Proof of Efficacy of Trebuche
Our project was to create a trebuchet that fired our projectile as far as possible. The goal of our project was to maximize the distance in which our projectile (clay ball) fired. We had very few restrictions for this project. One restrictions was that we were limited to a length of one meter, measuring from any point to any point. This means that if you had a meter stick, you could hold it up anywhere on the contraption, and it can not exceed one meter. Another restriction was our limited materials. Based on our available materials, our trebuchet had to be made predominantly out of wood. The final assignment was to design and create a catapult using the materials around the classroom to fire a projectile as far as possible.
We made many modifications to our original design. One was increasing our amount of rubber bands used. Increasing our amount of rubber bands from eight to fifteen made our projectile fly much further. This is because adding rubber bands increased the velocity that the arm swung to fire the ball. Increasing the speed that the arm swings directly affects the speed in which the ball is fired. The faster the ball is fired, the further it goes. Another modification was the length of the swinging arm. In our original design, the arm was only long on one side of the axle. We used a new arm that was almost twice as long as the one on the original design. This made the circumference of its swinging circle much larger, putting more force on the ball swinging around it. Next, we modified our nail, and the angle of it. In our original design, we used a regular nail with a head, at around 35 degrees. Although this worked decently well, we knew we could do better. In our final product, we used a finishing nail, without a head. We put this nail at zero degrees, so it was protruding straight out of the end of our arm. The goal in changing the nail and degree of nail was to have the string attached to the projectile fly off of the nail at the right time. Ideally, the ball flies off of the trebuchet at around 45 degrees. Having the nail without a head at zero degrees proved to be the optimal angle to get the release point as close to 45 degrees as possible.
CLEAR PARAGRAPH:
Starting at 75 degrees, as you decrease the nail’s angle, you increase your range until it starts decreasing again after it reaches 35 degrees. My group was testing the angle in which the nail was at that held the projectile by a string. We did this by conducting trials of our catapult firing with various nail lengths. With the nail protruding out of the wood at 90 degrees, the ball of clay traveled an average of 3.75 meters. At 75 degrees, it traveled 4.75 meters. The distance kept increasing until it reached 9 meters at a nail angle of 35 degrees. From then on, the distance traveled decreased. This evidence shows that the ideal nail angle with a nail that has a head, is 35 degrees. The lowest angle we tested was 15 degrees, where it went straight up, at zero meters. At 35 degrees, the projectile flies off of the nail at the ideal angle to maximize the distance covered.
My group ran many trials to collect data on the trebuchet. This data and calculations are listed below:
Our trebuchet is ideal because it is the optimal balance between a small, mobile size, while still firing over 100 feet.
This project was extremely enjoyable. This was the most fun in STEM we've done so far, in my opinion. A big thing for me was the fast pace of the project. It was helpful to have a timeline to stick that forced us to get things done. I really think this project helped my leadership skills a lot. I felt that I took a big role in the main design of the project and stuck with it. I also think that a peak was hoe well my group worked together. We all got along well for the most part and pushed each other to contribute. This made it so that everyone was helpful. Something I could have done better was to not get side tracked. Although I feel I did better on this than I have in previous assignments, improvements can still be made. Spending less time chatting and more time plannig and maping things out would have been helpful. Overall, this was a very inutitive and ejoyable project that I highly recommend for the future,
Our project was to create a trebuchet that fired our projectile as far as possible. The goal of our project was to maximize the distance in which our projectile (clay ball) fired. We had very few restrictions for this project. One restrictions was that we were limited to a length of one meter, measuring from any point to any point. This means that if you had a meter stick, you could hold it up anywhere on the contraption, and it can not exceed one meter. Another restriction was our limited materials. Based on our available materials, our trebuchet had to be made predominantly out of wood. The final assignment was to design and create a catapult using the materials around the classroom to fire a projectile as far as possible.
