Motion and Sound

Create a music box (or noise box) that is powered by a hand-crank!

As the crank turns it should initiate motion that will transfer itself 3 times before it moves a noise making devise.

Find creative ways to transfer motion and to create sound. Look at unusual materials that could introduce the element of surprise to the viewer, or that could introduce humor to the piece.

The box should be open on at least one side so the interior mechanism can be clearly visible.

Don't use parts of other noise making machines. Create the whole object from scratch.

Before you start
READ AND MEMORIZE THE
SAFETY RULES

Materials:

You can use any materials you like, but from my experience the most successful designs have been executed mostly with wood.

I recommend that you buy two pieces that are 6-8 inches wide, between 3/4 or 1" thick, and about 48 inches long. Any good hardware store or lumber yard should have pieces with such approximate measurements.

Also, you will need to buy 2 or three dowels 3/4" or 1" in diameter.

Make sure you buy your materials before next class so you can begin working.

Use dowels for wheel shafts. You can buy those at any hardware or art store.

Make several drawings if necessary to make sure that you have a good understanding of the structure before you begin building.

Spend some time planning your project carefully and design all the parts on paper before you begin cutting wood. It will be best to create some templates out of paper for the various parts. Use these templates to mark your wood precisely before you begin cutting it.

Some Ideas:

You can create wood gears that can transfer motion through contact, or you can use belts (rubber bands would do fine).

For the noise making devise, be creative and use something unexpected. It can be an object attached to a wheel that hits another object and creates noise, or it can be a series of parts that rub together.

BE CREATIVE with the way you transfer the motion, and with the noise making apparatus. Motion can be a beautiful thing, so don't treat it as a piece of machinery.

Study objects that use motion like locomotive wheels, washing machines, cotton candy machines, blenders, violins, oil wells, river boats, sewing machines, and any other objects that you think produce beautiful motion. Use your studies in your work, and try to emulate the mechanism that produces the motion you like.

Make sure that your object is large enough to accommodate motion transfer x3, and that is built well enough to withstand all the cranking, and that it is aesthetically interesting.

Don't neglect the walls of the box. Why not cut them into different shapes rather than square.