The Bookworms

Event Year: 2024
Event Location: Cocoa-FL
Competition: Junior Solar Sprint
Division: 4-6 (JSS Green)
School: Sumter STEM 4H
Team Name: Bookworms
Project Name: Bookworms
Team Size: 4

Junior Solar Sprint 2024

Introduction

We are the Bookworms. Our team members are Joseph (8), Layla (9), Caroline (9), and Jada (10). For some of us, this is our second year competing in the energy whiz. We picked The Book Worms as our team name because we like to lose ourselves in books and we thought it is cute. We tried to make our car as light as possible so that it is fast. We named our car The Book Mobile. We also used the open book design so that it is aerodynamic. We hope we win the race.

The Book Mobile

Our solar car is named “The Book Mobile” because we love to read or listen to stories. We like to lose ourselves in books. Our favorite books are adventure and fantasy. We are excited to have our very own adventure at the Energy Whiz competition!

Organization Name:

Sumter Stem 4-H Club – Sumter County, FL. Our team is representing our 4-H Club. Our club focuses on STEM based projects, including robotics, engineering, gardening, and computer science. We meet weekly to work together on projects.

Team Members:

Joseph F. – 3rd – Homeschool

Layla C. 3rd- Homeschool

Caroline C. – 4th- Homeschool

Jada F.- 5th- Homeschool

Car Pictures:

Introducing The Book Mobile

Car Drawings:

Car Specifications:

Length26.8 cm
Width with wheels15 cm
Width of solar panel12.75 cm
Length of solar panel26.6 cm
Height17 cm
Weight267 g
Back Wheel Size4.2 cm
Front Wheel Size3.5
Gear Ratio4:1
Total Cost$49.25

Materials and Cost Breakdown:

Solar car kit: $48

stickers: $0.25

Battery Pack: $1

K cup: Recycled

Paint: donated

Hot glue: donated

Recycled Foam for the books

Amazon box for book covers

Alligator clips: donated from last year’s project

Paper (Solar Sprint Instructions): Recycled

Project Diary Log

DateTimeDurationTasks CompletedTeam AttendanceLocationMishaps/Redesigns
3/11/244:30pm – 5:30 pm1 hour– made teams
– discussed focus and responsibilities,
– brainstormed designs,
– came up with The Book Mobile idea.
– Made first sketches
Joseph
Layla
Caroline
Jada
ABC church
3/15/241:30 pm-4:30pm3 hours– Built chassis
– Experimented with gear ratios
– Assembled and installed axel
– Installation and troubleshooting motor
Joseph
Layla
Jada
Layla’s HouseGears were way to big and the car wouldn’t drive.
3/18/2410:00 am – 4:00 pm6 hours-Worked on solar panel support (sanded and hot glued)
-Brainstormed and designed table tennis ball holder (K cup)

Joseph
Layla
Caroline
Jada
ABC church
3/21/2410:00 am- 4:00 pm6 hours-Painted solar car
-Installed K cup
-Installed solar panel
-Worked on website
-Time trials with battery and solar panels
Joseph
Layla
Caroline
Jada
ABC church
3/25/2410:00 am- 4:00 pm6 hours-Finished website
-Recorded interview videos
-Video editing
-Photoshoot with our car
Joseph
Layla
Caroline
Jada
ABC church

Solar Panel Timed Trials

TrialTimeDistanceSpeedConditionsComments
19.26 seconds20 meters2.16 m/sSunnyString was not tight
2DNR20 metersCar not hooked on string
3DNR20 metersClip came off motor
47.29 seconds20 meters2.74 m/sSunnyGood run
58.27 seconds20 meters2.47 m/sSunnyGood run
67.02 seconds20 meters2.85 m/sSunnyBest run

Battery Pack Trial

TimeDistanceSpeedComments
111.13 seconds20 meters1.8 m/s? batteries
27.7220 meters2.59 m/snew batteries

Project Reflection

We all liked working on the car with our friends. It was a lot of fun. We got to know each other better and we were able to use our imagination to design a perfect car. At first our ideas seemed wacky, but we made them happen. Our book mobile is a fairy tale come true.

Special Thanks

Thank you to our moms for helping with our project, and to Mr. Tom (Caroline’s dad) for soldering the clips for us. Our moms helped with videoing, transportation, lunch, and website design.

2 thoughts on “The Bookworms

  • Absolutely amazing!! Such an original idea.

    Reply
  • Love the use of recycled materials, and you really incorporated your theme well. The bookshelves with little books were a grat touch!

    Reply

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