ThinkTank

2. ThinkTank

3. ThinkTank

4. Presenting…ThinkTank’s Ponder Puzzle! The Great Learning Tool!

5. …by Robert Rudd, Mona Daniels, Ouqi Jiang, Tina Wen, Andrew Clare With help from TA’s: Yonatan Tekleab, Willie Sanchez, and Sandra Gonzalez

6. Begin at the Beginning… Theme: Learning Tools When we first started brainstorming ideas for our project, we knew we wanted to design something that was:InteractiveChallengingAttention grabbingEducationalFun

7. Developing our Strategy: • Deterministic Design Process • Peer Review Evaluation Process (PREP) (To see more examples of PREP sheets, please access our website: web.mit.edu/aclare/Public/SSP)

8. Results of Our Brainstorming: • A wooden map • A computer game • 3D Brain/Eye • 3D scrabble • Geography game • Operation type game • Music game, games for the blind • Building “Blocks” of Life

9. The Ranking of the Strategies:

10. Functional Requirements of Body Game/ World Puzzle • Puzzle lights up and plays music upon completion • Sound plays when specific pieces/parts touched and plays info about that piece/part • Pieces marked with braille for the blind and textures to facilitate puzzle completion • Demonstrate interchangeable parts for different subject areas (geography, human physiology, etc.)

11. Developing our Concept: • Deterministic Design Process • Peer Review Evaluation Process (PREP) (To see more examples of PREP sheets, please access our website: web.mit.edu/aclare/Public/SSP)

12. Design Parameter Options

13. Final Concept: • Wooden Box • Plastic Puzzle Bases • Lights and Sound • Information Wand • Different Puzzles • Clay 3D Puzzle

14. Circuitry Design (goals) • Be able to touch specific pieces and plays information about that piece. • When the puzzle is completed, some parts of the puzzle light up. • When the puzzle is completed, some sound plays (“Congratulations! You completed the puzzle!”)

15. Info Circuit Problem: How to play seven pieces of info for seven continents? Solution: Buy seven sound chips to record sound and play back. mic speaker power bubble switch sound chip for the info and congratulation sound

16. Another problem Problem: Each chip comes with one battery and one speaker. If we use seven chips, how to just use one battery and one speaker? Solution: Use our brains!!!

17. Battery And Speaker ProblemFirst try--not working All the chips are in parallel, and in series with the battery and the speaker.

18. Battery And Speaker ProblemSecond try--working, but not practical • Accomplished the goal of using one battery and one speaker. • Requires a four-pin wand and four corresponding pins on each info spot on the map – impractical.

19. Battery And Speaker ProblemThird try—the way to go! 10kΩ 10kΩ Use op-amps as input adders. 10kΩ 10kΩ 10kΩ 10kΩ 10kΩ Op-amp Op-amp 741 1k Ω 741 10kΩ 10kΩ 9V potentiometer 10kΩ 10kΩ 10kΩ 10kΩ speaker 10kΩ 10kΩ

20. Flashing Lights • 555 Timer (DC->square wave) • Chose R2=39k Ω and C1=10E-6 F to get the right frequency (approximately 0.5Hz)

21. Flashing Lights Wired Up

22. “Congratulations” Circuitry • magnetic switches in series to control the “congratulations” circuitry • lights and sound circuitry in parallel to be triggered by the magnetic switches

23. Info Switch Design Touch button design Our puzzle design (nail design)

24. On/off; Info/puzzle Switch Design

25. Ponder Puzzle box Design Parameters: • Small enough to fit on a normal desk • Large enough to accommodate internal circuitry • Grooves to accommodate sliding cover, and additional puzzle overlays • Sturdy, but not overly heavy.

26. Ponder Puzzle box • Decided on wood (easy to work with, strong, relatively light) • All woodworking was done in the Hobby shop under the guidance of Ken Stone

27. Ponder Puzzle box • Each board was made separately using a variety of saws and blades • The boards were later clamped and glued with the bottom board being screwed on after the circuitry was inserted and tested

28. Puzzle Functional Requirements: • Fit together well • Imbed magnets to complete circuit • Holes to insert wand to hear information

29. Puzzle • OMAX Water Jet layout

30. Puzzle • Used the Water Jet to cut the puzzle • Polypropylene material

31. Puzzle • Utilized Crayola Model Magic Clay • Pliable at first, but air dries hard and lightweight without crumbling • Non-toxic: child-safe • Fulfills two functional requirements: • 3D to show land textures and elevations • Conceals magnets

32. Demonstration

33. Production • Under budget • Easy to manufacture • Simple design • Mold for puzzle pieces • Custom circuit boards

34. Further Development • Interchangeable puzzles • Use same circuitry, fit the same holes and magnets • Mini computer to hold information or each puzzle comes with info cartridge • Smaller magnets, more lightweight

35. Future Puzzles • Varying difficulty levels: child to adult • Individual continents/countries, solar system, human body, rainforest… endless possibilities! • More physically detailed for blind, braille

36. Ponder Puzzle! • Sight, touch, and hearing stimulated • Lightweight clay, 3D pieces • Versatility makes it for all ages • Toy for home, study tool, pastime, teaching tool in classrooms • Technology meets tradition

37. Acknowledgments(Alphabetically) • Jim Bales, Edgerton Center • Steve Banzaert, Edgerton Center • Marc Graham • Ed Moriarty, Edgerton Center • Stephen Oglesby • OME Staff • Anne Davis Shaw • Professor Slocum • Ken Stone, MIT Hobby Shop • Roy Talanian, MIT Hobby Shop