My Mousetrap Catapult Information and Steps

Materials I Needed

• mousetrap
• spoon
• electro tape
• pilers
• doorstops
• square-shaped toys
• tape measure
• ping pong ball
• ruler
• protractor
• textbooks

Pictured above were most (but not all) materials used.

Steps

1. Remove all parts of the mousetrap using pilers except for the spring and hammer.
2. Tape a spoon to the hammer of the mousetrap: start by taping an 'x' and then all around the hammer.
3. Make a 45 degree angle with the doorstops and tape the doorstops together to be more secure.
4. Take one square-shaped toy and tape it to the mousetrap securely in order to stop the mousetrap after its release.
5. Attach mousetrap to doorstops.
6. Use the square-shaped toys to build a base and tape the base together.
7. Attach the base to the mousetrap.
8. Set contraption on some text books, because the higher the better.
9. Test out the mousetrap by launching a ping pong ball and measuring the distance it went with the tape measure.

Factors I Had to Consider

• The angle of the mousetrap. A catapult's angle does affect the distance so after some research I discover that the best angle is 45 degrees or lower. 45 degrees give the maximum displacement in x.

• A longer catapult arm does not necessarily mean a larger x displacement. I also attempted extending my arm, but it was too flimsy and I found that the spoon I simply used for my final catapult was much more efficient.
• The height of the mousetrap. We were given a one foot limit on the height of where the ball will be launched. I decided to take advantage of this as much as possible. It was for this reason that I later added the textbooks to my catapults base. The higher the displacement in y, the longer it will take to reach the ground, thus making the projectile go father.

Difficulties Along the Way

• I had trouble figuring out how to get the 45 degree angle. However, after a while a brainstorming i remembered that doorstops provided an angle for me to work with.
• I also had some difficulty finding something to successfully stop the hammer's motion. My problem was solved when I was going through my basket and found these old square-shaped toys I used to play with. Those toys managed to provide me with a stopper and a base.