Lego Activites - Solar Car & Maglev

Our "Solar Lego Vehicle"project has proven to be a very fun, but a very challenging activity for most students. In this activity, the students work in teams of two and must explore the area of solar electricity. With the use of photovoltaic solar panels and the Lego Simple Machine kits, the students will construct a very basic electric car. They then will peform a series of experiments on the trade off between a regular electric D.C. motor that is in their Simple Machine kit and the "geared down" solar electric D.C. motor.

The remainder of the six day long activity the team will design and construct a functional solar car using the Lego Simple Machine Kit, Solar Motor, and the Photovoltiac Panel. By the sixth day the car must be able to travel down the track under the 6 flood lamps on a low light condition (Dusk/Dawn setting) to receive full credit.

Here are some cool Solar Electricity and Solar Car Websites:

• Solar Power
• History of Solar Cars
• Wikipedia ~ All about Solar Cars
• Evergreen Electric Vehicles
• ZAP Electric Cars on the Today Show!
  

This past school year a new activity, LEGO MAGLEV, was introduced to our Technology Students! We have designed and created a totally new and original Maglev Track that has two rows of very powerful ceramic magnets which are located on either side of a track made up of Lego Bricks. Our students are really enjoying the Lego Maglev activity and have found it both fun and challenging. We currently in the process of completing the fifty foot track that we have placed in the middle of our existing CO2 Track. We are more than halfway finished with this and look to complete the track before the end of the 2nd Quarter. This will allow the students to race their Maglev trains at full speed for a long distance.

This new project was first supported by a grant from McDonald's® Restaurants via a 2007 Mac Grant. This grant was made possible by the MacDonald's Operators Association of Central New York and Northern Pennsylvania. We would like to thank McDonald's for providing the students of Ray Middle School with a new and exciting project!

Thank you to Ray Middle School PTA for providing the funds to begin the construction of our 50' Lego Maglev Track. Another big thank you goes out to the NYSTEA (New York State Technology
Teachers Association) for awarding us with this year's NYSTEA Mini-Grant which will provided funding materials so that the Maglev Line will go the entire length of our "Rupracht Raceway" CO2 Car Track. We were also awarded a second McDonald's® Restaurants 2009 Mac Grant so a timing system can be installed along with a system to power the trains down the track without battery packs. The track goes down the middle of the two CO2 car racing lanes. Check out the videos below!

Our new Lego Maglev Track on the "Rupracht Raceway"


Cool links to Maglev websites:

• How Maglevs Work
• Future Channel's Maglev Video (Excellent)
• Shanghi Maglev Train
• Japanese Maglev
• Baltimore~Washinton D.C. Maglev Project
• California Maglev Project
• Pittsburgh Maglev Project
• Alanta Maglev Project
• Blog on President Obama's interest in Maglev