A Rube Goldberg machine is an purposely overdone contraption used to do a very simple task in a very complicated way. Our Rube Goldberg machine's end result was to press an easy button. We named our project The Maze Ruber, after the book The Maze Runner. We painted the machine to look like a maze as well. We've worked on this project since almost the beginning of school. We started with making a list of all the things we thought we were going to need to know for the project. Then, we started to plan our machine and make a full schematic. After we planned The Maze Ruber, we started to build it. The first few days we didn't get very much done because we were still figuring out how we were going to build the machine. After nine days of building, our project was complete. We did calculations and reflected on our work. You can view our steps and calculations in the presentation below:
Here is a video of The Maze Ruber:
Concepts
Acceleration(a=v/t) - rate of change of velocity. We the acceleration of the marbles in step one was 1.5 m/s^2. Acceleration due to Gravity - the acceleration of a falling object. The acceleration due to gravity is always 9.8 m/s^2. Mass - the amount of matter. The mass of the marble was 0.0145 kg. Force(F=ma) - the push or pull on an object. The force of the marble falling into the cup in step twelve is 0.18 N. Work(W=Fd) - the amount of energy put into something. We found that the amount of work done in step five is 0.0013 J. Potential Energy(gravitational)(PE=mgh) - energy an object has due to its height or position in a gravitational field. Kinetic Energy(KE=0.5mv^2) - energy due to motion. Mechanical Advantage - how much easier a tool makes something. We found that the mechanical advantage of the screw in step ten was 6.25. Inclined Plane - a slanted surface connecting a lower level to a higher level. We used seven in our project. Wheel and Axle - a wheel with a rod, called an axle, through its center lifts or moves loads. We used one wheel and axle. Screw - an inclined plane wrapped around a pole which holds things together or lifts materials. We used one screw. Lever - a stiff bar that rests on a support called a fulcrum which lifts or moves loads. We used one lever in our project. Pulley System - a simple machine that uses grooved wheels and a rope to raise, lower or move a load.
Reflection
As you can probably imagine, we had many problems and setbacks during the making of this project. Since this was our first project, we didn't know how to use the tools and we didn't realize that everything wouldn't work perfectly. As we continued to build our project, we discovered that not everything is perfectly consistent. In fact, every time we tested our machine, something different seemed to not work. For example, the pulley systems and motor were particularly inconsistent. Despite all the deviation, we did have some parts that worked well almost every time. The screw worked well and looked good because you could see the marble go through it. After a lot of testing, the lever also cooperated and did what it was supposed to do. Besides the inclined planes, these simple machines worked the best. While we built our Rube Goldberg machine, I learned many things. One of the things I learned is how to use power tools and about simple machines and how to use them. I also learned that I could be more positive and work on my leadership skills. Another skill I learned is better presentation techniques. This will be very helpful in not just science, but also other classes and everyday life. Some things that I could have done better during this project is staying on topic and as I previously said, staying positive. I feel that my group and me had a very good work ethic, but we did have trouble staying on topic. This project was very fun and I really enjoyed getting to know my group members. The best part of this project for me was the end when our machine worked perfectly for the first time. It was the best because we all knew each other well enough by then and it was great to finally see our machine work after so much effort. The worst part was probably in the middle of working on our project, when one of the pulley systems wasn't working and I was very stressed. Fortunately, that problem resolved itself quickly enough and we were able to resume work on our machine. We also some other major setbacks (the other pulley system and the motor), and a few minor setbacks. Overall, I really enjoyed doing this project, and it was a great project to start the year off with.