Performance Outcome
Although there was a large amount of assistance required to get the truck over the bridge, the bridge was able to sustain a final mass of 5120 grams (11.28767 pounds) before finally collapsing. Despite the change in design and desperation to complete the task during the last few days, the bridge did outstandingly well. Analyzing the bridge afterwards gave us insight into the eventual destruction of the bridge. The main cause for the collapse for the bridge was badly connected Popsicle sticks, varying thickness in layers, and asymmetrical connections, which led to unbalanced force being applied to the bridge. In the end, the part on the bridge that caused the rest of it to collapse was not the joints, but the Popsicle stick snapping from the weight. However, despite all the negatives on our bridge, the eventual product was, in the end, outstanding.
Final Thoughts
Every resource we had aside from Popsicle sticks were sparse. There were a lack of clips to hold our supports. This slowed down production, making it hard to meet deadlines on our project. At points people were sitting around because of the lack of jobs. This lead to the sparsity of time. The bridge was finished last minute with an incomplete rail that didn't perform to standards. Time affected everyone with stress and negativity to the end of the project. Lucky for the group we managed to reorganize our plans. The only problem was the lack of glue during our last day. As our glue ran dry we had to salvage as much as we could without wasting. Many parts of the bridge could have benefited from more glue. The lack of resources made four workers one person too many for a working group. One person would be off work most of the time because of the lack of jobs during construction. Once the bridge was finished, it was nearly uncross able with a wobbly base, a thin track and a bumpy road. much assistance from the nearby cosmic storm was needed to help it across. In the end the bridge withstood very large amounts of damage and performed very well and better than expected. The side ramps used to haul the car onto the bridge didn't perform too well either. They were bumpy, difficult to get on to and generally hard to attach them to the bridge. More time and a better plan for other parts of the bridge would have done well.
Personal Reflections
Dr. Edmund Tran - From the beginning of our project to the day before the end, Lack of planning before construction caused chaos and an extreme difference in thickness throughout our bridge. Sections built by different people had an array of proportions. Along the way there were a lack of essential resources like glue and clips. These problems were so severe that production was stopped and everyone sat down to create a single plan. Parts of the bridge were taken off entirely and most of the design was changed. This was the turning point of our build and the best decision we made. In the end, it shortened production time and strengthened our bridge. Many things could have been done before hand to prevent lost time but it was handled with calm and patience. In the end, that is what created the bridge that we ended with.
Dr. Hammad Saif - The car required a significant amount of assistance in order to cross our bridge. I believe that this was due to our poor design in our railings which did not prevent the car from derailing off the bridge. On the bright side, our bridge was freestanding, met the length and the width requirements and was moderately light in mass. Our bridge was able to hold 5120 grams of suspended mass which shows its impressive stability. If I were to redo this project again, I would choose to plan out our execution more effectively. I was absent for one of the building days which slowed down our productivity and limited any ideas that could've been beneficial to the bridge. We could have used my help to create better railings for our bridge for example. I feel that my performance was satisfactory as I was able to help my group when they needed it and managed to contribute a significant part in creating the bridge.
Dr. Kelvin Lai - Although I was initially disappointed and felt that the bridge was going to be a failure due to the change in plans, the weight the bridge held surprised me a lot. I felt that a large part of our success was due to the team using clamps on every single joint on the bridge. When I looked at the bridge after it had collapsed, it was not the joints that broke, but the middle of a Popsicle stick. This means that the part that failed and caused the bridge to collapse was the strength of the Popsicle stick, and not the poorly done gluing. By clamping down each joint, this ensured that there was 100% contact between the two Popsicle sticks and glue, and the most probably way of the bridge breaking will only be from the strength of the Popsicle itself.
Another part that largely benefited us is the design of the bridge. Initially we decided to use the sideways Truss design, however due to the time constraint and desperation to complete the bridge, we changed the design from using the main piece as the side of the bridge to the bottom of the bridge. Although this was used in desperation, I agree with team Gravity that it was in our best interest to make this change. However, I believe that if we used the original design, with the simulation that I tested it with, our bridge would be able to withstand a lot more weight than it did on the final day of the project. Despite these changes to our design and how flimsy it looked, it still performed the best, and was more than successful.
Don't judge a book by its cover - Although the bridge was ugly, looked unfinished, and had horrendous handwork, it still beat the snot out of the other ones!
