POWERING MACHINES Technical
Participant Handout
Design
A Technical Device must have a power source to make it operate. Often a challenge requires minimal manual involvement so
you must find a way to power it without doing it by hand.
Brainstorm answers to the following:
How can you power a Technical Device?
The first answer is often "a motor" but a motor is actually part of the device. The power
comes from something else.
Power Sources
People-power
• Example: bikes (pedals), pushing, pulling, lifting, twisting
Kinetic energy - energy in movement
 An object that has motion
Example: Pendulum or Wrecking ball (in motion), Rube Goldberg machines
Potential/Stored Energy (must change to kinetic or other source to use)
 An object stores energy as a result of its position
Example: springs, rubber band, elastic; from gravity-a heavy book sitting on a high shelf, roller coaster
Hydraulic
 Water - example grist mill, water wheel, or hydro electric plant
 Steam - steam engine or steam boat - but not allowed in DI challenge solutions.
 Other liquids -hydraulics - uses liquids such as oil are used in log splitters
Chemical
 The power released during chemical reactions is-harnessed as a power source.
 Example: vinegar/baking soda or Diet coke and Mentos (creates pressure - example volcano)
• Other examples: Rocket fuel, propane (for stoves) and gasoline (for portable electric generators) Gas-powered
internal combustion -- Not allowed in 01 challenge solutions, but it powers your car.
Pneumatic or Air-powered
• Examples: sails, pressure, fans, windmill
Solar - light energy
• Photovoltaic sensors, light-powered calculators
Magnetic
• Example: Electromagnet
Electrical
 Batteries (batteries get their power from a chemical reaction)
 AC (electrical outlets) or DC (using batteries)
Organic - lemon or potato "battery"
Imagination-4-Life • Technical Design Skills Workshop • ©2007 Destination ImagiNation, Inc.
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POWERING MACHINES Technical
Participant Handout
Imagination-4-Life • Technical Design Skills Workshop • ©2007 Destination ImagiNation, Inc.
Design
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POWERING MACHINES Technical
Participant Handout
Design
Focusing Tool: ALOU
When teams need to focus on their generated ideas and then narrow down the possibilities to just one or two.
The ALOU tool asks teams to specify the Advantages, Limitations/disadvantages (and how to Overcome them), and Unique features
(things that will make this device stand out). Use this tool to help you narrow your choice of power source for your device -one power
source per paper.
Advantages
Limitations
(and how to Overcome them)
Imagination-4-Life • Technical Design Skills Workshop • ©2007 Destination ImagiNation, Inc.
Unique features
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POWERING MACHINES Technical
Participant Handout
Design
Did everyone agree?
Can there be more than one
answer? What is the Task?
 Power a small toy size vehicle for speed.
 Power a large vehicle to carry weight.
 Power a small toy size airplane.
 Rotate set pieces during a Performance.
 Raise a person up 2 feet.
 Shoot tennis balls into a hole.
 Launch a rocket.
The primary goal is to learn ways to power a Technical Device and how to evaluate the options.
 Determine what types of power are available.
 Evaluate the power sources and determine which sources can be applied to your Task.
 Consider attributes and limitations of each source.
 Determine ways to overcome the limitations.
 Decide on a power source based on the research.
 Apply the power source to the Technical Device.
 Test and improve as required.
 Do not be afraid to go back and try something else.
Task
The Task is to construct a vehicle out of the materials provided below. The vehicle must have a power source that will
enable it to travel a distance of at least 10 feet (3.05 meters) without team member intervention. T eam members may
initiate the power source but should remain behind the start line for a successful Task completion.
 Brainstorm options for vehicle design and power source. (3 min.)
• Construct the vehicle and install the selected power source. (15 min.) • Test the vehicle and modify as necessary (5 min.)
• Make your run for completion of the Task (2 min.)
Budget Materials List per
team o 4 - wheels & 2 axles
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2 - CDs
1 - wooden block 2" x 1" x 6"
1 - mouse trap
1 - balloon
2 - rubber bands
Duct tape
1 - balsa plank 3" x 1/8" x 36"
6 - Popsicle sticks
1 - pencil
1 - 12" bungee cord
1 - 8 ½” x 11" piece of paper
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POWERING MACHINES Technical
Participant Handout
Design
Optimal Materials List per team
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1 - small electric motor
1 - 9 volt battery
2 - 8" pieces of 8 gauge Wire
4 - small alligator clips
1 - hair dryer
The vehicles in the above activity could be timed for speed while completing the 10 feet distance, and they could also
be allowed to run for total distance.
