In class we made a Rube Goldberg machine. Rube Goldberg was a Pulitzer Prize winning cartoonist best known for his invention cartoons. A rube Goldberg machine is a complex machine that has many actions that perform an easy action like feeding a fish. For our Rube Goldberg machine our end result was to feed a lion. We had 11 steps. Our steps included a inclined plane, levers, wedge, a rope swing, a screw, and a pulley. Our theme was nature so we painted trees, a squirrel, a snake, and we brought in a stuffed lion.
Our Presentation
A Video of our Rube Goldberg Machine
Key Terms
Force (F): The intensity of body or system, producing or tending to produce a change in movement or in shape or other effects. (A push or pull on an object).
F=ma, measured in Newtons N
Mechanical Advantage(Ma): The amount of how much easier a machine makes a task easier
Mass (m): The amount of matter and weight of atoms in an object, measured in Kilograms (Kg).
Speed (s): Rate of distance covered, scalar quantity measured in m/s. s=d/t
F=ma, measured in Newtons N
Velocity(v): Rate of distance travelled in a direction, a vector quantity measured in meters/second or m/s and direction.
v=d/t
Time (t): Progress of events, measured in seconds, s.
Distance (d): Amount of space between two points, measured in meters, m.
Acceleration (a): the rate of change of velocity per unit of time, measured in m/s².
a= v(final)-v(initial)/time
F=ma, measured in Newtons N
Mechanical Advantage(Ma): The amount of how much easier a machine makes a task easier
Mass (m): The amount of matter and weight of atoms in an object, measured in Kilograms (Kg).
Speed (s): Rate of distance covered, scalar quantity measured in m/s. s=d/t
F=ma, measured in Newtons N
Velocity(v): Rate of distance travelled in a direction, a vector quantity measured in meters/second or m/s and direction.
v=d/t
Time (t): Progress of events, measured in seconds, s.
Distance (d): Amount of space between two points, measured in meters, m.
Acceleration (a): the rate of change of velocity per unit of time, measured in m/s².
a= v(final)-v(initial)/time
Our Steps
Step 1: We had a tennis ball with a mass of 58.5 grams roll down an inclined plane with a mechanical advantage of 3.625.
Step 2: The tennis ball hit a lever with a downward acceleration of 0.16m/s2.
Step 3: The lever hit another lever that pulls up a 12 gram wood block with a needle drilled into it at a velocity of 0.18m/s.
Step 4: A wedge pops a water balloon with a metal ball (.04 grams) inside it with a mechanical advantage of 13. 5.
Step 5: The metal ball from the balloon rolls down an inclined plane with a velocity of .62 m/s and a mechanical advantage of 4.25.
Step 6: The ball hits a magnet tied to a rope swing that swings with a force of 10.5N.
Step 7: The magnet hits another magnet with a ball (.04 grams)next to it and the ball rolls down an inclined plane with a mechanical advantage
of 2.2, and a velocity of .2m/s
Step 8: The same ball rolls down another inclined plane with a mechanical advantage of 2.5, and a velocity of 0.51 m/s9.
Step 9: The ball rolls down a screw in which the ball rolls at a velocity of 0.54m/s.
Step 10: The ball falls into a cup and the weight of the ball pulls up a pulley with a nail inside that pulls up with a force of 0.15N.
Step 11: The nail inside the wood is a wedge that stabs a balloon with food for our lion Leo with a down at a force of 0.18N.
Step 2: The tennis ball hit a lever with a downward acceleration of 0.16m/s2.
Step 3: The lever hit another lever that pulls up a 12 gram wood block with a needle drilled into it at a velocity of 0.18m/s.
Step 4: A wedge pops a water balloon with a metal ball (.04 grams) inside it with a mechanical advantage of 13. 5.
Step 5: The metal ball from the balloon rolls down an inclined plane with a velocity of .62 m/s and a mechanical advantage of 4.25.
Step 6: The ball hits a magnet tied to a rope swing that swings with a force of 10.5N.
Step 7: The magnet hits another magnet with a ball (.04 grams)next to it and the ball rolls down an inclined plane with a mechanical advantage
of 2.2, and a velocity of .2m/s
Step 8: The same ball rolls down another inclined plane with a mechanical advantage of 2.5, and a velocity of 0.51 m/s9.
Step 9: The ball rolls down a screw in which the ball rolls at a velocity of 0.54m/s.
Step 10: The ball falls into a cup and the weight of the ball pulls up a pulley with a nail inside that pulls up with a force of 0.15N.
Step 11: The nail inside the wood is a wedge that stabs a balloon with food for our lion Leo with a down at a force of 0.18N.
Our Blueprint
Reflection
I think I did very well in this project. I learned a lot of new things. I was a good leader and my communication was great. I took lead but I let my teammates do work too. Our project worked but our last step never worked. If we had one more day we would have gotten it to work. We were productive all 10 days. My goal was to share the workload. I accomplished my goal and gave everybody a turn. My weakness was work ethic. I always got distracted and get of topic. I kept on talking with people instead of working. The final days though my group and I worked harder and did not mess around, We did not have much time left so we worked harder to complete the machine.