02/03/2022

Aditya and I started conceptualising how the Rube Goldberg Machine would work, and
brainstormed ideas regarding the mechanisms to be employed. As of today, the five
mechanisms will involve a pen, a seesaw-like structure, dominoes, a marble, and a
pendulum. The pen is to be hung by a thread. To initiate the processes of the design, the
thread holding the pen will be cut down. The pen will fall, pushing one side of the seesaw
down and the other side up. This will start the fall of the dominoes, which will push the
marble to the pendulum and cause it to swing, dropping the coke bottle down. This
design, however, is subject to change as Matthew was not here today and his ideas were
not considered. In the development of the design, Aditya and I researched examples of
Rube Goldberg Machine to understand how it works. Examples of the designs we
investigated include:

and this video: Watch

04/03/2022
Today Aditya and I continued to brainstorm ideas about our design and edit the ideas that
we already had. Not much work could be done as Matthew was away and his ideas were
not considered.

09/03/2022
We continued with our research on the Rube Goldberg Machine and re-thought some
ideas that we had because we felt that it would be too complicated to do. The marble
mechanism was removed as it would require the machine to be incredibly high (to allow
for a long slope that generates sufficient acceleration for the pendulum).

10/03/2022
Today we went to the workshop and since we hadn’t decided on a final design for our
rube goldberg machine we decided to keep researching for another mechanism to satisfy
the five-mechanisms requirement.
 15/03/2022
Matthew began developing the seesaw. Aditya began developing the pendulum. I began
developing the domino system that was required to push the pendulum (this is the latest
design for the machine, and it required dominos to push the pendulum instead of a
marble).

16/03/2022
The dominos took a much longer time than anticipated. The dominos fell very quickly,
and we now have issues with the time requirement of 30 seconds (+ or - 2 seconds). New
methods of sequencing the dominos will be conceptualised in upcoming lessons.

18/03/2022
Aditya was away today due to covid. Different designs for dominos were tested today.
This included spacing out the dominoes, and orienting them in alternating horizontal and
vertical dimensions to increase time taken. The difference in time was negligible.

23/03/2022
I attempted to use equations of motion to find the optimal distance between the dominos.
I used the equation (s = ut + 1/2at^2), which finds displacement (s) given initial velocity
(u), time required (t), and the acceleration of dominos as they fall (a). The initial velocity
is 0m/s as the dominos are stationary until they are touched by the previous mechanism.
The time required was 10 seconds to make the entire machine last 30 seconds. From
research, the acceleration was found as well. However, testing the dominos with the
resulting distance did not work. This is because the equation determines the entire
distance that the dominos must take from the bench in a straight line. Hence, it did not
work as the distance between each domino was too difficult to calculate due to the
Domino Effect, and the fact that other mechanisms required the dominoes to curve
around in order to fit on the workbench.

24/03/2022
A design was developed and it worked in a straight line only. This design allowed for the
dominoes to last for 8 seconds, which was close enough to the required time. It involved
placing three short dominoes distant enough so that the top of one domino touched the
base of the domino it fell on. After the three short dominoes, a larger domino was placed
and the short domino pushed the base of the large one. This had two functions. The build
up of acceleration in three short dominoes is sufficient to push the larger one. Hence, the
acceleration increases and when the large domino falls, the acceleration decreases to zero.
This prevents the dominoes from speeding up and hence results in greater time taken.
Additionally, hitting the base of the following domino allows for the slow fall of that
domino, increasing the time taken. However, this design is subject to modification due
uncertainty on whether the dominoes needed to be in a straight line or curved to fit on the
workbench.

29/03/2022
I continued modifying the design, as well as helping Aditya with the ramp.

30/03/2022
I assisted Aditya in cutting the large piece of timber for the ramp.

01/04/2022
I modified my design for the dominoes to allow it to curve in case it was needed. Aditya
helped briefly with the design.

06/04/2022
Aditya and I worked on dominoes and other pending tasks we had to complete.

07/04/2022
Aditya and I tested dominoes with other mechanisms that were nearly completed to gain
an idea of the time the machine will take.

27/04/2022
Matthew suggested adding obstacles onto the ramp to allow the ball to fall more slowly
as a method of increasing time taken. Aditya, Matthew and I spent the rest of the lesson
figuring out how to implement that solution onto the ramp.
29/04/2022
School carnival, no lesson.
04/05/2022
Teacher strike, no lesson.

05/05/2022
Matthew said that he would add the ramps and that Aditya and I should start working on
our 5th mechanism which we still hadn’t decided on yet. We brainstormed ideas for the
entire lesson.
 10/05/2022
Aditya and I figured out the idea for the 5th mechanism and started thinking about how I
was going to design it.

11/05/2022
Today Aditya and I continued work on our 5th mechanism which was a rotating piece of
wood. We cut the required pieces.

13/05/2022
Since most of the mechanisms that were directly related to the dominos were done, I
decided to test the dominoes to see how they fit, and how their arrangement will work.

18/05/2022
Matthew brainstormed a better mechanism as a 5th mechanism. We worked collectively
to develop it as time was running out.
19/05/22:
I attended the Duke of Edinburgh Silver Practice Hike.

24/05/22
I helped Aditya with the ramp and tested the entire mechanism a couple of times.

25/04/22
I tested the entire mechanism with Aditya and fixed any outstanding issues with the
ramp.