Case 14 The Gyro Launcher
Introduction
A gyro is a spinning toy that has many interesting properties. Have you ever heard of a gyroscope? A gyroscope can keep spinning steadily, sometimes even standing on a spiky top and spinning! In ancient times, gyros were also used as a tool for games and competitions. In this lesson we will learn about gyroscopes and try to make a gyro launcher to help us speed up and stabilise the rotation of the gyroscope.
Teaching Objectives
- Understand the basic principles and characteristics of gyroscopes.
- Understand the working principles and applications of gearing.
- Learn the design principles of accelerating gears and multi-stage transmissions.
- Use Nezha Inventor's Kit V2 to create a gyro launcher to enhance the rotation speed and stability of the gyro.
- Develop teamwork, problem solving and creative thinking skills.
Teaching Preparation
Teaching Process
Introduce
Students are introduced to the background and objectives of gyro launcher making to stimulate their interest and curiosity.
In this lesson, we will enter the magical world of gyroscopes and make an exciting gyroscope launcher together. Are you all interested in gyroscopes and mechanical fabrication?
The gyroscope is an ancient and interesting toy with stable rotation and strange physical properties. In this course, we will learn about gyroscopes and use the Nezha Inventor's Kit V2 to build a gyroscopic accelerator that can help us increase the speed and stability of the gyroscope's rotation.
Through the process of making a gyro accelerator, we will learn about mechanics such as accelerating gears and multi-stage gearing. We will learn about the principles of gearing, how to choose the right ratio of gears to increase the speed of the gyro and how to design multi-stage gearing to achieve higher speed output.
After completing the gyro launcher, we will have a gyro competition to see whose gyro can spin the fastest and most consistently! This competition will stimulate your creativity and competitive spirit.
Through this course, you will not only learn interesting facts about gyroscopes, but also develop mechanical building skills, problem solving skills, as well as teamwork and creative thinking. Let's embark on a journey to build a gyro launcher together!
Exploration
Discuss in groups and get students thinking about how they can make a gyro launcher from block materials.
- What is a gyroscope? What special physical properties does it have?
- What is a gear drive? What applications does it have in machine building?
- How can accelerating gears be used to increase the speed of rotation of a gyroscope?
- What is a multi-stage drive? How can we design a multi-stage drive to achieve higher speed output?
- Can we increase the speed and stability of a gyroscope by making a gyro transmitter?
Practice
Work in groups to create a gyro launcher from block materials following your own design scheme.
Build a gyro launcher from building blocks according to your own design.
Examples
Assembly Steps
Completed
Hardware Connections
Connect the crash sensor to J1, the motor to M1 and the servo to S1 port on Nezha expansion board.
Programming
Go to makecode
Create new projects
Click extensions
Search with planetX to download the package.
Search with nezha to download the package.
Code
Link: https://makecode.microbit.org/_AuJdy9Mj1807
You may download it directly below:
Demonstration
Display in groups, have a gyro competition, compare the effectiveness of different groups' gyro launchers and select the best gyro.
Result
Press the crash sensor to launch the device.
Reflection
Share in groups so that students in each group can share their production process and insights, summarise the problems and solutions they encountered, and evaluate their strengths and weaknesses.