Runaway snowboards pose a very hazardous threat to skiers, snowboarders, and all other patrons of ski resorts. The goal of this project was to design, prototype, and test an automatic safety snowboard brake which activates and deactivates automatically, and remains functional when the board is not in use. The project team researched existing patents and designs for both ski and snowboard brakes, analytically designed a spring loaded piston -- cylinder brake mechanism and a four bar driving mechanism, performed finite element stress analysis on the critical components, selected the material, created a rapid prototype, and tested the functionality of the brake under a variety of realistic conditions. These methods yielded a successful, fully functional automatic snowboard safety brake.

• This report represents the work of one or more WPI undergraduate students submitted to the faculty as evidence of completion of a degree requirement. WPI routinely publishes these reports on its website without editorial or peer review.

Creator

• Sima, Joseph Robert
• Driscoll, Timothy R
• Gowell, Christopher Michael
• Baldwin, Steven Charles

Publisher

• Worcester Polytechnic Institute

Identifier

• E-project-042711-161632

Advisor

• Sullivan, John M.

Year

• 2011

Date created

• 2011-04-27

Resource type

• Major Qualifying Project

Major

• Mechanical Engineering

Rights statement

• In Copyright