Traditional Trebuchet Nick Pellegrino

http://prezi.com/ndi-avlaxztk/counterweight-trebuchet/
traditional trebuchet-5/13/14

     One arm holding the projectile, the resistance arm, swings up as the other side of the arm, the force arm is pulled down by the counterweight attached. Once the resistance arm reaches 45 degrees off the ground, one string on the sling will slide off so that the projectile, our lemons, will fly through the air to the target. While this project is nice and simple, it will reach the furthest distance in our class for sure. I think that a group of three or four is perfect for the future design we plan.
     We will start with the base and wheels and work our way up o the frame, then fulcrum, then the long arm. Before anything though, we will find the optimal arm length on both the force and resistance side, along with the best weight.
     One negative is that we have to use a lot of material to construct either trebuchet. One positive is that each one will be able to launch a lemon extremely far. Rating: 8/10
Rating: 9/10

Sumo Bot

      In a group of four, Me, Mike, Amy, and Steve, we constructed a small vehicle that could turn corners and run on batteries. We were given some small motors, gears, wheels, and piece of thin wood, batteries of our choice and a brain for its hardware. With screws, we connected the motors to the piece of wood and put the wheel axel directly onto the motor to reduce friction created from the gears. Then we put another rotational wheel on the other side to allow rotation of the vehicle to make the sharp turns on the race track. Then we connected the brain to everything and the vehicle was on a move. Below is our vehicle without the brain.

      Only two groups were able to complete the track in good time. They were Sam's and Armando's groups. Sam finished in 2:24 and Armando finished in a close 2:50. We all had a lot of fun while working on these vehicles.












    


      If we had more time on this project, I would've added smaller wheels to reduce the static friction on the car. Also, I think that gears might've helped out I little bit more. I think that if we tried a bunch of different back wheels that were not connected to the motors, we could've had more success. But, now everything is put in the past and I am looking forward to break records with my trebuchet.