Dr. Nabeel Mansuri - We started constructing the bridge based on Dr. Lai's simulator tests made on a diamond shaped bridge. The simulator proved it was the best design and we went from there. Starting the construction process, we were very ready and excited but at the same stressed, as the bridge was to be done the next day. This unnecessary procrastination and stress that I brought on to myself did no use in constructing the bridge, in fact it made the process worse. Our original stance on the design was to create a long and strong diamond shaped design, and to layer it so much that it will eventually reach the minimum width of 7.5cm. From there on we would just create a smooth base for the car to travel across, and ramps and the bridge would be perfect. But of course, this did not happen. The time constraint made us glue mess up the base structure of the design as the bridge was becoming increasingly crooked, and the each section of the design was not built to an even layer, nor were the triangles symmetrical to each other. The plan for a perfect bridge was falling apart. Having understood how important even symmetry was for a bridge, the next day of construction, we went back to scratch and tried to cover up our mistakes, however it was difficult since the glue had dried it strong. Clamps throughout the process helped us significantly, in fact without them, our bridge wouldn't have been able to hold a suspended mass of over 5kg in the end. Furthermore, the hairdryer would have sped up the drying process a lot more, allowing us to utilize time to its max.
Having already switched the design structure from what should have been a sideways diamond design to a bottom design, we started constructing the base (top) for the car before Mr. Peasley was able to tell us we had an extension. This in the end, almost failed us in terms of drivability because the top was basically pieces of unevenly layered surface glued together, giving the truck many obstacles to overcome. Had we known we were given an extra day of construction, our ramps and base would have been given much more thought and effort, and ultimately the smoothest driving bridge. However, we still managed to surprise ourselves by the amount of suspended mass our bridge was able to hold, which boosted our self esteem, and what I think brought us closer as a team.
Dr. Hammad Saif - The car required a significant amount of assistance in order to cross our bridge. I believe that this was due to our poor design in our railings which did not prevent the car from derailing off the bridge. On the bright side, our bridge was freestanding, met the length and the width requirements and was moderately light in mass. Our bridge was able to hold 5120 grams of suspended mass which shows its impressive stability. If I were to redo this project again, I would choose to plan out our execution more effectively. I was absent for one of the building days which slowed down our productivity and limited any ideas that could've been beneficial to the bridge. We could have used my help to create better railings for our bridge for example. I feel that my performance was satisfactory as I was able to help my group when they needed it and managed to contribute a significant part in creating the bridge.
Dr. Kelvin Lai - Although I was initially disappointed and felt that the bridge was going to be a failure due to the change in plans, the weight the bridge held surprised me a lot. I felt that a large part of our success was due to the team using clamps on every single joint on the bridge. When I looked at the bridge after it had collapsed, it was not the joints that broke, but the middle of a Popsicle stick. This means that the part that failed and caused the bridge to collapse was the strength of the Popsicle stick, and not the poorly done gluing. By clamping down each joint, this ensured that there was 100% contact between the two Popsicle sticks and glue, and the most probably way of the bridge breaking will only be from the strength of the Popsicle itself.
Another part that largely benefited us is the design of the bridge. Initially we decided to use the sideways Truss design, however due to the time constraint and desperation to complete the bridge, we changed the design from using the main piece as the side of the bridge to the bottom of the bridge. Although this was used in desperation, I agree with team Gravity that it was in our best interest to make this change. However, I believe that if we used the original design, with the simulation that I tested it with, our bridge would be able to withstand a lot more weight than it did on the final day of the project. Despite these changes to our design and how flimsy it looked, it still performed the best, and was more than successful.
Don't judge a book by its cover - Although the bridge was ugly, looked unfinished, and had horrendous handwork, it still beat the snot out of the other ones!
Dr. Nabeel Mansuri - We started constructing the bridge based on Dr. Lai's simulator tests made on a diamond shaped bridge. The simulator proved it was the best design and we went from there. Starting the construction process, we were very ready and excited but at the same stressed, as the bridge was to be done the next day. This unnecessary procrastination and stress that I brought on to myself did no use in constructing the bridge, in fact it made the process worse. Our original stance on the design was to create a long and strong diamond shaped design, and to layer it so much that it will eventually reach the minimum width of 7.5cm. From there on we would just create a smooth base for the car to travel across, and ramps and the bridge would be perfect. But of course, this did not happen. The time constraint made us glue mess up the base structure of the design as the bridge was becoming increasingly crooked, and the each section of the design was not built to an even layer, nor were the triangles symmetrical to each other. The plan for a perfect bridge was falling apart. Having understood how important even symmetry was for a bridge, the next day of construction, we went back to scratch and tried to cover up our mistakes, however it was difficult since the glue had dried it strong. Clamps throughout the process helped us significantly, in fact without them, our bridge wouldn't have been able to hold a suspended mass of over 5kg in the end. Furthermore, the hairdryer would have sped up the drying process a lot more, allowing us to utilize time to its max.
Having already switched the design structure from what should have been a sideways diamond design to a bottom design, we started constructing the base (top) for the car before Mr. Peasley was able to tell us we had an extension. This in the end, almost failed us in terms of drivability because the top was basically pieces of unevenly layered surface glued together, giving the truck many obstacles to overcome. Had we known we were given an extra day of construction, our ramps and base would have been given much more thought and effort, and ultimately the smoothest driving bridge. However, we still managed to surprise ourselves by the amount of suspended mass our bridge was able to hold, which boosted our self esteem, and what I think brought us closer as a team.