1. Year 8 Clock Project

2. Design Situation I have found that when I am in my room, playing on the PlayStation or doing my homework, I sometimes loose track of the time. This can make me late for all sorts of important meetings and arrangements I have made. I have not got a clock in my room because I have not seen a clock that I really like. TASK Design Brief Above is the Design Situation, which tells us the problem that your client is having. You now need to write a Design Brief that explains what you are going to make to help their current problem. Specification Now you have written your Deign Brief, you need to write a list of requirements that your holder should have or do. These are some basic rules that you should try to follow when designing and making your product. Each sentence should start “My clock must…”. This is known as the Specification. PAGE 1: START OF PROJECT

3. HOMEWORK TASK You need to collect at least 6 images of clocks and glue them into Page 2 of your work booklet, you must also collect 2 images of things that would interest your customer. Think about how you lay out your pictures and to push for the higher marks, label the images. PAGE 2: HOMEWORK TASK

4. Task Analysis Use the spider diagram to make a list of all the things your clocks needs or could have/be. Aim to have at least 8 things off each leg. AESTHETICS: What could it look like? CUSTOMER: Who is going to buy this? COST: How much will it cost to buy? ENVIRONMENT: Where will it be used? ENVIRONMENT: Is it environment- ally friendly? SIZE: What size could it be? MATERIALS: What will it be made from? FUNCTION: What functions could it have? SAFETY: How will it be made safe? CLOCK PAGE 3: TASK ANALYSIS

5. Analogue Clocks An Analogue clock is a clock that uses “Hands” to tell the time. These hands in turn are used to point at numbers, roman numerals or just markers on a clock “face”. Digital Clock A Digital watch or clock is by definition a clock that displays the time with a “Row” of figures or digits. Generally L.E.Ds or LCDs are used to form digits and displays in actual numbers. PAGE 4: RESEARCH

6. The Sundial- 3500 B.C.E. The oldest type of clock is a sundial clock, also called a sun clock. They were first used around 5,500 years ago. Sundials use the sun to tell the time. The shadow of the sun points to a number on a circular disk that shows you the time. In the picture below on the right, the shadow created by the sun points to 9, so it is nine o'clock. The History of Clocks The history of clocks is very long, and there have been many different types of clocks over the centuries. Not all historians agree on the history of the clock. The word clock was first used in the 14th century (about 700 years ago). It comes from the word for bell in Latin ("clocca"). Using the Sun The first way that people could tell the time was by looking at the sun as it crossed the sky. When the sun was directly overhead in the sky, it was the middle of the day, or noon. When the sun was close to the horizon, it was either early morning (sunrise) or early evening (sunset). Telling the time was not very accurate. PAGE 4: HISTORY OF CLOCKS

7. The Water Clock- 1400 B.C.E. Water clocks, otherwise known as clepsydra (kelp-suh- druh), were invented in Egypt. It uses 2 containers of water, one higher than the other, where the water travels from the higher container to the lower one using a connecting tube. The containers have marks showing the water levels, telling the time. They were very popular in Greece and became more complex. The water would drip between the 2 containers, raising a float, which was connected to a stick that had notches on it. As the stick rose, the notches would turn a gear which moved the hands round the dial. Water clocks worked better than sundials because they told the time at night as well as during the day. They were also more accurate than sundials. Sand timers or sand clocks are very close in their concept to water clocks, except sand is used instead of water. PAGE 4: HISTORY OF CLOCKS

8. The Pendulum Clock- 1600 A.D. The first practical clock was driven by a pendulum, by Christian Huygens around 1656. By 1700, the pendulum developed to include a minute hand. The pendulum (c) swings left and right, it is connected to a plate at the top (b), this turns a wheel (a) with teeth. The turning wheel turns the hour and minute hands around the dial. One problem with pendulum clocks is that they stopped running after a while and would have to be restarted. The first pendulum clock with external batteries was developed around 1840 and by 1906, the batteries were inside the clock. The Quartz Clock- 1920 A.D. Quartz clocks are battery operated and because they use so little electricity, can last for years before needing to be replaced. They have gears inside them to count the seconds, minutes and hours, sweeping the hands across the clock face. The gears are controlled by a tiny crystal of quartz. Quartz is piezoelectric, so if you squeeze it, it will generate a tiny electric current & if you pass electricity through it, it vibrates at a precise frequency. In a quartz clock, the battery sends electricity to the crystal, it then vibrates back and forth, the circuit counts the vibrations and generates regular pulses, either powering a LCD display or a motor, which turns hands on a clock or watch face.

9. TASK Label the diagram with the following parts: Plastic Face Second Hand Rubber Washer Battery Minute Hand Brass Screw Mechanism Hour Hand PAGE 5: ANALOGUE CLOCK MECHANISM

10. Design Ideas When designing any product it is always a good idea to gain as much inspiration as possible. This may be in the form of outside interests or hobbies, furthermore opening your eyes and researching current examples of the type of product you are working on is a fantastic source of inspiration. Even just studying good design in general can help with initial design proposals. PAGE 6: DESIGN IDEAS

11. Face Choose your favourite design from your Initial Ideas and look at changing the shape of the clock face. You could think about simple and complex shapes. Hands Think about if you would like your clock hands to be modern or traditional. You could link the hands to the theme of your clock, i.e. footballs on the ends. Numbers There are many different ways to mark the numbers, you could use modern numbers, Roman numerals, dashes, etc, or you could theme your numbers too. Colour Once you have decided which Face, Hands and Numbers you like best, combine them and draw them out 4 times. Apply a different colour or pattern to each one and choose your favourite. Design Development After you have come up with a range of ideas, it is important to develop your favourite idea to make sure you have created the best design you can and so you think about all the necessary parts. Your design might not change at all or it might become a completely different idea entirely. PAGE 7: DESIGN DEVELOPMENT

12. Making Plan Before you make a product it is important to work out HOW you are going to make it. By planning ahead, you can see what materials, tools and equipment you will need and can make sure you have them all ready to save time. TASK Some of the steps have already been filled out for you, now you need to complete the missing steps. You should also rate how dangerous the tasks are, so you know which steps you should pay particular attention to safety. Give each step a safety rating so you can be prepared. Stand Design Your clock will need a stand so it can sit unaided on a table. Think about all the possible stand designs you can come up with using a single strip of plastic and bending it using the strip heater. Think about strength and appearance. PAGE 9: PLANNING

13. Evaluation It is very important to evaluate your work at the end of the project. It helps us to focus on the best parts, the skills we have learnt and the areas we need to work on for the future. A way to do this is by sketching out your final product, which may look very different from your final design. Once you have sketched and coloured it, add notes around your drawing- pointing out: ◊ the materials you used, ◊ the joints you used, the colours, ◊ your favourite parts, ◊ the parts that didn’t quite work, ◊ any changes you may have made during production. After you have finished your sketch, answer the questions in detail. Think hard about your answers, if you answer the questions too simply, you won’t remember the important parts when you look back! PAGE 10: EVALUATION