- Physics
- Ready-made model
- Class 1 to 9
Portable Hand Steadiness Tester Game Using Waste Material Physics Working Model and Project
Code B0C3H5729R
- Paid for and delivered by Amazon. The current price and the delivery date for your PIN code are shown there.
- Sold by Gurukul Technicals Institute, Delhi.
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In this project guide
Ready-made model
About this model
This working model is a hand steadiness tester game, the familiar buzz wire challenge in which you guide a loop along a bent wire without touching it. Its title says it is made using waste material, so it also carries a reuse message. It is a fun way to demonstrate a complete circuit and conductors, and it always draws a crowd at an exhibition.
How it works
The science behind it
The idea the model demonstrates, in words you can use in your report and when you explain it.
The game is a simple electric circuit with a gap in it. The bent wire is connected to one terminal of the battery, and the handle loop is connected through a buzzer or bulb to the other. As long as the loop does not touch the wire, the circuit is open and no current flows. The moment metal touches metal, the circuit closes and the buzzer sounds. This works because metals are good conductors of electricity, while the insulating handle and base are not. The game also tests the body: steady, precise movement of the hand is coordinated by the cerebellum, the part of the brain that also maintains posture and balance. Making it from waste follows the 3Rs: reduce, reuse and recycle. The same buzz wire game is popular at Indian fairs and school carnivals, where the prize goes to whoever reaches the end without a single beep.
Make it yourself
Make a hand steadiness tester game from waste yourself
Build your own version from scratch, or use the steps to understand how the ready-made model is put together before you present it.
What you need 10
Step by step 8 steps
Straighten the coat hanger with pliers, with an adult, then bend it into a wavy path with a few sharp turns; tighter bends make a harder game.
Sand the whole wire until it shines, because paint and varnish are insulators and would stop the circuit closing.
Bend the thinner copper wire into a loop about 1.5 to 2 cm across around the wavy wire before fixing the wavy wire to the base, because the loop cannot be threaded on afterwards.
Push the ends of the wavy wire through the bottle caps into the top of the box and fix them firmly, then wrap about 3 cm of tape round each end as the safe start and finish rests.
Push the tail of the loop into the pen body to make the handle, and join a long insulated lead to it.
Inside the box, connect one cell holder terminal to the wavy wire, and the other terminal through the buzzer to the handle lead, with the buzzer's red wire towards the positive side.
Rest the loop on the taped start, fit the cells and touch the loop on the bare wire to check that the buzzer sounds.
Play by guiding the loop from start to finish without a buzz, and record each player's time and number of touches in a table.
Read this first
Safety first
Go through these points before you build or switch anything on. Younger students should do this with an adult.
- Bend and cut the coat hanger only with an adult, and file or tape any sharp ends.
- Sand off the paint in open air and wash your hands afterwards.
- Use only small cells; never connect the game to a charger, an adapter or a mains socket.
- Rest the loop on the taped ends between games, because a loop left touching the bare wire keeps the buzzer on and drains the cells.
Troubleshooting
If something does not work
The usual problems with this model and how to fix them. Open a problem to see the fix.
The buzzer does not sound when the loop touches the wire
Paint, varnish or rust is probably insulating the metal. Sand the wire and the inside of the loop until they shine, check the buzzer's red wire goes to positive, and try fresh cells.
The buzzer sounds all the time
The loop is touching the bare wire, or two bare wires are touching inside the box. Move the loop onto a taped rest and wrap every joint inside the box with tape.
The buzzer crackles instead of giving a clean sound
A joint is loose. Twist each connection tightly or use a small terminal strip, and make sure the cells sit firmly in the holder.
The game is too easy or too hard for visitors
Change the loop size: a smaller loop or tighter bends make it harder, and a bigger loop makes it easier for younger children.
Exhibition day
How to present it
A running order for the exhibition table or the practical, step by step.
Invite visitors to play, and keep a scoreboard of how many touches each person makes.
Show the open and closed circuit on a chart, marking the point where the loop touches the wire.
Explain which waste materials were reused in the model and why reuse matters.
Link the game to the cerebellum and hand-eye coordination for a biology connection.
Practice
Viva questions
Practice questions on this model, with short answers. Try each one aloud before you open the answer.
Why does the buzzer sound when the loop touches the wire?
The touch closes the circuit, so current flows from the battery through the buzzer.
Why is the handle made of an insulator?
So that the circuit closes only when the metal loop touches the wire; the player's hand stays out of the circuit and cannot set off the buzzer by itself.
Which part of the brain controls the steadiness of the hand?
The cerebellum, which coordinates precise voluntary movements and maintains balance.
What are conductors?
Materials that allow electric current to pass through them easily, such as copper, aluminium and iron.
Project file
Project file outline
The headings of the project file, in order. Give each heading its own section and write it in your own words.
Free ebook: Writing a Science Project FileContents
- Aim: to show an open and a closed circuit through a hand steadiness game made from waste material
- Electric circuits: cells, switches, conductors and insulators
- Circuit diagram of the game and how a touch closes the circuit
- Waste materials reused and the reduce, reuse and recycle message
- Steps of construction, with photographs
- Observations: times and number of touches for different players
- How the brain and the cerebellum control steady hand movement
- Conclusion, precautions and sources used
Buying checklist
Before you buy
What to check before you order the model, and what to do when it arrives.
1Before you order
- Check with your teacher that a buzz wire game suits your class and the chapter on electric circuits.
- Read the listing to see whether cells are mentioned; do not assume they are in the box, and keep a spare set ready.
- Check that the bent wire is firmly fixed, because many visitors will knock it on the day.
- Keep the box for carrying it, so the bent wire is not crushed out of shape.
- Check the delivery date for your PIN code on the marketplace, and order well before the exhibition or practical.
- Practise explaining it. Judges ask what the model shows and why; knowing the science matters as much as the model. The viva questions above are a good place to start.
2When it arrives
- When it arrives, test the buzzer and look for loose joints a few days before the exhibition.
Next steps
Take it further
Ways to turn this model into a bigger investigation or a stronger exhibition entry.
Add a counter circuit or a second LED that shows how many times each player touched the wire.
Compare scores with the writing hand and the other hand, or before and after a short run, and show the results as a bar chart.
Make a second track with tighter bends and explain how the gap between loop and wire changes the score.
Audience
Who it suits
Class 4 to 8 science exhibitions and school fun fairs, and a simple circuit activity for younger students with adult help.
- ClassClass 1 to 9
- SubjectPhysics
- TypeReady-made model
Free to read
Free ebooks for this topic
Free PDF ebooks from Gurukul Technicals Institute on the science, the making and the presenting of projects like this one.
- Free PDF ebook
Best Out of Waste Science Projects
Working models from bottles, cardboard, CDs and old parts
- Free PDF ebook
Physics Working Models Explained
Twenty classic models, how each works and how to make it
- Free PDF ebook
Your Science Exhibition Guide
Choose a project, build it, present it and answer the judges with confidence
- Free PDF ebook
Writing a Science Project File
How to write the report, from the cover page to the bibliography
