The objective of this project was to design a motorcycle helmet using the program Autodesk Fusion 360. Some of the requirements were to make sure it was designed in compliance with safety laws, as well as to integrate certain physics principles, these will be listed right below:
Key Concepts:
1. ACCELERATION: is a change in speed over a period of time; the higher the acceleration, the faster the change in speed. For example, if a car goes from 0 miles per hour (mph) to 60 mph in 2 seconds, it is a higher acceleration than if the car goes from 0 mph to 40 mph in 2 seconds. Acceleration is the rate of change of speed; NO change means NO acceleration. If something is moving at constant speed, it is NOT accelerating. Our Design: To assist with acceleration we designed our helmet with sloped chin guard and smooth sides to prevent drag. Equation of Acceleration = Δv/Δt, and in our case, we decided to measure the average speed that a go kart travels at over 30 mph. 2. COEFFICIENT OF FRICTION is the measurement of the level of friction embodied in a particular material. The formula is μ = f/N, where μ is the coefficient of friction, f, is the amount of force that resists motion, and N is the normal force. Normal force is the force at which one surface is being pushed into another. Our Design: Using carbon fiber to create smooth flawless exterior shell reducing friction of passing by the wearer. 3. CRUMPLE ZONES are areas of an object designed to deform and crumple in an impact, as a means to absorb the energy of a collision. The fronts of most automobiles are designed as crumple zones to protect the passengers from frontal collisions. Our Design: We designed our helmet with crumple zones between the padding and hard carbon fiber shell. The ability for the helmet to crumple without collapsing insures the wearers safety in the case of an accident. 4. DRAG is a term used in fluid dynamics that is sometimes referred to as air resistance or fluid resistance. Friction is one of multiple factors that influence the amount of drag encountered by a body moving through a fluid such as air or water. Our Design: We designed our helmet with a smooth outer shell which diminishes in size towards the rear of the helmet in order to reduce drag. We also opted to go without the addition of vents in order to keep a smooth front side and reduce drag. Lastly we created the shell with a Ducktail spoiler on the back in order to add drag to the back and keep the wearers head straight at high speeds. 5. INERTIA: when an object remains still or moves in a constant direction at a constant speed. Our Design: The sleek design of our helmet reduces drag and helps maintain its inertia at high wind speeds. 6. G FORCE: a force acting on a body as a result of acceleration or gravity, informally described in units of acceleration equal to one g. Our Design: Using a strong and light material like carbon fiber reduces the weight and making the effects of gravity on the helmet less noticeable. 7.FRICTION is a force that resists motion when two objects or surfaces come in contact. Our Design: Creating a smooth carbon fiber shell for our helmet helps eliminate the friction of the air passing by the wearers head. 8. FORCE causes masses to accelerate; they are influences that cause a change of movement, direction, or shape. When you press on an object, you are exerting a force on it. When a robot is accelerating, it does so because of the force its wheels exert on the floor. Force is measured in units such as pounds or newtons. For instance, the weight of an object is the force on the object due to gravity (accelerating the object towards the center of the earth). Our Design: The main force we need to have in our minds when designing a helmet is the force of the air pressing against it. This is why we created a smooth and hard shell to reduce the effects of the force of air on it. 9. KINETIC FRICTION (or dynamic friction) occurs when two objects are moving relative to each other and rub together (like a sled on the ground). Our Design: The “objects” in question here are air and the helmet. Again, to reduce the slowing effects of kinetic friction we used a smooth shell that lessens drag.
How Our Design Works in Accordance with the Law:
There are many safety precautions and legalities put into place to ensure that riders are protected when operating vehicles. The best way to make sure our helmet is safe is to have it meet all of the DOT (Department of Transportation) requirements. One of the laws that is emphasized in California law is how the helmet fits. A helmet shouldn’t have “excessive lateral or vertical movement.” And we designed our helmet that has a head opening around ⅔ of the diameter, which ensures that when in motion, the helmet molds to the head shape and doesn’t move around a lot. Another aspect that we made sure to include was a slit in which goggles could be inserted onto the user, which is a lawful requirement by the state of Colorado. Our design was made in a somewhat general way to ensure that it worked in compliance with all state laws, instead of just one specific state, since we are looking to produce these in all locations, instead of solely catering to one place. Safety is of the highest priority when operating any motorized vehicle and that is why we are designing a helmet. Statistics show that wearing a helmet makes you three times more likely to survive a potentially fatal accident. If you would like to know more about the DOT standard, you can find links to our sources under “Helmet Safety” in the sources section at the bottom.
Our Teams Design:
Our Sketches:
Conclusion:
This was one of the most strenuous projects of the year. It involved more work than ever before. This can mainly be attributed to having to learn Autodesk Fusion 360, a 3D design program. We were given a limited amount of time in which we had to familiarize ourselves with the program. And then in addition, we had to do a report on the design that we created from the program. Luckily, I had a good team behind me that was able to split up the work relatively evenly. Because of this, the making of the report wasn't horribly draining. As I've stated in previous reflections, I believe one of my team's strengths is our teamwork and ability to distribute work effectively amongst ourselves. However, one of our pits was our ability to get off task. There were many times where we went off on a tangent and lost our focus, but in the end, we ended up coming together to get our work done, although it wasn't done without a strenuous amount of work. In conclusion, although this was a very time consuming and difficult to complete, it was very helpful to us, especially since our group is working on a go kart, so they go hand in hand.