Blog Post 4

         Science was used in the design of our product in a number of ways. First of all, the body had to be structured to support the apparatus and operation. Inside the stem, there is a zig-zag array of plastic tabs or shelves that add support and rigidity to the structure.
         Science also played a role in the motor construction. A certain number of revolutions per minute are necessary to the stir rod for effectiveness. To achieve a high rpm, a motor had to be chosen that had lower torque (the ice cream and milk would not offer very little resistance to an electric motor of even half the size of ours) and thus high speed. This would involve calculating the potency of the magnetic field within the powerless motor, and the one created by the coils when fed with power. The power that the motor would receive would also need to be determined scientifically. Finally, the design of the stir rod is generic with regard to the marketplace, so it is assumed that little to no science went into shaping the blade that is simply a wavy disk that would obviously mix a creamy liquid mixture.
        The electric motor can be modeled on a very basic level by using physical science. The first way is to take a long insulated wire and an iron nail, and coil the wire tightly around the nail from one end to the other. Next, connect each end of the wire to a weak power source like a battery and observe the new magnetic properties of the nail. Its magnetic field will interact with objects like paper clips. Taking this a step further requires two real magnets, a cup, copper wire, and a needle or tack. Wrap the copper wire 10 times around a cup or rod or anything round, and then pull it off and tape it so that it retains its coil shape. Leave around an inch of wire on each side coming off of the coil. Next, using the sharp object make a hole in the cup within an inch of the top, within an inch of the bottom, and make two more holes in the other side at matching heights. Lead long wires into the cup at one hole and back out of the cup at the next hole, one wire on each side. Turn the cup upside down and place a magnet on top of it. You can also place a magnet in the cup to hold the one on top in place. If your wires are stiff, make them vertically erect at each side of the top of the inverted cup from which they exit. Bend them to support the coil. Attach the other ends to the battery, place the coil in the cradle over the magnet, and observe the rotation due to the electromagnetic field.

Billwrj. "Motor RKOF1_szaXQ." YouTube. YouTube, 24 Sept. 2009. Web. 28 Jan. 2014. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RKOF1_szaXQ.

 

- Hayden Putre