Case Study: Ping Ping Ball Launcher

CHAPTER: (1) Introduction
1.1 Problem Summary and Introduction:
The goal for our group is to design a ping pong ball launcher. The launcher needs to be scheduled to launch one solo ping pong ball one at a time over a set obstacle and into a bucket of a chosen diameter. The determination is for the launcher to have the capability to launch five ping pong balls one at a time into the container within one minute, having none of the ping pong balls bounce out or miss the bucket. The launcher can be made out of any matter preferred and can launch the ping pong ball in any anticipated way, except by explosion.
Our group discussed on which method we thought would create the most precise and expected launcher. We considered upon a catapult type

Its material and light-weight allows air resistance and its spin to have significant effects on its motion when airborne. Air resistance is the result of the projectile’s leading surface colliding with air molecules, and it is affected by the velocity of the object and its cross-sectional area. Specifically, a higher velocity and greater cross-sectional area results in greater air resistance. Additionally, ping pong balls allow bounce quite high when they strike a surface.

3.1.2 Physics of projectile motion
Since the launcher will launch the ping pong ball so that it launches with a parabolic trajectory, the physics behind projectile motion comes into play. In a projectile, the only force is gravity, thus resulting in a downward acceleration. Gravity does not act in the horizontal direction, so the ping pong ball will theoretically travel at the constant horizontal velocity according to the law of inertia.
Communally characters of ping pong balls and the nature of projectile motion will have important effects on the launcher that must be considered to ensure that the launcher fulfils the expectations