Tuesday 27 March 2012

Prezi overview of Junkbots





If you would like to know more about the Junkbots project contact scott.turner@northampton.ac.uk

Tuesday 20 March 2012

Fun - Drawing junkbot

Here is a junkbot my 7-year old son and I came up with at the weekend. A bit of fun - a junkbot that draws based on a bashed up drinks can, pens, straws, motor, broken fan and lots of tape!











The last picture has some of the shapes the junkbots produced.

If you would like to know more about the Junkbots project contact scott.turner@northampton.ac.uk

Saturday 17 March 2012

junkbots goes to Roade

Friday 16th March 2012, the junkbots project moved to year 6 at Roade Primary School. 


The aim was to Look in to how to use electric motors to make junk move, along with the effect of weight, surface contact effects and positioning of the weights. The task was to make something that could move along a table as quickly as possible.




Good example is the 'sleigh' shown above, a mixture of straws, yoghurt pots, pens, plastics and electric motors. What was especially good about this one was - it went in a straight line, shaking its way along and even carried its batteries. This was especially good as usually these junkbots have a tendency to spin around. The group that developed this one investigated repositioning the batteries, thereby adjusting the weight to get it to travel in a straight line.


Thank you to the year 6 at Roade Primary School for inviting me, lots of budding engineers there.


If you want to know more about Junkbots please contact: scott.turner@northampton.ac.uk






Thursday 15 March 2012

Junkbots goes South...South End infants school

This week the junkbots idea were taken to South End Infant School, Rushden, Northamptonshire as part of their Science week....and it was good fun for me as well. 


In three groups they played with:
- The hovercraft idea that Hayley developed (http://junkbots-hayleystevenson.blogspot.com/2011/08/hovercraft-do-i-need-motor.html). Basically a balloon, CD and a sports bottle top, that floats across a table.
- The basic junkbot - A drinks can, two markers, broken propeller, a motor and battery pack,
- The new junkbot takes basic the junkbot and rearranges so it stands on the pen tips. Now add a third pen and we have a less elegant Picassobot. Start it up on some paper and (hopefully) watch it wriggle and draw.


All this in one hour!