Wimpy Radar Antenna

In this month's activity, Wimpy Radar Antenna, students play the role of an engineering consulting team hired to fix the problem of a poorly designed radar antenna on top of the United Nations Building in New York City. Students are asked to reinforce an antenna tower made from foam insulation, so that it withstands a 480 N-cm bending moment (torque) and a 280 N-cm twisting moment (torque) with minimal deflection. One class is used to discuss the problem, run the initial bending and torsion tests and graph the results. The following classes are used for design and construction of a sturdier tower, its testing and graphing of the results. Evaluation of the effect of torsional forces on objects like supporting beams in buildings or parts of a machine (for civil and mechanical engineers respectively) is extremely important in making sure that a structure or machine does not fail. Understanding how torsion affects an object helps an engineer design structures that are safe and sound.

The Engineering Pathway Portal to the National Science Digital Library (NSDL) brings together quality engineering education materials for from all over the internet allowing teachers to search all of these documents in a single location. Each month during the year in the Pre-Engineering Times, the Engineering Pathway will highlight one or more engineering activities available on the collection related to the months theme. This month's activity is from the TeachEngineering Digital Library, which is a part of the Engineering Pathway.

For more information on what civil engineers do, visit the Civil Engineering Education Community Page on the Engineering Pathway.