Younginventorsclub.com - Mouse Trap Powered Car

Mouse Trap Powered Car

Objective: build a car that goes as far as possible powered only by a mousetrap

Rules: not many! You can work alone or with a team.

The provided mousetrap must be the ONLY energy source. You may not modify the spring in any way, but you may modify the base and attach things to the lever.

You will pre-load your mousetrap by hand and release it at the starting line without pushing.

The distance will be measured as the straight line distance from the starting line to the where your vehicle stops.

You can use any materials you choose, plan on gathering materials and working on this at home, since we won�t have all the materials or time needed at lunchtime.

No kits are allowed.

Bring your ideas and prototype(s) after 1 week; we�ll have the competition after Winter Break!

Concepts
Energy: Your car must, somehow, convert the potential energy of a spring-loaded lever into the kinetic energy of your moving car. Your car will then coast to a stop. Every time energy is converted, some amount is lost. The percentage of energy converted into useful �work� is the efficiency of your device. The further your car goes, the more efficient it is. Where does the lost energy go???

Power: Power is the rate at which energy is released. If you release the energy faster (accelerate quickly then coast) or slower (accelerate slowly and for a longer period), does it change the distance traveled? What would happen if you applied too much power (snapped the mousetrap too quickly?) What is the optimum energy release rate (power)?

Friction: whenever two surfaces rub or even roll against each other, there is friction. Friction converts a percentage of the energy of the moving parts into heat. What are the sources of friction in your design? How do you minimize friction?

Torque: when you apply a force on a lever, it produces torque, which is a �twisting force�. The torque the mousetrap applies to the wheel changes as the mousetrap spring unwinds. As your wheels get larger, what happens to the amount of torque needed to make it move? What happens if there is too much torque? Too little?

Air Resistance: air moving over any surface pushes it back. At low speeds, the resistance is very small. When you double the speed, the resistance goes up four though! Different shapes have different amounts of resistance, though. How does this impact your design?

Also review the design calculation worksheet. You can research how others have made their cars on the Internet, too.