Simple/compound machine design

[markirwin]

Hey, i have a physics ISU this year where i need to make a machine, simple or compound, that can pick up a empty roll of tiolet paper and drop it into a small container, it doesn't need to be electrical because i can position the roll right by the machine, and the container is just behind it.

I haven't put to much thought into the project but i did think of something that seems relitavetly easy, could i just have a windmill type machine with a stick on the end to pick the roll up and the other end weighted, would that be enough force to pick the roll up and continue the rotation and just drop it into the container which would be right behind the machine?

any comments or ideas would be awesome thanks!

 

[schip666!]

I think you'll need to examine your Requirements Document very carefully...

I can imagine a windmill thingie such as you describe being able to sweep an object from one position to another. In fact just a fan blowing your tube over into a bin would be similar. But neither "picks up" the object, as in lifting it off the ground.

Some more genius-like mechanic may come up with a way. But I think the picking-up- and-dropping-ness requirement indicates that you will need some kind of state-change -- a grabber or flipper that can switch between hold and drop states. You can do that with smart mechanics, cams and such-like. Or you can do it electrically with a solenoid or motor. In either case you need some energy source, spring or motor, to make the thing move.