Engineering Applications

Engineering Design Notebook

For this class, all of our sub projects' design process are outlined in the below Engineering Design Notebook.

Engineering Notebook Template

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Final Pinball Launcher

Launchers (part requirements):

What it does -

Launches the ball all the way to the top and beyond each time.

When it does it -

When pulled back and released by player.

How it does it -

The user pulls back the handle/knob and in the process the user transfers energy from their hand to the spring (potential energy). When released, the spring converts energy to kinetic transferring the energy to the ball propelling it into the game field.

The launcher stays straight/aligned when launching.

Aesthetics -

Knob fits the theme. Excellent craftsmanship.

Does not waste gameboard space (sized appropriately for pinball).

Construction/durability -

Assembled with wood glue or screws. No hot glue. Able to withstand thousands of uses.

The video shows the launcher hitting the ball all the way to the back of the board easily each time, and it happens when I pull back on our knob and let go. You can see the springs compress when I pull the handle back. The block described below and seen above is in place to hold the dowel in place to track correctly. Instead of our knob fitting the theme, our hitter fits the theme. Our theme is my partner and I's faces, so we engraved pictures of our bitmojis onto the hitter. We shortened the length of our dowel to properly fit the gameboard, and digitally fabricated every peice so that it can withstand unlimited uses.

Labelled Image

This image shows the launcher from a side view, to better see all parts of the launcher. The far left is the hitter, which is 4 total layers, with the furthest being larger to have a greater surface area for impact. The dowel runs throughout, with springs on it to compress the launcher, which shoots the ball with power. Glued to the wall is our block, which is used to better compress the springs and also help keep the dowel on the right track for launch. The far right is our knob, which is a wood sphere to be able to hold and pull back easily.

Feild Trip Documentation ⬇️

Julian- Pinball Museum/Arcade Field Trip with Research Assignment

Flipper Documentation

Above is a picture of our flipper constraints. Some of the most important constraints are the flipper size, symmetry from a top view, enough force to hit the pinball to the top, and craftsmanship in the installation. Our main goal for the flipper was to create a powerful and aesthetic flipper that is consistent.

Hole in the board

The picture above shows the circle hole in a board that we based our project off of. This was a problem for our flippers because a hole in the board made it hard to test the flipper. We came to the solution that installing a temporary wood circle would solve this problem.

Rectangle Bottom

We tried to solve the problem of the power by installing a rectangle bottom for our solenoid. This ended up not working, but solidified our need for a pulling spring over a push spring.

Same flipper shape top and bottom

Our final solution to the problem of power was to create the same shape flipper on the top and bottom. This would allow for easier testing and a better way to see the correct angle to position our solenoid at.

Prototype

For our prototype, we used a tmount to hold the solenoid, and a spring near the middle of our flipper. We realized that the spring needed to be much closer to the edge in order to prevent leaning and bring the flipper back to the same spot every time.

Testing

To test our flippers, we had to duct tape a wodden circle to fill our hole in the board. We also had to tweak the angle of the flippers to match and the solenoids to have the right power. You can alos see that for our final, we uncoiled the spring to further prevent leaning and to avoid hitting the tmount.

Target Documentation

Brief/Constraints

What it does:

Adds to your score when you hit it with the pinball.

Ball triggers a “lever” to tilt backwards engaging the switch

Can trigger other reactions (Like LEDS)

When it does it:

When the ball hits the target (80% of the time). Has to work when it hits it hard.

How it does it:

Use the screw holes in the switch to fix the switch to the housing / body of the target.

Target body should be limited to only what is necessary (should be narrow enough to use m 12 screws).

Wiring best practices

Aesthetics:

If it is top mounted it needs to be small, taking up a limited gameboard space.

If it is bottom mounted, the flat (paddle) needs to be appropriately sized for a target.

No bigger than 1.5” width.

Theme is implemented

Construction/durability:

All connections need to be made with finger joints.

Screw the body of the target (housing) into your pinball board easily (preplan laser cut your holes to screw in).

Lever doesn’t break.

If you have a three sided design, you should include something to span between the sides to make it so that the sides stay parallel and rigid (added 1/9/25).

Overall, my goal for the targets is to create a sleek and functioning target that raises the score everytime it is hit. I plan on using the engineering design process throughout the entire creation of my targets.

Research/Idea Development

To create the target, we had to either create a top or bottom mount. Using past years' projects as a reference, we decided to create bottom mounted targets to take up minimize game space and keep our board looking clean. Since we decided to use a bottom mount, we had to make the paddle under a specific size. We chose to use a bigger paddle compared to a small paddle so that the game was easier for the user to play. The downside to the bigger paddle is that the switch had to be as sensitive as possible to toggle as the bigger paddle weighed more.

This is a picture of my bottom mounted target installed into the board.

Prototype

This picture shows three iterations of my mount prototype. Going from left to right, I moved to location of the screw used to pinch the bottom of the paddle in place closer to the switch and angled the screw holes of the switch itself to make it more upright and easier to trigger.

This is the prototype installed into the board.

Original paddle prototype

For our first paddle prototype, I used a simple square shape and just put a sticker of my face emoji over the square.

Final Paddle Design

We decided that just putting a sticker over the square didn't incorporate the theme of my game with enough quality, so I used Inkscape to turn my paddle into the shape of my head. This allowed for a great look when playing the game.

This is a picture of my final paddles installed.

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Evaluation and Testing

To test the targets, I had to mount both targets to the board in their correct holes, and after wiring and coding, I put the new paddle in and tested the functionality by hitting the ball against the target to see if the score went up. I had to apply wiring best practices and make sure that my mount was perfectly lined up for the target to trigger everytime. On the left is a video of my targets working and raising the score when hit.

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