Jawerthm MSE4777 Educational Aid

myminifactory

This item is designed as a learning tool to showcase energy conservation, but it can be expanded further as explained below. It operates similarly to Newton's Cradle but is simpler to produce with a 3D printer. The track costs approximately $0.9 USD to print, while the rollers cost around $0.08 each, assuming a filament price of $20/kg. The SCAD files and code are included in this post, written and commented for easy scaling or tweaking. The original idea was to replicate the classic physics demonstration of releasing a pendulum near an object and then demonstrating energy conservation by having it return to its original location (ignoring friction). However, replicating this effect with fully 3D printed materials proved to be more challenging than expected due to difficulties in achieving smooth curves, making it hard to create rollers that roll smoothly without falling off the track. To address these issues, a roller was designed specifically for this purpose, which rides along a slot in the track and has outer guide wheels to keep it on. The next challenge involved the relatively low density of the 3D printable material available. Currently, I can only print in PLA, resulting in rollers with low densities even at 100% infill. Due to this, frictional losses are more apparent than they would be if rollers could be made from denser materials that would have more potential energy at their starting heights. With lower initial potential energy, the losses due to friction do not leave the system with enough energy to oscillate for an extended period of time using PLA rollers. To address this issue and still demonstrate the concept, the diameter of the roller's axle was increased to add more mass, and the outer guides were enlarged in diameter and thickness to provide more mass. The second way to overcome this challenge is by changing the intended use of the educational aid or expanding upon it. If higher-mass rollers are available, they will yield better results for demonstrating how energy is conserved. However, if that's not an option, additional rollers can be printed at a cost of $0.08 USD each (assuming a filament price of $20/kg) and used in a similar manner to Newton's Cradle to demonstrate actions having equal and opposite reactions. With rollers released from identical heights on opposing ends, it is possible to observe an identical reaction when opposite forces act upon each other to ultimately cancel out. Similarly, unbalanced forces can be observed by altering the release height of each roller, just like in a Newton's Cradle.