Young Engineers and Science Clubs Scotland

Young Engineers and Science Clubs Scotland Tried and Tested Technology Challenges* (T3C) *Compiled by Jess Cooke, based on over 20 years involvement with Science and Engineering clubs .

T3C Project Choices • Balloon Powered Vehicle • Model Boats (for a guttering canal) • A Timer to ring a bell after a specific time interval (30s, 1min) • A launcher for a ping-pong ball to hit targets at 1m,2m,3m • An electrical Quiz board – lights up or buzzes if answered correctly • A Sorting Machine for coins, sweets etc • A Weighing device • A Marble transfer device • A Particular Pylon (straws, pasta or cocktail sticks) • An eco-friendly Christmas cracker • An egg transfer device • A Jack in the Box, to lift out an egg • A satellite grabber • A Windowsill Greenhouse for tea-bag grow bags • The Paper Engineering Challenge

T3C Determined to Engineer The Design Process : The general principles are the same for any project: • Define the problem being solved Be able to state clearly what you are setting out to achieve • Consider a number of solutions Brainstorm a few different design ideas before you start to make anything • Carry out research Ask questions, interview experts, search on-line, look up books etc Do simple experiments to help you make design decisions (e.g. to compare different materials before deciding what to use) • Decide on one design idea and build/make it Make sure all the team are involved • Evaluate the finished design Test its performance. If unsuccessful, go back to stage 2 then make improvements and go back to stage 4 until the team agree the challenge has been successfully completed • Complete a technology report/take photos for display

T3C.1 Balloon Powered Vehicle (Racer) • Using 4 CDs for wheels, and basic materials normally found in the home or workshop, design and build a simple Balloon Powered Vehicle to transport a ping-pong ball along a level track. If you want to have a race these rules might be useful: • Prior to inflating the balloon, the vehicle dimensions should not exceed those of a standard ‘A4 paper’ box • The vehicle should clearly display a team logo/school colours • The vehicle should be powered by a single balloon and should be ready for release within 1 minute of being called to the start line • The vehicle should be released from behind the start line. ‘Pushing’ will result in disqualification. • Judges measure the time over the first metre • and the distance from start to finish for each • vehicle to calculate the Distance to Time ratio • for each vehicle.

T3C.2 Model Boats: Paddle versus Sail Using paper, card, sellotape, cocktail sticks, straws,elastic bands, polystyrene etc design and make a boat to race in the test tank. Your boat should be powered either by an elastic driven paddle or by the wind provided by a hair dryer fixed at one end of the tank.. • Boat racer • Which style of boat is better -paddle or sail? • Which measurements will give you the speed? Guttering boat track

T3C.3 Timing Device Using materials such as paper cups, straws, thread, pins etc, and a marble, water, sand or a candle, design and build a timer to ring a bell/make a noise after a given time interval (30s, or 1min)

T3C.4 Ping Pong Launcher Using the kit provided or materials of your own choosing, design and build a device which will fire a ping pong ball to strike a target at a distance of 1, 2 or 3metres. Prepare an instruction sheet to allow another user to set the launcher for each target distance.

Q1 A Q2 A ? ? A Q3 Q4 A T3C.5 Electrical Quiz Board Design and make a quiz board with at least 4 questions and answers which will light a bulb or ring a buzzer when the correct answer is connected to each question Choose your own topic for the quiz and decorate the quiz board to match your theme.

T3C.6 Sorting Machine Using materials such as paper cups, card, cocktail sticks etc, design and make a device that will sort Smarties or marbles into groups of 5

T3C.7 A Weighing Machine Using the materials provided, design and build a simple weighing device which can be used to measure masses of between 10g and 100g Suggested materials: Paper cups, elastic bands, Wire coat hanger, paper clips Plasticine, metre stick, string, card, pins, garden canes, Sellotape, 1 standard 10g mass water bottle (1ml water 1g) etc…

T3C.8 A Marble Transfer Device Construct a channel that will transfer a marble the greatest vertical distance and take the longest possible time. RULES: The marble run must be confined to the table top. The marble should roll continuously once it is released. If the marble falls out of the channel, the height and time will be measured from the start to the point where the marble leaves the channel. • Equipment : • Marble • 8 sheets A4 card • Scissors • 1 roll sellotape • 20 paper clips • 4 wooden plant stakes or skewers Score: Drop height = ……..cm Time taken =………seconds Performance Rating J K L

T3C.9 Particular Pylons Using only the materials in the kit provided, design and build a model pylon which is capable of supporting a test weight at an agreed height. The structure should be free standing, not supported in any way. The idea is to make the ‘cheapest’ structure which meets the conditions set at the start. Kit 1 : Fruit pastilles, straws, and cocktail sticks Kit 2 : Pasta strands, marshmallows

T3C.10 Eco Friendly Christmas Cracker Using recycled materials as much as possible, design and make a an eco-friendly Christmas Cracker Your cracker should contain a novelty item, a quiz question and a joke. Your report should explain what features makes your cracker eco-friendly

T3C.11 Egg Transfer Device Either Design a set-up to transfer an egg from one table top to another all by itself Or Design a system to project an egg through a hole in a card and catch it unbroken at the other side. The materials and measurements/distances for these challenges should be decided/agreed by the club members and leaders.

T3C.12 Jack in the Box Using no more than 3 sheets A4 card and glue design and make a ‘Jack in the Box’ to lift out an egg or a ping pong ball when the lid is opened. The lifting mechanism can be constructed from an extra sheet of card or by a simple mechanical device which involves pneumatics (or even a balloon?)

T3C.13 Satellite Grabber Using materials of your own choosing, design and build a device which will allow you to ‘grab’ and retrieve a model satellite positioned at a distance of 1 metre The model satellite should be constructed using a helium balloon as shown in the diagram. It should be weighted down with polystyrene to hold it steady in mid air

T3C.14 Windowsill Greenhouse Design and build a mini greenhouse suitable for indoor use on a windowsill which will allow you to investigate whether ‘Tea Bag' grow bags are better than cotton wool for growing cress or mustard from seed

T3C.15 Paper Engineering Challenge Using only the materials provided, you have 1 hour to make as many of the following items as possible. • A ‘Fishy’ Game • A Puzzle • A Puppet • A Storage Box with a Lid • A Mobile • Something Useful Each group will be asked to demonstrate their items at the end of the hour. The other teams will award points out of 5 for each item. The leaders may award bonus points for good teamwork. A4 Paper/card Cocktail sticks Straws Paper clips Skewers Thread ? Sellotape ?

T3C.15 Paper Engineering Challenge cont. The materials provided are on display. Teams should prepare a ‘shopping list’ before collecting the items they require. The materials have been priced to allow teams to estimate the cost of their designs. Costs should be kept as low as possible. Each group will be asked to demonstrate their items at the end of the hour. The other teams will award points out of 5 for each item. The leaders may award bonus points for good teamwork. Item No. 1 2 3 4 5 6 Points Total Score……………

Young Engineers and Science Clubs Scotland