 Impromptu Design Competitions-March 3rd, 2012

Location: John McGregor Secondary School, 300 Cecile Ave, Chatham Time: Senior Competition: (Grades 9-12) Sign in at 9:00 am, competition 9:00 am –11:30 am, testing at 12:45pm.

Junior Competition (Grades 7&8): Sign in at 10:00 pm, competition 11:30 am, testing at 12:15 pm. Prizes: Senior Impromptu Design: Best Design= $300, 2nd Place = $200/team Junior Impromptu Design: Best Design= $200, 2nd Place = $100/team

Other prizes available for participation Fees: Senior = $20/team, Junior = $10/team Lunch: Will be provided.

Description: As part of National Engineering Week, the Chatham-Kent Chapter of Professional Engineers of Ontario is sponsoring two Impromptu Design Competitions. Teams of 4 students will compete to design the best prototype to complete a given task. No preparation is required. All students will show up at the venue at the above listed sign-up times, at which time they will be given the materials and the project description. Senior competitors will have until 11:30 am complete their prototype, and then judging will commence at 12:45 pm. Junior competitors will have from 10-11:30 am to complete their prototype, and then judging will commence at 12:15pm.

Please send sign up sheets and payment to the attention of Juan S. Rincon at this address: C/O Union Gas P.O. Box 2001 50 Keil Dr Chatham, Ontario N7M 5M1 Or email [email protected] Please send the sign-up sheet in by February 29th, 2011. Payment must be received by Ferbraury 29th to complete sign-up process as the required amount of meals and supplies must be confirmed. Please check one of the following boxes: Junior Impromptu Competition (Grade 7&8 students) Senior Impromptu Competition (Grades 9-12 students)

Name of School_____________________________________________________ Team Competitors 1)_________________________________________________________________ 2)_________________________________________________________________ 3)_________________________________________________________________ 4)_________________________________________________________________ Contact Name & Phone #, or email_____________________________________

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