Final Bridge

This is the video of the final test of our bridge! The bridge wiped out all competition, holding a whopping 128 pounds!

This engineered bridge solved many of the problems of our old bridges, focusing on lateral and vertical braces in the form of triangles, the strongest shape.  The tri-ply "skeleton" of this bridge was found to be the strongest per-pound way to connect the popsicle sticks, with the outer layers splitting the difference in length of the inner chain of sticks, and therefore minimizing the vulnerability of the joints of the bridge.  Overall, our group was very proud and excited by this sturdy bridge.  Future modifications would include exploring with using string in an effective way, something which we found nearly impossible throughout the process.  Our group even braided a string which was used in our second prototype, but we did not see this as an advantage to the strength of the bridge.  This bridge weighed 201 grams, was 53 cm in length, 10 cm wide, and 9 cm tall. The next version we would make would have more vertically oriented sticks on the lower level, toward the outer lengths of the bridge, the location of the break.  This bridge was very solid, and any significant improvements would require exploration with other "skeleton" shapes and forms.

Note that this design, unlike previous models, has a top layer that has the identical width to the base.  This change was made to provide stronger contacts between braces, which held the bases together, and the levels of the bridge.  Also note the increased lateral bracing on this bridge, compared to previous models.

This is the progression of our bridges... The oldest bridge is in the foreground, and the final bridge is in the background.