Build-A-Toy Workshop
Introduction
Did you know that the job for some engineers is to design toys? Pretty cool, huh? Toy engineers get to apply their math and science skills to the fun of making toys that work well and are also entertaining, inexpensive and durable. Even simple toys involve a lot of engineering. For example, designing the darts for a Nerf gun is a pretty difficult task. The engineers who design the darts try out a lot of different designs, varying the darts' shape, material and mass before selecting a final design. These engineers also must balance out the darts' performance with their manufacturing costs.
If engineering a dart takes that much time and testing, imagine all of the work that goes into designing a remote controlled car! Do you think you have what it takes to be a toy engineer? Even though it is a lot of work, I think you will find that it's also fun and rewarding.
Today, we are going to take on an engineering challenge, and experience toy engineering firsthand! Children of families who had to evacuate their homes because of a wildfires no longer have any toys. We need to engineer some new toys for them! You will be given various materials to work with and need to use your imagination plus math and science knowledge to design and build toys with moving parts. That means you need to apply your scientific knowledge of electrical circuits to your toy design. Think of toys you have seen that can move on their own. All of those toys are built with electric circuits.
Remember, an electric circuit needs to include a closed loop that current can travel through, as well as a voltage or power source. What do you think could be used as a voltage source? (Possible answers: Batteries, wall outlet.) For your toys, you will use batteries.
You have also already learned about resistance. What is an example of a resistor that you have seen in past lessons and activities? (Answer: A light bulb.) Your toys will incorporate motors, which act as resistors. It is up to you to decide how to use that spinning motor as part of your toy. One last constraint for this engineering challenge: your toy must cost $80 or less to build. Let's get started!
Materials
Before the Activity: Toy Engineering Presentation.
Before you start working on your toy, it is important that we review the engineering design process so we can use it to accomplish this task.
Who can list the engineering design process steps for me?
1. Outline the problem and your constraints.
For this activity, we are going to imagine that we all work for a toy company called Build-a-Toy Workshop. Build-a-Toy Workshop heard that some families in a town nearby lost their homes and all their belongings in a wildfire. These families evacuated with only their most important belongings and the children in these families no longer have any toys at all to play with. Build-a-Toy Workshop decided to put their engineers to work to create really special toys for these children. They want the toys to be fun and creative to make the children feel better after all they've been through. They also have given us the requirement that the toys must have moving parts, and must cost $80 or less. Since we are the engineers that work for Build-a-Toy Workshop, it is our job to design and build these toys!
2. Brainstorm with your group and write down all ideas you can think of, no matter how crazy they sound.
3. After you have written down your ideas, complete the design matrix. (Sign off)
4. Draw out a plan for how to make the idea you've created. (Sign off before moving on)
5. Gather materials - - You have $80 so plan well!
6. Building a prototype.
7. Test it to see if it works the way you planned. Detail two changes you feel are necessary to improve your designs.
8. After you've tested it, apply what you learned to improve it. Complete RE-Design. (You can sell back unused materials for half cost.)
9. When groups finish improving their toys, develop a sales pitch or advertisement for your creations. You need to sell your idea to the Build-a-Toy Workshop management team to get the toys manufactured. Include explanations of your electrical circuits and how you used the motor in your toys.
Assessment:
Pre-Activity Assessment
Video Discussion: Show students a one-minute video from the PBS Design Squad website, in which real-life mechanical engineer Amanda Bligh talks about her job making toys for Hasbro; see http://pbskids.org/designsquad/video/nerf-toys/ or search for the "Nerf Toys - Amanda Bligh" video on YouTube. After watching the video, discuss the different ways that she uses the engineering design process to fulfill the requirements of her job.
Activity Embedded Assessment: Worksheet
Post-Activity Assessment
Class Testing: After you complete your final designs, conduct a class-wide demonstration of all the toys. Provide constructive criticism for each design.
- What worked well?
- What improvements would they make in the next iteration?
- What additional work would be required to make it ready for manufacture and market?
Activity Scaling
- For lower grades, reduce the number of available materials and provide a more defined design task. For example, define the type of toy to be designer (such as a robot, electric car, helicopter, etc.) or provide pre-constructed individual toy components.
- For upper grades, give students additional money, materials and time. Challenge them to make their toys functional as well as aesthetically pleasing. When they have finished constructing their final designs, have groups develop short commercials for their toys.
References: Toy. Last updated August 3, 2009. Wikipedia Free Online Encyclopedia. Accessed August 3, 2009. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Toy
Contributors: Jacob Crosby; William Surles; Eszter Horanyi; Jonathan McNeil; Malinda Schaefer Zarske; Carleigh Samson
Copyright© 2009 by Regents of the University of Colorado.
Supporting Program: Integrated Teaching and Learning Program, College of Engineering, University of Colorado Boulder
Acknowledgements: This digital library content was developed by the Integrated Teaching and Learning Program under National Science Foundation GK-12 grant no. 0338326. However, these contents do not necessarily represent the policies of the National Science Foundation, and you should not assume endorsement by the federal government.