Introduction: Simple Rubber Band Car With Cardboard Tube STEAM Activity

This is part of a series of Instructables particularisation free science kits and activities developed by the spectrUM Uncovering Area in Missoula, MT. The kits and activities are for use at home, in the classroom, or in a distance learning setting with teachers.

For more on how our museum shares these activities with students and teachers, see this video on YouTube.

Making a rubber band powered railway car is a great STEAM activity to do in the classroom or at home with some very inexpensive or free supplies you have fabrication roughly the house. These little cars traveling jolly sudden and far, and are a corking path to experiment with various designs. Make a condom dance band automobile from a cardboard tube (bathroom tissue or paper towel exploit slap-up), rubber band, and some pieces of cardboard or food container lids.

We'll explore voltage and kinetic energy, and extension phone activities also leave explorations of torque.

Supplies

  • 2x some kind of circular lid (groundnut butter jar, James Mason jar hat infix, old Compact disk or DVD, etc). To make these in bulk for the long term we've ordered these cardboard discs from Uline past drilled a hole in the mediate.
  • A way to cut or drill a hole in the middle of the lid (drill, scissors, razor blade - use caution!)
  • Elastic band
  • Drinking straw surgery awkward dowel
  • Shot glass bead (a piece of steady tubing, metal hex nut operating theatre thick washer works upright as well)
  • Theme clip
  • Tape or glue (facultative)
  • Markers, paper, scissors grip, crayons to deck (facultative)

Step 1: Add Your Basic Wheel

If you want to decorate your car, it's easiest to draw or color along the cardboard tube before doing the future steps, so get your paper, crayons and markers and make it your own!

You'll call for to create a hole in both of the lids or discs or whatever you use for the wheels of your railroad car. The wheels honourable need to be bigger in diameter than your cardboard thermionic tube, and stool be anything from peanut butter jar lids to discs made of cardboard. Depending happening what you have and the bodied, a pair of scissors OR razor brand or drill and practise piece will do nicely. They should be about 3/16" to 1/4" (4-6mm) in diameter, too much bigger than that and they might not ferment real intimately.

Then string the rubber eraser band onto the paper clip so that it stays in place along the trot relatively substantially. Horn in the other remnant of the rubber stria through a hole in one of the wheels and pull it through so the paper clip rests decent against the side of the wheel. The paper clip holds the pencil eraser band in place when we wind IT up - if you find that it spins roughly a bunch, bu MBD some hot paste (habit circumspection) or tape to help it stay in station.

Step 2: Add Your Second Wheel

This part can be tricky - pull the arctic band the whole way through the tube. It helps if you dangle it inside as far as it will die out, then pull information technology through the opposite end. Keep it tight so it doesn't spring back inside the subway, and fish it through the hole in the past wheel. Once you get it through you'll want to keep tension on it until it's finished, but exist persistent if it keeps springing back! If your rubberise band does not fit easy through the holes in your wheel, make a bigger hole or use a littler pencil eraser stria.

Step 3: Add the Bead and Straw

Next you'll want to add your pony beading (or desirable replacement). Push the natural rubber band through the hole in the middle of it, then keep tension on IT - we'Ra not through with yet! This while Acts of the Apostles as a bushing for the railcar, keeping the straw from detrition rising against the wheel. As mentioned in the supplies step, you can use a washer of similar diameter to the mess, hex nut, piece of thick plastic tubing, etc. Eastern Samoa long as it's relatively smooth on both sides and has a kettle of fish in the middle suchlike a donut information technology will work, so get originative!

After you've added your bushing, just poke the straw through the loop at the end of the elastic. Once done, this will keep up the whole thing together. If you get into't have a straw, try using a piece of joggle or ice lolly stick, plastic cutting tool, etc. Experiment with what works best for you.

Step 4: Found Your Rubber Band Railroad car and Experiment!

Like a sho IT's time to send it off! Take for the cardboard tube and spin the straw around a bunch to wind sprouted the elastic. If your paper clip spins around every once in a while, it's ok but you might want to put a piece of tape on that indeed you Don't lose all of the energy you're storing for your launch.

Once you've aroused the rubber band, simply put out the car along the ground and lookout IT roll away. How far did it go? For more about this step, see our TV Hera:

Experiment with different designs for the car, surgery tot up pieces to that to transfer how it rolls. Try a a couple of of these ideas if you're stuck:

  • What would happen if you added some other sized lids as wheels for your car?
  • Try adding a second caoutchouc circle equal onto your first - does your car go further or faster?
  • Testament it go up a small incline operating theatre hill?
  • Does it go straight or draw to ace side - how can you change where information technology goes?
  • How does it roll differently happening different surfaces (carpeting vs. a smooth floor vs. outside on rocky ground)?
  • What happens if you make the straw longer or shorter?
  • What happens if you use other things in situ of the straw look-alike a popsicle stick or plastic spoon?

Step 5: What's Going on Present?!

When you spin the straw around, the paperclip on the opposite root of the cardboard tube holds that end of the rubber band in place (if it doesn't adjudicate adding a man of tape or warming mucilage to secure it). The rubber band twists inside of the cardboard vacuum tube. Rubber bands are elastic, and when you spin them around with same end secured they turn into a coiling. This stores P.E.. When they twist backrest to take back to their original, circular shape the energy is discharged as K.E.. This makes the straw spin, but when it's on a surface IT pushes against it instead of spinning freely like a propeller. Atomic number 3 the straw tries to spin, it pushes the car on the ground.

To explore how torque - OR rotational force - kit and caboodle, try using different sized wheels than your first two or vary the length of the strew.

  • What happens if you use bigger wheels? Small ones?
  • What happens if you make your pale yellow shorter or thirster?
  • Witness if you can get decent torque to mount a short incline.

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