The vehicles could then be reviewed for why certain ones were faster and why others went farther.
 Review the power sources applied and the construction of the vehicles to determine why it went faster or
slower
 Note that differing types of construction (size, weight, wheel size, power source, etc.) can be used depending on
the desired task. For example: speed distance, or accuracy
Electricity Basics
Since Electricity is the power source of choice for most teams (whether powered via batteries or plug -in AC power),
understanding the basics of electricity, how to make circuits, and how to use it safely is important.
Electricity is the movement of electrons in one direction. Electricity is all around us-in its raw forms, it is static electricity
and lightning, however those forms aren't very helpful in powering machines. Alternating Current (AC) is what we know
as the electricity that comes out of the outlet on the wall. Direct Current (DC) is the electric enery found in batteries.
Circuits
At its most basic level, electricity is the flow of electrons through a wire or other conducti ve material. In order for us to use
this electricity, we have to direct how, where and when those electrons move around a circuit.
Circuits are simply made with wire and a battery.
To work a simplest circuit:
 Connect wire 1 to one terminal and to one side of a light bulb or motor
 Connect wire 2 to the other terminal of the battery and to the other side of the light bulb or motor.
NOTE: all batteries have 2 terminals - a positive (+) and negative (-)
The simplest of batteries is a 1.5V (V = volts)
A 4.5V battery has three 1.5V cells inside it.
A 9V battery has six 1.5V cells inside it.
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POWERING MACHINES Technical
Participant Handout
Design
Connecting to battery
To make a connection between the wire and the battery, the metal of the wire and the metal of the terminal must
touch.
The wire is a conductor and will conduct the electricity; the plastic around the wire does not conduct electricity and is
called an insulator. To make a good connection between the wire and battery, the metal must be touching the battery
terminal. If only the insulation is touching, no connection will be made. If both the insulation and metal are touching, you
may get a slight flow of electricity, but not what you would get with a complete connection.
To prepare the wire for this connection, cut the wire to the desired length. Car efully use a wire stripper tool, or
adults can use sharp scissors or single-edge knife to slit the insulation all the way around, and then pull off the insulation
around the wire using your fingers or a pliers. Stripping the wire is the only way to ensure a metal-to-metal connection
between the wire and battery.
NOTE: When stripping off the insulation from the wire, try not to cut the smaller wires that may be inside. This takes
practice - don't get frustrated!
Depending on the type of battery, you can join the wire to the battery by wrapping the wire around the terminal, or by
using tape or alligator clips for these quick experiments.
When you build a technical device, you will want a more permanent connection-with electrician's tape encasing the
connections to avoid potential safety hazards.
Once the wires are connected to each of the battery terminals, connect one wire to both sides of the bulb or motor, then
the circuit is completed. The electricity should be flowing around the circuit, through the w ires to the bulb, lighting it up,
and then back to the battery through the other wire.
Adding to circuits
Once you have mastered making a circuit, you can begin adding other elements to make the circuit more complex and
more useful for your technical device.
Add a doorbell or motor instead of the light bulb.
Combine all of the elements together in a series or parallel circuit (see below).
To turn the circuit on and off, practice making the three basic switches (see switches poster).
Switches are devices for changing the course (or flow) of electricity in a circuit. Like light switches, these can be used to
turn a device on or off. Three types of simple switches to make and use:
Push-button Switch
With a scissors or wire stripper, strip off approximately 3 inches of the insulation around two lengths of
wire.
Wrap the bare end of one wire tightly around one of the open "legs" of a clothespin. Wrap the bare end of the
other wire around the other open leg.
When you squeeze the two legs together, the wires will touch and you will make the connection.
Imagination-4-Life • Technical Design Skills Workshop • ©2007 Destination ImagiNation, Inc.
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POWERING MACHINES Technical
Participant Handout
Design
Hook Switch
Wrap tape around either end of a craft stick.
Press a pushpin into both pieces, leaving about 0.25 inch showing above the stick.
With a scissors or wire stripper, strip off approximately 2 inches of the insulation around two lengths of
wire.
Wrap the bare end of one wire around one of the pins; wrap the bare end of the other around the second
pin.
