Mouse-Trap Race Cars!

We've been studying the concept of using mechanical advantage to trade force for distance or distance for force. Our challenge was to build a race car following the next instructions:

Criteria: Design, build and compete with a Mousetrap Race car (A "car" uses at least two axles).
Maintain a clean workspace.

Constraints:
One mousetrap
No more than 12" of masking tape
Fischer technique robotics parts
No more than 24" of string
You must work through the stages of the event (see Achievements below)
Additional materials by Instructor approval

I completed 10 Achievements, as follows:

Design:
Brainstorm:

• will need 4 wheels
• Firm chassis
• hold the mouse trap down in place (or else it will sling-shot back)
• lever
• trade force for distance
• balanced
• fair amount of friction on wheels
• fair amount of traction
• minimum of 25 pieces

Visualize it:

Build:
Build it:

 "Price of Glory":

    First built car- Total Price: $32.00 :

• Wheels(x4)
• Red pieces for wheels(x8)
• 5 millimeter spacer(x4)
• Red cubes(x4)
• Yellow long pieces(x2)
• Little Red hooks(x4)
• Separate pieces of string(x3)
• Axle(x2)
• Mouse Trap(x1)

    Improved car- Total Price: $36.00

• Wheels(x4)
• Red pieces for wheels(x8)
• 5 millimeter spacer(x4)
• Red cubes(x4)
• Yellow long pieces(x4)
• Little Red hooks(x4)
• Separate pieces of string(x3)
• Axle(x2)
• Mouse Trap(x1)
• Pencil(x1)
• Tape(x1)

Feedback:

• Positives: Holding the mouse trap down to the frame of car
• Things to Change: a way to tighten the string onto the wheel properly
• Ideas: More weight in the back of the car
• Questions: What is the best way to attach the string to the axle ?

Iterate:

Re-work:

"Game Changer"

• Who can build a working car faster?
• Maximum amount of pieces that can be used or maximum price
• Lightness of car in weight

Name it:

     Instead of "The Price of Glory", it should be called "Debt"

Clean Up:

Leave it cleaner then you found it:

     I think Carly and I did a good job of cleaning up. There was always extra things on our table that we ended up picking up. We always picked up our stuff and didn't leave the room till we were done putting things away.

Reflection:

Design/Build:

     The Design/Build process is the idea that once you start building something the design tends to mold/ change to fit extra requirements or to improve and get better efficiency, etc. This was something definitly experienced since the beginning of the building of the race car. Parts that were thought to be used weren't used and new parts were found to fit better in some areas. This might not be experienced as much in a career related to technical innovation because there is not an unlimited amount of money to always be removing, adding, or exchanging parts of a structure.