Design a toy that includes a mechanical system that will produce realistic motion of a figure(s) or object(s) resulting from the rotation of an axle. The motion results in the interaction or coordinated movement of at least two separate displayed objects. I generated many different ideas, but decided to create an automata with 2 waves moving up and down, with 3 fish jumping behind them. Below I attached my engineering notebook, pictures and video of the product, a 3D model, my cam designs, and the working drawings.
Working through this project contained many easy and difficult parts. One of the easiest parts was coming up with ideas. I had many different ideas of what I could create, and it was hard deciding which one to choose. Another easier part of the project was creating the cams. By using the polar graphs I was easily able to transfer the motion that I wanted into an actual cam. Some of the struggles I faced included the building of the automata. The follower rods did not fit smoothly through the follower guide, so I had to sand each piece so it was able to move smoothly without any hesitation. Another difficult part of the project was putting the cams on the axel rod. I built the outside of the box first, without thinking of putting my cams on the axel. I was still able to put them on, but it was a tight fit. Overall the project included many challenges, but I liked being able to create every aspect of it, including the cams and the design on the top.