Rube Goldberg!

Old page (2001)
Last year's page (2003-2004)

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The Rube Goldberg competition is where different groups compete for design, etc. on a machine. The competition is named after Rube Goldberg, who drew cartoons making a simple task, such as opening a door, into a long and complicated machine.

This year's task (2005) is to make a machine that "Removes both old batteries from a two-battery flashlight, installs new batteries and turns the flashlight on." It has to have more than 20 steps.
FOR more information regarding the contest itself, please visit their site at http://www.ceas.uwm.edu/rube/ OR http://www.uwm.edu/ceas/rube/.

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Pictures:

To see some pictures of last year's machine, visit the Science Club Picture Gallery page (opens in new window).

Steps for Rube Goldberg Machine

RUBE GOLDBERG STEPS
  1. Person pushes start button, releasing marble
  2. Marble rolls through tube and hits larger marble.
  3. Larger marble rolls down double ramp, hitting black switch, energizing circuit.
  4. Marble falls into bucket which makes lever (teeter-totter) go down.
  5. Lever hits On switch to make claw go up.
  6. Claw unscrews cap.
  7. As claw rises, a dowel connected to claw assembly also rises, lifting gate
  8. When claw reaches top of travel it hits a switch turning off motor
  9. Marble is released, triggering rat trap.
  10. Rat trap pulls reversing switch.
  11. String connected to reversing switch pulls pin on spring mechanism.
  12. Spring mechanism pulls on dowel supporting flashlight holder.
  13. Flashlight holder tips down dumping batteries into box.
  14. Bottom of box and attached dowels trigger mouse trap.
  15. Mousetrap pulls string, opening gate for swirling marbles.
  16. Swirling marbles roll down tube into bucket.
  17. Weight of marbles cause bucket to fall and raise flashlight holder.
  18. Flashlight holder hits dowel triggering mousetrap #2.
  19. Mousetrap pulls on string opening new battery chute.
  20. Batteries fall into flashlight centering it to cap.
  21. Cap is screwed back on.
  22. Flashlight is turned on.

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April 15th--

The deadline is fast approaching. For the most part the machine works. We just the main component mounted and working. The claw is holding us back. To mount it it seems like we need the things done that we need the claw mounted for. It's one big loop! Let's hope all goes well the next 2 weeks.
-Pyro

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