The Ray Catchers
Car name: Ray Catcher School name: Orlando Science Elementary / Middle School.
Team: Quinn V. 6th grade & Aiden N. 4th grade
Notes:
On day 1, we colored the car chassis to give it a fun design
On day 7, we attached the motor & the solar panel to the pre-colored chassis & tested it.
On day 14, we tested the car outside our school with the panel.
On Day 21, we redesigned our car because it is fully functional
4 Weeks later, Today is the 6th of April and we are testing our car on a track at our school.
Test Results
These are the results for the Solar Panel /Battery, 5 meters
Test 1 Battery – 6.99 seconds
Test 2 solar panel 5.69 seconds
Test 3 solar panel 10.9 seconds
What we would do to improve the car is to get a bigger gear ratio for the motor and a smaller gear ratio for the axis. so the cars average speed is
Finished car specifications: 10 & 1/2 inches long, 5 inches tall, gear ratio 20 to 40, weight: 290 grams wheel size 1 & 1/2 inch on the rear 1 &1/4 inch for front
Supplies: plastic cup, velcro (X2) Pitsco Solar car kit, green straw, and a hot glue gun.
Costs:
Plastic cup 90 cents
velcro 40 cents (X2)
Pitsco Solar Car Kit 39 Dollers
straw 8 cents
Hot glue 3 dollars worth
Vimo link
I like that you stated giving your car a fun design. Sometimes an Engineering project can seem boring and difficult, but also can be fun and exciting if you want it to be. Congratulations on your car.
Great concept! I’d love to know how many times you had to modify the car using the Engineering Design Process.
I am so excited to see this in person on Saturday! I have seen this car being carried around the school each week for the entire school year and for it to finally make it to the competition in Cocoa is amazing. I know that one of you also used this project as your STEM Fair project and was able to show the class what you are working on. This looks like a solid design and I think it will do well at the competition. See you there!
WOW! This is so impressive! I can tell you put a lot of time and thought into this project. Keep up the awesome work!
Aiden and Quinn, I love the name you chose for your project, the Ray Catchers. I noticed on Day 21 you said you redesigned the car. I am curious what obstacles you came across to need to redesign the car? Working with a pair is such a great way to show cooperation and collaboration!
Awesome! I would love to check it out in action.