Catapult
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The catapult is the main component of the game. We had to set its dimensions in the first steps of the design.
The catapult is mounted directly on the motor. This solution is the easiest and most straigthforward.
The main characteristic that we researched in the catapult was for it to be light. This is to limit the needed torque for the motor. Furthermore we need it to be able to hold the ball without slidings until the release angle is reached.
In order to achieve this two goals, the catapult has been 3D printed. We designed it with the shape of a circular spoon, with a hole in the middle slighty smaller than the dimensions of the ping pong ball that is used in the game. The hole guarantee the grip of the ball to the catapult during the launching phase.
The catapult was the first component to be completed. Once the catapult was done it was possible to proceed by trial and error in order to optimize the distance of the basket. As a last remark: the catapult starting position is not the horizontal one, it starts with a negative angle, this property is fundamental for the good functioning of the recovery system since it avoids possible points of equilibrium for the ball on the catapult, different from the desired one.