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KS3
KS4
AS

Once again I am using this project to promote thinking in the student. Wooden toys are becoming far more common now that wood is seen as a sustainable material. Kiddimoto (See Video) produce children's bikes that have style and a modern look.

It is worth reminding you that the EEC passed a law that no child's toy can produce a dangerous spike even if broken. This means that screws have effectively been outlawed at all keystages. All our pupils are minors and therefore any product we produce has to be by nature a toy. If that toy has screws or nails and by whatever circumstance the nail or screw can be exposed, even if that exposure includes being broken we are liable as teachers being in the position of Loco Parents. Many schools are currently ignoring these rules by omission or ignorance but neither will mitigate at what would be a criminal trial.

At keystage 3 I would expect the pupils to take the product and make a study of the unit making notes and suggestions how the unit passes or fails its brief as a child 's seesaw.

At keystage 4 I would expect the student to go through a design and make exercise on their own idea.

At AS Level I would expect the student to perhaps include a marketing policy with some research in addition to the DMA.

Seesaw

This project is a return to the use of cross braces and triangulation to enable to production an extremely strong structure.

There has been a conscious effort to limit the amount by which the seesaw can tip in either direction, with a view to the reduction of any injury a small child may sustain.

If this project was to be resized the addition of a back rest would be advisable.

There is a possibility of a toe being trapped under the rocker and to try reduce this possibility footrests have been added.

Mechanically, a seesaw is a lever and pendulum.

Seesaws also work as a simple example of a mechanical system with two equilibrium positions. One side is stable, while the other is unstable.

The simple mechanics of a seesaw make them appear frequently in school exam paper questions on mechanical problems.

 

The seat design you will remember if you have visited the rocking dog.

Unlike the dog there is no backbone support for this chair as the forces are distributed amongst 4 contact points.

Footrest

Foot rests have been provided to avoid toes being trapped under the rocking mechanism.

joints

The construction is designed to hold the two sides as rigidly as possible without over engineering.

 

 

Other design ideas.

 

The conventional seesaw seen below now contravenes regulations on the use of screws and nails in the construction of children's toys.

 

The 2D draw file (2 off required) is shown here in full detail. The download drawing has the slots hidden behind the red fill. This is to ensure that the machining takes placing in the correct order so that slots are not being cut on pieces that have lost their grip as they were machined into isolation.

 

 

Download For Seesaw 2D File - Download