Amusement Park Physics

Planning the Trip

A successful amusement park trip requires planning in at least three areas. The first two involves working with park personnel to make sure that things work smoothly at the park. Two specific individuals should be contacted. The education coordinator can provide a wealth of useful information regarding the park and can find out information which may be helpful.

The second area involves a close relationship in planning and developing the equipment which will need to be approved by they park safety officer. This individual will usually need to approve the equipment which will be used at the park. This procedure may take several months and may require jumping through a couple of hurdles, so plan in advance. After several trials, we have chosen to use a fanny pack and CBL (shown below) which has been modified to fit the needs of park safety and the ability to collect data.

The CBL has had velcro added so that a plexiglas shield can be placed over the LCD screen. Two holes have been drilled in the plexi-glass so that the individual can trigger the CBL or turn the CBL on without having to raise the glass. We chose to cut a hole in the pack so that the large portion can be closed and only the small compartment is open so the individual can insert a finger to trigger the data collection (see image at right). The accelerometer can also be ran through this hole and attached directly to the belt of the fanny pack with velcro. Note: The accelerometer in the picture above is a single axis accelerometer. Newer models of the CBL and accelerometer are also available.

The second portion of the planning involves student training with the equipment. A variety of lab activities can be used to orient the student with the equipment and the output generated. Accelerometers can be attached to pendulums, springs, cars on tracks, wheels, or turntables.

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