Design a Device That Minimizes the Force on an Object During a Collision In this project, you will design, evaluate, and refine a device that minimizes the force on an object during a collision. You should apply scientific ideas to develop your device and try to avoid unanticipated effects. Apply the law of conservation of linear momentum to the situation in which your device should be used, and compare the velocities and momenta of objects in the system. Note that the total momentum of a system can change, but the change is balanced by the momenta of objects outside the system. In your design, you should specify any criteria and constraints, such as limiting risk. You should be able to quantify how your design satisfies these criteria and constraints. You may have to break down complex criteria into simpler ones and prioritize certain criteria over others.
Background
An object's momentum is based on the mass and velocity of the object. The more momentum the object has, the harder it is to stop the object or change its direction. The equation for momentum is p = mv, where p is momentum, m is mass, and v is velocity. When a force is applied to an object, the object's velocity changes. If the object's velocity changes, its momentum changes.
Forces applied to objects during collisions cause changes that can move the objects, damage them, or both. These changes can affect the appearance, reliability, and safety of the objects. The forces involved in collisions can lead to costly repairs to damaged machines and to costly medical treatments for injured people.
The effect of forces applied to objects in collisions depends on the materials that make up the objects. Materials science and engineering are fields that explore the structure and behavior of natural and human-made materials and design solutions for useful applications. Understanding the chemical and physical structures as well as the behavior of all materials used in any engineering specialty is crucial to the design and success of useful products and systems.
You must design a device that minimizes the force on an object during a collision. What criteria and constraints do you think this device should satisfy? What materials should it be made of? What size should your device be? By how much should the force on the object be reduced during a collision?
You will need to work with your teacher to develop a list of criteria and constraints for your design. You will also need a place in which to carry out the project's tasks. You should choose materials for your design that are readily available to you. After your design is approved, you will need to build and test the device. This testing will enable you to evaluate whether it works and to quantify how well it meets any criteria and constraints. You will then need to refine the device by making changes. You may have to break down complex criteria into simpler ones and prioritize certain criteria over others.