We first thought of using 3D printing to design most of the plane. However, the weight of the plastic will definitely make the plane drop out of the sky and since our toy is made for children, the plane falling out of the sky might hit them and cause injuries. We then thought of making the main wing out of a plastic straw and a sheet of a4 paper. However, the combination of paper and straw was too weak to hold up the wing, which will not provide any lift for the plane, resulting in the plane falling out of the sky. If the plane cannot fly and stay airborne for a long time, it wouldn’t be fun for the kids.

For the propeller, we thought of using the clear plastic in the bottles that are sold at Sodexo. It is perfect, lightweight as well as having a slight bend making it perfect for the material of the propeller. We will add two sets of propellers because, in the original video, the plane only flew a very short distance before falling to the ground. Doing this will make the plane capable of flying further distances, making it more entertaining for the kids.

Here are the measurements for our plane:

Materials:

hot glue gun, super glue, 2 big paper straws, 3 small plastic straws, a board of foam, paper, 1 metal hook, 1 plastic cup, a small piece of plastic stick, rubber bands.

Detailed Plan:

1. Join 2 big paper straws together and cut to 35 centimeters.
2. Poke a hole in the middle of the fuselage using scissors. (At around 18 cm)
3. Attach a smaller plastic straw through the hole and secure with super glue.
4. Attach another small plastic straw at around 10 cm using the above method.
5. Cover the plastic straw using 2 sheets of a4 paper on both sides of the plane.
6. Cut the shape of two horizontal stabilizers out of foam.
7. Attach the two stabilizers to the end of the plane on both sides using super glue and secure using hot glue gun.
8. Cut the shape of the vertical stabilizer out of foam.
9. Attach the stabilizer to the back of the plane perpendicular to the two horizontal stabilizers.
10. Cut two pieces of plastic off from the plastic cup.
11. Using the two pieces of plastic, cut 2 pieces of plastic in the shape of propellers.
12. Attach to each other using a small piece of plastic stick. (Make sure they are faced in the opposite direction of each other)
13. Attach the middle part of the plastic stick to a metal hook.
14. Cut a very short piece off of the 3rd plastic straw.
15. Using that piece, fit the metal hook through and connect it to a long rubber band.
16. Using super glue, attach the small piece of plastic straw onto the front bottom side of the main fuselage.
17. Cut another small piece of plastic straw from the 3rd long plastic straw.
18. At the back of the plane, glue the plastic straw at the bottom side using super glue.
19. Fit the rubberband through the hole and secure it onto the straw using super glue.

 

Success Criteria:

The plane must be able to stay airborne for at least 3 seconds

The plane must be stable while airborne (Not swinging from left to right)

The plane must make use of the propeller.

The plane must make use of straws and paper or foam.

The plane must make use of one energy conversion. (E.g. Elastic Potential to Kinetic)