We made many modifications to our original design. One was increasing our amount of rubber bands used. Increasing our amount of rubber bands from eight to fifteen made our projectile fly much further. This is because adding rubber bands increased the velocity that the arm swung to fire the ball. Increasing the speed that the arm swings directly affects the speed in which the ball is fired. The faster the ball is fired, the further it goes. Another modification was the length of the swinging arm. In our original design, the arm was only long on one side of the axle. We used a new arm that was almost twice as long as the one on the original design. This made the circumference of its swinging circle much larger, putting more force on the ball swinging around it. Next, we modified our nail, and the angle of it. In our original design, we used a regular nail with a head, at around 35 degrees. Although this worked decently well, we knew we could do better. In our final product, we used a finishing nail, without a head. We put this nail at zero degrees, so it was protruding straight out of the end of our arm. The goal in changing the nail and degree of nail was to have the string attached to the projectile fly off of the nail at the right time. Ideally, the ball flies off of the trebuchet at around 45 degrees. Having the nail without a head at zero degrees proved to be the optimal angle to get the release point as close to 45 degrees as possible.
CLEAR PARAGRAPH:
Starting at 75 degrees, as you decrease the nail’s angle, you increase your range until it starts decreasing again after it reaches 35 degrees. My group was testing the angle in which the nail was at that held the projectile by a string. We did this by conducting trials of our catapult firing with various nail lengths. With the nail protruding out of the wood at 90 degrees, the ball of clay traveled an average of 3.75 meters. At 75 degrees, it traveled 4.75 meters. The distance kept increasing until it reached 9 meters at a nail angle of 35 degrees. From then on, the distance traveled decreased. This evidence shows that the ideal nail angle with a nail that has a head, is 35 degrees. The lowest angle we tested was 15 degrees, where it went straight up, at zero meters. At 35 degrees, the projectile flies off of the nail at the ideal angle to maximize the distance covered.
My group ran many trials to collect data on the trebuchet. This data and calculations are listed below:
- Distance horizontally = 31m. This means that our ball traveled 31 meters in distance, or approximately 102 feet from the trebuchet when launched.
- The time in air = 2.46 seconds. This means that the ball took 2.46 seconds to hit the ground once fired.
- Total velocity = 17.47 m/s. This means that while traveling through the air, our projectile was going about 17.47 meters per second, or about 57 feet per second. This is the distance the ball traveled each second in air.
- Horizontal Velocity = 12.6 m/s. This means that every second, the ball travels 12.6 meters, or about 41 feet horizontally per second. The horizontal velocity is not as fast as the total velocity because the horizontal velocity is missing the vertical component to a projectile’s total velocity. This is just measuring the speed it is going left to right.
- Vertical Velocity = 12.6 m/s. This means that every second, the ball travels 12.6 meters, or about 41 feet vertically per second. The vertical velocity is also not as fast as the total velocity because vertical velocity is missing the horizontal component to a projectile’s total velocity. This is just measuring the speed it rising or falling.
- Angle of release = 55 degrees. This means that the clay projectile detaches from the swinging arm of the trebuchet at around 55 degrees, assuming that the ground is zero degrees. This is the closest we managed to get to the ideal angle of release, which is 45 degrees.
- Kinetic Energy of ball = 1.53J. This means that as the ball is released from the trebuchet and flying through air, it has 1.53 joules of energy. Kinetic energy is the energy all moving objects have while in motion.
- Potential Energy of ball = 35.1J. This means that before the ball is released, it has 31 joules of potential energy. A common question would be why is the kinetic energy so low if the potential energy is so high? This is because much of the energy stays within the arm, and does not get transferred to the ball. This causes the arm to continue swinging after the ball is released. The left over joules of energy is converted to thermal energy, and lost to heat.
Our trebuchet is ideal because it is the optimal balance between a small, mobile size, while still firing over 100 feet.
This project was extremely enjoyable. This was the most fun in STEM we've done so far, in my opinion. A big thing for me was the fast pace of the project. It was helpful to have a timeline to stick that forced us to get things done. I really think this project helped my leadership skills a lot. I felt that I took a big role in the main design of the project and stuck with it. I also think that a peak was hoe well my group worked together. We all got along well for the most part and pushed each other to contribute. This made it so that everyone was helpful. Something I could have done better was to not get side tracked. Although I feel I did better on this than I have in previous assignments, improvements can still be made. Spending less time chatting and more time plannig and maping things out would have been helpful. Overall, this was a very inutitive and ejoyable project that I highly recommend for the future,