Model Roller Coaster Build

In January of 2016, I decided to get involved in a model roller coaster build project to enhance my skills and confirm my interest in engineering, before applying to the College of Engineering at The Ohio State University. My group was composed of five high school seniors interested in studying engineering in college. After a group vote, I was appointed as the leader of my team’s model roller coaster build. We were tasked with designing and then building a functioning model roller coaster with tubing as the track, PVC pipes for structural support, and a metal ball as the cart.

I started the project by assigning specific jobs to myself and my four teammates, based on our different skill sets, to ensure our team worked as efficiently as possible. Together, we designed a model roller coaster in 2-D (shown on the top-right) and then in 3-D using AutoCAD. The roller coaster had to include both a vertical and horizontal loop, a bump, and 25 feet of track. After the roller coaster had been designed, we made calculations in MATLAB to determine if the metal ball, starting at the top of the track would make it all the way through the track and then land in a small cup at the end.  Our calculations revealed that the ball had too much momentum and would fly off the track, so the design had to be modified to accommodate this. Once the design was finalized, we constructed the model roller coaster. Our design proved to be successful, and the model roller coaster worked to perfection.

I credit the smooth operation of the model roller coaster build to the hard work and effective communication of my team. As team leader, I made sure that effective communication existed between team members throughout both the design and build process. Difficulties arose when group members fell behind on their assigned tasks. In order to get through these difficulties, I made sure to stay in touch with all members of the group to make sure our progress was known by everyone and help could be given when necessary. This allowed each team member to accomplish their tasks in a timely manner, which helped the group as a whole.