Cut a piece of wire about 5 inches long. Remove all the insulation around it.
Using the 5-inch bare wire, wrap about 2 inches around one pin. Bend a hook in the other end.
To make the connection and turn on the device, hook the bare wire around the other pin. Removing the
wire hook will open the switch and turn off the device.
Slide Switch
With a scissors or wire stripper, strip off approximately 4 inches of the insulation around three lengths of
wire.
On a 6-inch wooden dowel, measure and mark 3.25 inches from one end.
Measure and mark 1.75 inches from each end of a craft stick.
Wrap the bare end of the wire tightly around each line on both the craft stick and dowel. Secure each wire
with a drop of glue.
Cut 2 pieces of straw 1.5 inches long and slide each onto either end of the dowel. Glue each straw to the
craft stick so the dowel can move and its wire can make contact with each wire on the craft stick.
Circuits: Series and Parallel
If you want to connect two bulbs, motors, doorbells, or any combination of these items to just one battery, you can wire
the circuit in series or parallel.
In series circuits, if you remove one bulb, the circuit will be broken and the other lights will go out. Indoor Christmas tree
lights are an example of a series circuit. The whole chain of lights goes out when one light goes bad.
In a parallel circuit, each bulb is wired in its own circuit, so if you remove a bulb, the electricity can still flow around the
circuit and the other bulbs will stay lit. Outdoor Christmas lights are usually wired in parallel circuits.
Series
Imagination-4-Life • Technical Design Skills Workshop • ©2007 Destination ImagiNation, Inc.
Parallel
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POWERING MACHINES Technical
Participant Handout
Design
Motors
Motors are nothing more than converters of electricity. Motors are
machines that convert electricity into a mechanical motion.
 An electric motor converts electrical energy into kinetic energy.
 The reverse task, that of converting kinetic energy into electrical energy, is accomplished by a generator or
dynamo (or running a motor backwards).
When you connect the Battery Leads to the battery via a wire, the axle will spin. If you reverse the battery terminals the
wires are connected to, the axle will spin in the opposite direction.
Depending on the type of motor, they convert electricity into other forms of energy
 Electric motor, a machine that converts electricity into a mechanical motion
 Thermodynamic motor or heat engine, a machine that converts heat into mechanical motion
 Molecular motors, the essential agents of movement in living organisms
 Pneumatic motor, a machine that converts the energy of compressed air into mechanical motion
 Hydraulic motor a machine that converts the energy of pressurized liquid flow into mechanical motion.
SAFETY NOTE: You must match voltage and amperage to make sure the motor functions correctly.
Where do you find motors? Motors are in EVERYTHING
 Look around the house, they are everywhere! Take a technical device apart (with permission)
 Purchase them at hardware or electronic components stores.
Before you go looking for or to purchase a motor, know what you want it to do -do you want it to:
 Go around or up and down
 Turn around
 Move something
 Pull/Push something
 Control a series of movements
Or Something else!
Tools Need to Work With Electricity
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Utility knife
Wire cutter
Wire stripper
Pliers
Screwdrivers
Imagination-4-Life • Technical Design Skills Workshop • ©2007 Destination ImagiNation, Inc.
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POWERING MACHINES Technical
Participant Handout
Design
Supplies
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Aluminum foil
Wire
Bulb holders and
bulbs
Alligator clips
Electric tape
Motors
Craft sticks
Power source
Batteries: 1 .5V, 6V,
9V
NOTE: DO NOT plug into AC power (wall outlet) until you have conquered working with electricity using DC power
(battery)
Electric Safety Tips
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• Understand the power and danger posed by electricity.
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No one-neither a child or an adult-can tell if an electric wire is off or on simply by looking at it. So, whenever
working on an electric wire or machine, if you don't know for sure that it is off, treat it as being on and possibly
dangerous, even if you do not see that it is plugged in.
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• Make sure to use wire and other supplies designed for use with electricity.
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• Never play with electric appliances, tools or electric outlets.
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• Electric cords should never be warm when in use and should never show any wear or dam age.
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• Don't place objects on top of electrical cords, it might cause damage to the cord.
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Most appliances, such as the television, need to have a free flow of air around them so they do not overheat and
start a fire.
Imagination-4-Life • Technical Design Skills Workshop • ©2007 Destination ImagiNation, Inc.
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