How do I make my mousetrap car go further?

How do I make my mousetrap car go further?

Using large rear wheels allow one rotation of the axle to take the car a much further distance. In other words, a given length of the string from the mousetrap moves the car a greater distance. The last note is to place your mousetrap as close to the front of the car as possible.

Where should the mousetrap be placed on a mousetrap car?

For optimal performance the mouse trap should be positioned on the chassis so that the tip of the lever arm falls directly above the drive axle when the mouse trap is in the fully wound position (as pictured bellow). If the mouse trap is not aligned properly with the drive axle energy will be wasted off the start.

How do you increase the friction of a mousetrap car?

Larger diameter axles have greater friction when compared to the same axle of a smaller diameter. With a smaller diameter axle the force of friction is applied closer to the center of rotation and applies less torque than a larger diameter axle. Try to select axles that are equal to or less than 3/16 inch in diameter.

How fast does the average mousetrap car go?

2.0467ft/s
Also, the average speed for the mousetrap car is 2.0467ft/s and the rattrap car’s average speed is 3.2911ft/s. The rat trap car and mousetrap car were made the exact same way, but to test both traps we just took one of them off and then put the other one back on.

How long should my mouse trap car be?

The ideal size for an ultra big wheel on a long distance mousetrap racer seams to be somewhere between 10 and 15 inches. And the ideal size for a drive wheel on a speed-trap racer seams to be between 2 and 3 inches but no more than 4 inches.

What types of friction affect a mousetrap car?

A moving mousetrap car is affected by two type of friction: airfriction and bearing friction. Airfriction is a large factor only with cars that are moving fast and is nearly negligible for slow-moving distance cars; therefore, in this lab you will only take bearing friction into consideration.

How wide should a mousetrap car be?

Should a mousetrap car be heavy or light?

Inertia is the resistance that an object has to a change in its state of motion, the more inertia that an object has the more force that will be required to change is state of motion. A heavy mousetrap vehicle will required more pulling force than a lighter mousetrap vehicle in order to achieve an equal acceleration.