One of the main things we focus on in STEM is the study of physics and applying that knowledge to the Design Process and other engineering styles in order to create new, innovative designs for different tasks. This project, the Kinematic Racer, was created to test our knowledge of kinematics and to help us flex our creative muscles in building a small car that is powered by rubber bands.
Kinematics is the branch of mechanics that studies the motion of objects without knowing the forces that cause that motion. Basically, it is the study of motion without understanding the cause. The forces that fall into this category of study are velocity, acceleration, direction, and displacement. Kinematics also includes the study of vector and scalar quantities. A vector is a quantity that has direction and magnitude. This includes velocity, acceleration, and displacement. A scalar is a quantity that has magnitude, but no direction. This includes speed, time, and mass. Using the formulas of kinematics, we had to figure out our racer's velocity over a certain distance and how much it was able
to accelerate.
This project was also designed to enhance our understanding and
application of the design process. The design process is a cycle of steps utilized by engineers when thinking of an innovative solution, inventive, or any other creature that can help solve a problem. The steps of the design process are state the problem, brainstorm solutions, research, create a design, make a model, and test it. Since this process is a cycle, it can be redone for the same design many times. My team had to go through the design process twice in order to successfully create a working model racer that can complete a certain series of tasks. We had several problems to work through while creating our racer, and, in the end, were able to work them out with the help of the design process.
My group had to do something different. We had to go through the design process twice in order to create a functioning racer. Our original idea of a water bottle air car failed. It would not go a certain distance, stop, go straight, or even move at all. It was extremely problematic to not have a functioning racer. We quickly addressed our problems and, in the end, completed the project efficiently and without any more complications.
In the following pages, the design cycle and how we used it for this project is outlined. The left column is how we went about that step in our original design and the right column is how we utilized that skill for our final racer.