Tutorial

The rpm of the final gear is being displayed using an arduino. The arduino will connect to the final gear to sense the rpm, then also connect to an LCD display that will show that rpm. Inspiration for this arduino design, as well as an explanation of how to set it up, can be found at Instructables.com.

The case of the box is made out of raw materials bought at Lowe's Home Improvement:
          (2) 1/4"x2'x2' sheets of oak plywood
          (1) 0.08"x8"x10" clear acrylic sheets
          (2) 3/8"x3/8"x36" square wooden dowels

The materials will be cut to construct the following 8"x10"x2.5" box:

For the fabrication of the box,

• The plywood will be cut to size.
• The pieces will be placed together to make butt joints and glued with wood glue, then clamped.
• While clamped, the pieces will be nailed together using brads from a brad nailer.
• The acrylic sheet will be laser cut to specifications (see below).
• Square wooden dowels will be placed inside the box, on which the 8"x8" acrylic sheet with holes will be placed.

A laser cutter is being used to cut the holes in the acrylic sheet that makes up the playing space, cut to this template, a .dwg file created in AutoCAD:

Any other means may be used to cut the acrylic to size, such as a drill. Remember, however, that if the drill is too fast, it will generate heat that may melt the acrylic. 

The playing space is an 8"x8" square, with holes of radius 0.09" every 0.5". The radius comes from the pieces that are used as axles, Aluminum Square Tubes from Lowes. They are 1/8"x1/8", so the hole must be as wide as the diagonal - the square root of the sum of the sides squared.

Example objectives for the game as well as an explanation of the math behind it can be found in the Week Six page of this blog (here).