The team has expanded upon their awesome project. This week they expanded on their crank. Here is what they had to say about it:
Building on our previous design, we machined an acrylic sheet into an acrylic disc to mount on the generator for easier use (video 1). We then kept building the power generation module so that we could test our other equipment better (photo 1). We disassembled part of the TV to try and test it with our generator, but weren’t generating enough power or had some other issue (photo 2). We managed to cut all of our acrylic for the hydro power module and we tested flame polishing on one of the pieces (photo 3, 4 and video 2). The video game has been further tested and we can successfully use other buttons to play the game! (Although Pac-Man is still really hard) (photo 5). Finally, we made some welding modifications to the base of the generator to make it simpler and more sturdy (video 3). Next, we’ll be building the structures of the modules and finally have something to really show off!
We enjoyed your company at the Winter Teacher’s Workshop! We hope everyone had a blast. If you are a middle school or high school SMILE teacher you should have received the following materials (pictured below): cornstarch, agar agar, gelatin powder, a bottle of glycerin, Styrofoam, cornstarch, and green biodegradable Styrofoam packing peanuts. With these materials we showcased several lesson plans including Fork it Over and Packing for the Future along with the bonus activity: Composting- Out of Sight Not Out of Mind. All of the lesson plans and presentations for these activities can be seen here. We would love to see pictures of your SMILE students performing these activities. Always feel free to e-mail us at smile.program.osu@gmail.com.
This week the ME team was working on a power generator for their project which included a hand crank system. The team describes their process below:
We started by designing a simple hand-crank and trying to power a 25 watt light bulb with it [photo 1]. We were not generating enough power to light the bulb, so the light bulb just glowed (it didn’t light up fully). We determined that we need to spin the generator faster to get more power, so we went about modifying out crank to include a gear ratio. Adding a gear ratio means that spinning the crank handle one revolution will rotate the generator hub more than one revolution (2.4 revolutions, in this case). The next few photos show our group hard-at-work in the machine shop at OSU: Peter uses the band-saw to cut steel components [photo 2], Sam uses the sand-blaster to clean and texture parts [photo 3], and Ryan welds a shaft onto a sprocket [photo 4]. The new, modified hand crank is complete [photo 5], and our test with a voltmeter is successful [photo 6]! The new design generates about 21 volts, which is a significant improvement over the 12 volts we were able to achieve prior to the modifications. Next, we’ll be conducting more tests and modifications—after all, engineering is an iterative process!
Not too long ago we showed you how to make this awesome scribble machine. The students from Nyssa High School decided to try it out and had a blast! Thank you for sharing Nyssa SMILE Club!
Peter, Sam, and Ryan make up this year’s Mechanical Engineering Team. They are excited to introduce themselves and their project. In this video they discuss the engineering and customer requirements for their project. Fell free to ask them questions in the comment section below!
