Balsa Tower

 

 

The objective of this competition is to design and build a tower made of balsa wood that can withstand the largest load. 

 

CONSTRUCTION

 

1.                  The tower must be at least 9in tall but not more than 12in tall.

2.                  The base of the tower cannot extend beyond a 6in x 6in square. 

3.                  A 6in x 6in steel plate will be placed on top of the tower and will meet flush with the cylinder as shown below.  The top of the tower cannot exceed 6in x    

            6in.

4.                  Undergraduates only are allowed to participate.

5.                  The competition will be scored out of 50 points and will decrease in 5 point increments

            Example:  1st place – 50 points

                            2nd place – 45 points

                            3rd place – 40 points

                            Etc…

1.                  Balsa pieces can be no larger than .25in x .25in in cross section.  Balsa pieces can be any length.

2.                  Any kind of glue may be used.

3.                  Glue can only be used at connection points.  Laminated or built-up members are not allowed.

4.                  The maximum weight of the tower is 40 grams.

5.                  Only one tower per school may be entered in the competition.

 

COMPETITION

 

1.                  All towers will be impounded at the start of the competition.  Once impounded, no modifications may be made to the towers.

2.                  Each tower will be inspected and weighed by the test monitor to ensure compliance with the construction specifications list above.  Towers failing to meet one or more construction specifications will be disqualified.

3.                  Towers will be centered under the upper platen of the test machine by the machine operator.

4.                  Load will be applied to the towers by the upper platen which will move downward at a uniform rate.

5.                  Load will be applied continuously at a rate of 0.20in/min. for a period of 10 min or until the team representative says to stop (e.g. after obvious collapse).  If no team representative is present, the test machine operator will use his or her judgment to decide when to stop the loading.

6.                  The test machine will record load vs. displacement throughout each load test, and will display the maximum load at the test completion.  This load will be recorded by the test monitor.

 

SCORING

 

Towers meeting the construction specifications will be ranked by maximum load.  1st place will be awarded to the tower supporting the most load, 2nd place will be awarded to the tower supporting the next-largest load, etc.

 

Contact:  Newman Nowlin