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Le Catapult

Momentumous

Entry posted by Momentumous

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So lets face it, our catapult was awesome. Even if it didn't shoot 80 yards, the fact that we used garage door springs made up for it.

But to the physics!

Whilst reflecting on our design, I remembered that we had taken our current unit--impulse to be more specific--into account when making the catapult. We knew that the force from the springs would be pretty huge, make a pretty big velocity for the arm, so the stopper to make it launch at a 45 degree angle would feel some serious force, and so would the arm. With this in mind, we put a LOT of padding in the way (probably 20 ft worth of crib lining and a good, thick memory foam pillow). By adding the pillow, we decreased the force taken on the stopper as well as the arm.

Just for kicks, we took off all the padding on our last launch. The result proves that the cushioning lead to an extra impact time, decreasing the impulse and therefore assisting the integrity of the arm and stopper; on the last launch, the arm shattered. Our slugger shall launch no more.

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