Physics Unit 3 – Forces
The Egg Car Challenge
In this physics challenge, you will be designing and constructing a car that will carry an especially fragile passenger: a raw egg. Similar to the automotive industry, you egg car will be put through a crash test by rolling down a steep ramp and colliding with the wall. The best-designed egg cars will accelerate to high speeds down the ramp but will still protect the egg so it survives uncracked.
This design project is divided into three phases. At the end of phases 1 and 2, you’ll get to test your car prototype on the ramp and improve your design before our final egg car competition on February 15.
-Benchmark #1: Make a car that rolls. – Due January 17
-Benchmark #2: Increase the net force (make your car accelerate faster) – Due January 31
-Benchmark #3: Reduce the collision force (protect your egg) – Due February 15
Through labs, video activities, problem sets, and readings, you will learn how to analyze the forces acting on your egg car. You will use this information to improve your design to increase the acceleration while still protecting your egg. Your car must have wheels that roll smoothly, at least 2 safety measure, and an easily accessible “seat” for the egg. Your car must be no more than 15 centimeters on any side. Raw eggs will be provided for you, but you’ll need to get your own materials for building your car.
While you plan, build, and test your car, you will document your design process in WordPress blog posts for each of the 5D’s of Design Thinking. Your blog posts will include images of your prototypes, descriptions of your design process, evidence from your research, and force diagrams and calculations.
Frank Chen And The Incredible Work 