Awesome practical prototype! I love how much testing you did with hanging devices, angle of incline, and so on. I also love how pretty simple the zip line device is.
I would worry about someone 'eating' the handlebars on the zip-line. But it doesn't seem to slide back to the starting point violently. Padding on the handlebar may be enough to solve that problem.
For that reason, I'd avoid a 'seat' that might swing unpredictably and whack someone.
This looks awesome. Have you considered what the optimal height is above the ground? I would also recommend making the angle adjustable (just in case)! Be sure to make whatever trolley/track you choose durable enough to handle for the long term!
I like the idea of a zip-line, but I have few concerns (mostly on safety + maintenance)... what would be the weight limit on the line? If some guests decided that they are all going to get on it at the same time for fun, would it be able to withstand it? How much maintenance would you expect it to need (assuming many guests may use the zipline inappropriately)?
The zip line system is a critical part of the room that users will interact with. It is the challenging part of the room and I think a works-like was definitely the right thing to do. You did an excellent job executing the sketch model to learn what you need to change for a future iteration of the zip line. I think another important part of the concept that was missed was the base where users launch from and land to. When using the ladder it was clear that you guys were struggling to dismount and launch from and possibly seeing those two concepts together would make it easier to see what the issues are and how they can be addressed.
I think the idea is interesting, and the idea of an upward slope to allow for resetting is something worth pursuing. One of my initial questions on looking through the storyboard was scale (e.g. how long would the zipline be?), as I think this would really heavily influence feasibility of execution. Not needed for this sketch model but worth pursuing going forward.
The sketch was very nice and easy to understand. The videos are always helpful. I would have put a little more emphasis on the design of the carriage and track as that is the crucial elements for your design.
I think the sketch model tests multiple important functions of the concept (angle of incline, usability, etc.), and it enables the team to get great feedback on ways to improve the design. Moving forward, I would also suggest looking into (1) how the length of the zipline would affect the experience (longer zipline --> more energy lost due to friction --> some people may get stuck in the middle, especially in an upward zipline), and (2) perhaps consider replacing the beam with a steel cable like a real zipline? They won't bend like a solid beam does, and it may be easier for maintenance too.
The amount of information that you gained from the sketch model hints at how well the execution for the zip line was. The simple engineering calculations help show the considerations you put into designing the sketch model. The videos do a good job of showing the importance of gravity and the angle of the zip line to achieve both self-resetting while keeping it easy enough to accomplish. Moving forward those two things are going to be really tested and fined-tuned to make sure that the room functions properly. As mentioned above, I think building a solid base that attaches the zip line from side to side can give a better idea of how much force will be required by people of different sizes. I think for this sketch model, the position of where the rope attaches to the carriage could have been changed to see how that affects the movement dynamic on the track. Most of the track systems I've seen have attachment points below the actual track. [url]
Really great! The description of lessons learned and ongoing questions was thorough and informative. The videos were a great way to visualize how the model worked. I'm not entirely clear how the equations at the beginning informed the design, though (potentially for application in a later model, when weight of users is considered?). On the whole, great work!
