The Nyan Cat Car Toy
The Nyan Cat Car Toy is a project that challenged each team to create a space themed toy that can fit multiple constraints and be appealing to a young audience. Each team is allowed to create a toy powered by potential energy and travel or projectile a distance of 1.5 meters. My group chose to create a rubber band car toy that is designed based on the shape of Nyan Cat as we believe it would be popular for ages 5 - 13.
Constraints
-
All pieces must fit into a large Kinder Surprise Egg.
-
The toy must be able to travel/projectile 1.5 m from a stand still.
-
The toy must use potential energy and cannot be battery powered.
-
The toy must be created using 3D printed material.
-
The toy must be easy to assemble for the intended audience.
Design
The Nyan Cat Cat Toy can be assembled in 13 pieces. The pieces are 2 face pieces, 4 body pieces, 2 axles, 4 wheels and 1 tail pin.
The body of the toy is designed with an interlocking system to increase that structural integrity of the main body.
The axels for the wheels were designed with a washer on the inner layer to increase the straightness of the travel path.
The tail is made of a pin that holds the elastic energy for the toy to make it possible to travel. Depending on the elastic band used, the car can travel 2 to 5 m.
Reflection
The project turned out really well and it was chosen as the top 5 toys of the year. It met all constraints and over achieved the judging criteria. It praised by the judges for being cute and kids friendly.