Engineering Design - Egg Catcher

Design Statement

Stage 1: Design and build an egg catcher that will catch two eggs consecutively. You will have 6 pieces of computer paper and 1.5 meters of masking tape to use.

Testing Conditions

The eggs will be dropped into the catcher one at a time, but the first egg will not be removed before the second one is dropped. A successful design is one in which neither egg cracks.

The catcher cannot be adjusted at any time during the test.

Height will be determined by the instructor (approximately 2 meters)

Standards

2 pts for each egg that is not cracked or destroyed.
1 pt for each egg that is cracked, but not destroyed
0 pts for destroyed eggs. An egg is considered destroyed if there is yolk on the outside of the shell.

Stage 2: Modify your design and repeat the test.

Stage 3: Discussion

Write a paragraph that describes your design to another person in such a way that the other person could build a similar structure. Describe specific strategies that seemed to work to ensure the egg was unharmed. If none of your tests were successful, propose a way that you could change your design to make it work.

Possible Extensions

A) Design a catcher using household materials (no limits other than what you can safely bring to school) and drop egg from a much higher point

B) Design a hand held catcher that will catch an egg that is tossed (or launched)

C) Design an egg holder that will protect the egg when dropped from a high point (roof or balcony)

D) Adjust the parameters of this experiment, such as more or less tape, cardboard instead of paper..etc