XLIX

Engineering Design Firm

9201 University City Blvd
Charlotte, NC 28223
Team Two
Innovation Project Design Package
Ben Mayfield
Corey Sloan
Jordan Schnall
Travis Tessier
June 3, 2014














Problem Statement

Team Two must design, construct, and operate a simulated ore transportation vehicle that complies with the
general design criteria, specifications and requirements and also meets or exceeds the performance goals and
criteria given. The Team will build and test our vehicle to determine if it actually performs as expected. The Team
will be given a Discovery Box that includes materials, supplies, and tools to be used for the project. The vehicle
must not be made or constructed out of materials not included in the Discovery Box or acquired from the 1201
Store.

Design Criteria

-The vehicle must only be made out of materials supplied to us in the discovery box or purchased from the 1201
store.
-The vehicle must fit within the dimensions of 16L x 5H x 8W.
-The total cost of the vehicle must be less than $15.00.
-The vehicle must be able to transport a load of at least 200g of material 20 feet to a specific point.
-The vehicle can carry more than 200g of material, but no more than 400g.
-The vehicle must be able to start and stop under its own power without any human interaction.
-The final distance will be determined by the location of the ore, not the location of the vehicle.
-Only the ore that made it to the destination will be counted in the final score.

Assumptions
-Team Two assumes that the floor the vehicle will be traveling on is flat and has no obstructions on it.
-The team assumes that the payload is weighed correctly.
-The team assumes that the pathway is correctly measured.

Research

First, we looked up the strength of the foam board we would be using. This allowed us to calculate how much
weight or pressure we could put on the board without it snapping in half.

Quality Foam, A Division of Quality Foam Packaging, "Polyurethane Glossary." Last modified 2014. Accessed June
2, 2014. http://www.qualityfoam.com/polyurethane-glossary.asp.

Second, we researched some designs for rat trap powered vehicles. By looking at how others were able to make
a similar vehicle to ours, we were able to adapt and modify our design to be more efficient and to have just
enough power to get us to the target.

A-Nony-Mus, . Autodesk, Inc., "Rat-Trap Powered Vehicle." Last modified 2014. Accessed June 2, 2014.
http://www.instructables.com/id/Rat-trap-powered-vehicle/.

Next, we looked up some materials we could use to provide our wheels with more traction. Obviously, we could
only use what was provided for us in the discovery box, so we had to do a little more research to get the results
we wanted.

David, Cook. David Cook, "6. Finishing the Test Box and Testing the Polarizing Film." Last modified 2013. Accessed
June 2, 2014. http://www.robotroom.com/Polarizers6.html.

Another item that was researched was in regards to the load the vehicle would carry. We researched some
household items that could be used as a test weight. They all weighed around 400g.

Vincent, Katherine. ChaCha Search, Inc., "What are some Household Items That Weigh 400 grams?." Last
modified 2014. Accessed June 2, 2014. http://www.chacha.com/question/what-are-some-household-items-that-
weigh-400-grams.

Finally, we decided to see how engineering professionals have designed ore transportation vehicles to be used in
everyday situations. The results were very interesting.


EOLLS, "Underground Mining Transportation Systems." Last modified 2014. Accessed June 2, 2014.
http://www.eolss.net/sample-chapters/c05/e6-37-06-07.pdf.


Microsoft Visio Technical Drawing

ds


Decision Matrix
Criteria Weight Rat Trap Electric Motor Rubber Bands
Consistency 25 5 4 2
Power 20 5 3 2
Durability 15 4 3 4
Cost 15 3 3 5
Ease of Use 10 4 3 5
Simplicity 15 4 3 5
100 4.3 3.25 3.5

15.5 in
4.75 in
4.5 in
4.75 in
4.5 in
15.5 in
Side View
Front View
Top View
The team decided based on the criteria in the decision matrix above that the rat trap was the best
solution. The reason that the electric motor placed so low is because the low power that can be
produced and the team worried that this could cause problems when trying to haul the maximum load.
Finally the rubber bands were not chosen because they can stretch out and would lose all consistency.
Bill of Materials
1x Rat Trap - $2.50
4x Wheel - $1.50
Styrofoam Board - $3.00
4x Small Clips - $.0.80
2x Large Clips - $0.50
2 Ft. String - $0.24
4x Washer - $0.20
20 in Duct Tape - $0.40
6x Popsicle Sticks - $0.30
Front Axle - $0.08
Rear Axle - $0.10
1x Zip Tie - $0.10
1x Metal Rod - $0.25
2x Balloon - $0.20
Total - $10.17

Conclusion
Team 2 designed and built an ore transportation vehicle to haul the maximum payload of ore. To haul the ore
the entire pathway of 20 feet the team decided the rat trap would provide the most power and consistency.
After completion of the car the total cost of the bill of materials was $10.17.