Rube-Goldberg Project:The Flawless VICTOR

Created by: Harry Bogema, Harrison Jerrolds, Matt Fannon

Physics Concepts1. Conservation of Energy

2. Conservation of Momentum

3. Conservation of Energy

4. Torque

5. Conservation of Momentum

6. Center of Mass

Device Overview Toy set located at beginning of our project allows a marble

to gain velocity as it drops downward. The marble then shoots out of a tube, hitting a car.

Conservation of momentum allows the marble to transfer its velocity elastically.

The car then rolls down a track, gaining more velocity from conservation of energy.

At the bottom of the track, the car applies torque to a pivot point which turns to hit a domino.

The domino initiates a chain reaction of domino collisions which conserve momentum.

The final domino falls off the table. Since it is tied to the flag, it changes its center of mass farther to the left, causing it to rotate upward.

Issues:1. Our first difficulty was finding the necessary

materials. Luckily Harrison’s younger sibiling lent us his toy set, car, and marble for the project. These were our foundation materials.

2. We needed to make a pivot point for the car to hit. Through quick and abstract thinking, we took a piece of wood and nailed it into our board. Though simple, it proved effective.

3. Our third concern was raising the flag. We needed another physics concept and it seemed plausible that a change in center of mass could help the flag elevate. Thus we tied a domino the end of the flag pole and it had enough mass to significantly change the poles center of mass.

Conclusions: The designing stage was essential Once we went searching for materials related to

our initial project design, everything fell into place.

Creative thinking allowed us to use every day items to keep the design simple and inexpensive.

Our flag proposes that Paul Ritter should win the Heisman award for his outstanding performance for UT football.