Inspiration
We had no idea what to do, but after wandering the halls of Home Depot for some time, we came across copper wire. It was then we knew what the perfect project for us was.
What it does
Through precision time control of copper coils, we were able to generate an accelerating force for any ferromagnetic object. Controlled via an esp32, the accelerator was controlled through a connection to a phone or computer over WiFi.
How we built it
The prototype shown in the video operates using two back-to-back copper coils, each wired to a relay switch. Through precision timing of these relays, we are able to accelerate the sample object seen in the video to 6 m/s.
Challenges we ran into
By far, the biggest challenge that occurred during this project, which limited what we could accomplish within the given timeframe, was the control circuit. We have the supplies to extend from two coils to 20. However, as the object travels down the linear accelerator, the timing for which each coil is on reduces. After only two coils, this time becomes too short for what is possible with a relay. The solution to this is to use MOSFETs, which requires significantly more complicated circuitry. Due to this, and restrictions on the parts that we were able to find, we were unable to fully scale up the project to 20 coils within the given timeframe. Still, we managed a successful proof of concept and designed 90% of the required circuitry to scale up to a larger design.
Accomplishments that we're proud of
As a team, we are most proud of how well we collaborated together. We have all been friends for some time, but we have never worked on a project together. Being able to combine our experiences and talents into this design was a lot of fun and highly successful. It allowed us to design complicated circuitry, perform physics calculations, and create coil designs, which resulted in an entertaining linear accelerator output.
What we learned
Working towards overcoming the biggest problem of our design, control circuitry, taught us a lot about MOSFETs. The circuitry for it became so big and complicated (as seen in the images below) that everyone had to help in some manner, even those in our group who had never touched a circuit before. We learned more about logic level control, high-power systems, and transistors.
What's next for the Linear Accelerator
We are optimistic that by the end of the day today, we will be able to complete the necessary control circuitry, and that we will have a completed prototype by the end of the weekend. According to our calculations, we should be able to accelerate the sample object seen in the video to just over 30 m/s, a fivefold increase of the current speed. Then, using our coil timing calculator, we can enter objects of different mass to recalibrate the accelerator, in order to accelerate other objects.
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