Popsicle Stick Bridge Challenge
Engineering 9
Mary Anne
Bita
Friday December 19th, 2014
Introduction
Statement of Inquiry: How do design limitations encourage
creativity in technology?
Design Specification: In groups of two, students will design and
create a popsicle stick bridge based on the students investigation.
Students will then test their design and refine their product after
testing. The bridge that holds the most weight will be declared the
class winner.
Key concepts: development
Related concepts: resources
Global Context: scientific and technical innovation
The investigation process
For the investigation part of the assignment, Mary Anne and I
first completed the handouts that were given to us by Mr.
Olson. These handouts were very helpful because they provided
us with guidance and a place to start. Completing the handouts
were also helpful because they directed us to some websites
with information about different bridge types, and the pros and
cons of a variety of different materials used to build bridges.
The planning and design process
For the planning and design part of the assignment, we first
figured out what had to get done before the due date of the
project, and divided these important tasks amongst ourselves
evenly. Mary Anne was in charge of sketching the final product,
and constructing the bridge, while I was responsible for creating
the PowerPoint presentation, and painting the bridge.
Four different
design sketches
The sketches of four different
bridge designs that we came up
with based on our knowledge on
bridges. We also included pros
and cons about each of the bridges.
We used our knowledge on bridges
to help make our designs stronger,
such as using triangles frequently.
Design: Upside Down Truss
bridge with extra outer layer
This bridge is one of the designs that we came up with ourselves by
putting a few ideas together.
Pros:
•A unique and creative idea
•Has extra extension at the top for more support
•Double layer helps make it stronger
•Has small triangles making up most of the frame
Cons:
•A bit risky because we don’t know if it will work
•Will use too many popsicle sticks
Design: Upside Down Truss Bridge
Pros:
•Makes good use of triangles frequently throughout the structure
•A reasonably strong bridge
•Would be a good use of popsicle sticks
•Would be easy and simple to build
Cons:
•Not very unique or original
•A popular bridge
•Might not be the strongest bridge
•Many people will have this
bridge done because its simple
•Overdone
Design: Truss bridge with
extension at the base
This is another one of the bridges that we used multiple ideas to
create our own bridge.
Pros:
•A unique and original idea
•Extension at the bottom will allow for more support
•Will most likely hold a lot of weight
Cons:
•Will be risky because we do not know for sure if it is strong
•Will use up more than 75 popsicle sticks
•Will be too complex to complete in the time given
Design: Arch Bridge
Pros:
•A more unique bridge
•Arches will help keep the bridge strong
•An original idea
Cons:
•Will take too long
To build
•Arches will be too
difficult to build due
to straight popsicle
sticks
•Will use up too many
popsicle sticks
Our team goals
•To get everything done by the due date of the project, for
example, the PowerPoint, bridge completed and painted, final sketch,
etc.
•To use our given class time efficiently, and to not procrastinate.
•To insure that out product is not last minute, and that it is the
absolute best that we can do.
We will use the following strategies to get all the work done:
1. Use class time wisely, and do not waste time. Use all the time
given.
2. Do a little bit at a time everyday so that the product is not last
minute, and that the project does not become a burden.
3. Work collaboratively, and don’t put pressure on just one team
member. Divide the work evenly.
4. Help one another, and don’t only focus on your own tasks.
5. Have fun, and enjoy what you do! Smile and laugh!
The creation process; Materials
To create the final product of our bridge, we first considered all
the materials that we would need. Mr. Olson helped us with this part
of the assignment by providing us with all of the supplies. The
materials for the popsicle bridge construction are 75 popsicle sticks
3 glue gun sticks, paint, and drafting and sketching paper.
The creation process; Step 1
We took the popsicle sticks and glued them together based on the
measurements we had, keeping track of the number of popsicle sticks
that we had to use.
The creation process; Step 2
We continued to build our bridge! At some point, we did end up making
adjustments to our bridge to make it stronger, such as putting an X
inside the bridge to prevent racking.
The creation process; Step 3
The final step to completing our bridge was painting it! We chose
a dark purple, and took the time to do a few coats just so that it
looked beautiful!
Evaluation
We believe that we were quite successful with building our bridge.
We reached all of our goals, and got all of the tasks done before the
due date of the assignment. We are extremely happy with our final
product, and proud of the progress we made! Although we are not
sure how strong out bridge is, due to having to complete this power
point before the testing day, we hope that out bridge will be as
strong as it looks!
Evaluation after testing
Mary Anne: At first, I had tons of bridge designs in mind, and I tested some at
home. I was hoping that our bridge would hold a lot of weight. Our plan changed
overtime so that our bridge could become even stronger. I was a bit scared
when Mr. Olson told us that it was wracking, and so I came up with a solution by
putting popsicle sticks between our bridge to keep it stable, and it worked.
Building our bridge was really fun, but putting on the glue was a bit difficult.
When we finally tested our bridge and I found out that it held 65 pounds, I was
a bit disappointed because I thought it would hold a bit more. Bita helped cheer
me up, and I am happy because we worked very hard and got everything done as
a team.
Picture of our broken
bridge after testing. It
did reasonably well,
holding 65 pounds!
Evaluation after testing
Bita: Before we tested our bridge, I though that it was quite strong because we
used a couple of different methods to prevent racking. I was overall very proud
of the progress we had made, and how much time and effort we put into it as a
team. We also managed to get everything done before the due date of the
project successfully. Once we tested our bridge, it held 65 pounds. I was
extremely proud because I felt like all of our hard work had paid off. I do feel
as if there is lots of room for improvement, and if we were to do the project
again, I would consider making the bridge stronger by adding more popsicle
sticks in between the structure. I did enjoy doing this project very much, and
am glad that I was able to gain much knowledge about various things in the
process.
Our broken bridge
after we tested it. I
was very proud of all
that we had done as
well as our final
product.
Bibliography; MLA
PBS. PBS. Web. 21 Nov. 2014.
<http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/buildingbig/bridge/>.
"Popsicle Sticks: Building a Strong Truss Bridge with Triangles."
YouTube. YouTube. Web. 7 Dec. 2014.
<https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QheSSHUbPeE>.
Web. 13 Dec. 2014. <http://micro-scale.com/wpcontent/uploads/2012/05/2012-05-12_12-16-29_61-1-950x534.jpg>.
Web. 11 Dec. 2014.
<http://www.highestbridges.com/wiki/images/thumb/e/e4/7Yesanhe
ArchBridge.jpg/750px-7YesanheArchBridge.jpg>.