Rube Goldberg Project Science 10
Braedon, Vlad Arman
Project video (click link)
Our video of our Rube Goldberg project shows the contraption of the project and how we could use simple machines to strum a guitar.
Step 1
Explanation:
The first step was to make a balloon that would blow out air in a straight direction to focus the air to move the water wheel forward to drop a marble to start the process.
Step 2
Explanation:
The marble will roll down a Plinko ramp that will end with a funnel that will direct the marble to hit the dice and cause the dice to fall down to the 3rd step.
Step 3
Explanation:
The dice will fall and hit another marble with slightly more weight and push it into a pully box with 6 marbles. The marble will fall down into the box and cause the other pully box with 1 marble to go up to a cardboard piece that will tilt the box downwards and make the marble move out through a open hole on the right-side of the box which made the marble fall out onto a crooked ramp and roll down.
Step 4
Explanation:
The marble will roll on the ramp and fall into a cup with a funnel which will direct the marble onto another crooked ramp that roll it to step 5.
Step 5
Explanation:
The marble would fall onto the the last ramp after funneling through the funnel cup and roll fast enough with enough force to hit the long arm with a guitar pick on the end of popsicle sticks and strum the guitar on the floor.
Energy transformations
- From step 1 the balloon uses elastic energy to push air into the water wheel which converts in into mechanical energy
- From step 2 the water wheel then drops the ball on the Plink ramp which changes the energy type into gravitational energy
- From step 3 from the ramp it hits the dominos which converts the energy back into mechanical energy
- From step 3 the marble at the end of the dominos then falls into the pulley which uses mechanical energy
- From step 4 the last marble fall into the funnel which is gravitational energy
- from step 5 the marble hits the long arm and converts the energy to mechanical energy
- From step 5 the arm strums the guitar which changes it to sound energy
All types of energy used in project
- Elastic energy
- Mechanical energy
- Gravitational energy
- Sound energy
Energy Calculations
ball weight ~ 0.005kg
initial height ~ 1.05m
Gravitational potential energy calculations
(0.005kg) (9.8m/s^2)(1.05m)
= 0.05145J
Potential energy =0.05145J
Final kinetic energy calculations
Ep = Ek
Kinetic energy = 0.05145J
Energy lost:
0.05145J – 0.05145J = 0J
We lose 0J of energy because the amount of energy is too small to be measured or calculated accurately.