GCSE Project Car Jack
Discussion
Dear PH,
For my GCSE DT project I am designing an all in one car jack, tyre pump, wheel nut wrench and safety light
The idea would be that this all in one jack replaces your car's tool kit and is smaller, easier and safer to use by the roadside.
For example, most cars come with a small hard to use jack which is dangerous to use by the roadside and requires a lot of effort. The wheel wrench they provide you with is also difficult to use, garages usually tighten the wheel nuts up too tight and the little wrench cannot undo them. There is usually not a torch in the car as standard either which could be very helpful by the side of a motorway at night.
Do you think this would be helpful?
For my GCSE DT project I am designing an all in one car jack, tyre pump, wheel nut wrench and safety light
The idea would be that this all in one jack replaces your car's tool kit and is smaller, easier and safer to use by the roadside.
For example, most cars come with a small hard to use jack which is dangerous to use by the roadside and requires a lot of effort. The wheel wrench they provide you with is also difficult to use, garages usually tighten the wheel nuts up too tight and the little wrench cannot undo them. There is usually not a torch in the car as standard either which could be very helpful by the side of a motorway at night.
Do you think this would be helpful?
k and the actual Jack itself is feeble at best madcal said:
Yes I do, I struggle with my jacks in the Audi’s they are hard to use.
How about something similar to this? https://rover.ebay.com/rover/0/0/0?mpre=https%3A%2...
Fantastic idea and should have plenty of scope to talk about it and get lots of marks (which, let's be honest is more important than whether or not it'd actually a good, viable idea!)
Best of luck, hope the project goes well, pop some pictures of your work up here as you go along if you're allowed. Be great to see it
Best of luck, hope the project goes well, pop some pictures of your work up here as you go along if you're allowed. Be great to see it
"All in one"?? If the car is jacked up, how will you then use the 'built in' wrench? Do you mean a kit/set of tools? Which manufacturers (who don't just provide an inflator/sealant kit and no spare tyre) provide anyway. By all means design a 'better' jack! The scissor jack is really the only option - a 'bottle' jack is unstable, a trolley jack unfeasible; a scissor with a much larger base than usual would be an improvement, and electric power! Look too at 'lifting platforms', like this: https://www.banggood.com/4inch-Aluminum-Lifting-Pl...
A 'safety light'? Do you mean a better warning triangle? They almost aways fall over in the sidewash of passing vehicles. One that was a tetrahedron could not 'fall over' and if self illuminated, possibly flashing then more visible.
To see what you are doing, most people have a mobile phone that incorporates a torch; how about an elasticated strap, so you could have the phone on your forehead, like a headtorch??
A wrench with a telescopic handle? Again, electric powered impact wrench, that would movee the jack as well??
Think laterally! Good luck!
JOhn
A 'safety light'? Do you mean a better warning triangle? They almost aways fall over in the sidewash of passing vehicles. One that was a tetrahedron could not 'fall over' and if self illuminated, possibly flashing then more visible.
To see what you are doing, most people have a mobile phone that incorporates a torch; how about an elasticated strap, so you could have the phone on your forehead, like a headtorch??
A wrench with a telescopic handle? Again, electric powered impact wrench, that would movee the jack as well??
Think laterally! Good luck!
JOhn
CarTrouble said:
Dear PH,
For my GCSE DT project I am designing an all in one car jack, tyre pump, wheel nut wrench and safety light
The idea would be that this all in one jack replaces your car's tool kit and is smaller, easier and safer to use by the roadside.
For example, most cars come with a small hard to use jack which is dangerous to use by the roadside and requires a lot of effort. The wheel wrench they provide you with is also difficult to use, garages usually tighten the wheel nuts up too tight and the little wrench cannot undo them. There is usually not a torch in the car as standard either which could be very helpful by the side of a motorway at night.
Do you think this would be helpful?
Potentially. It sounds like a great idea.For my GCSE DT project I am designing an all in one car jack, tyre pump, wheel nut wrench and safety light
The idea would be that this all in one jack replaces your car's tool kit and is smaller, easier and safer to use by the roadside.
For example, most cars come with a small hard to use jack which is dangerous to use by the roadside and requires a lot of effort. The wheel wrench they provide you with is also difficult to use, garages usually tighten the wheel nuts up too tight and the little wrench cannot undo them. There is usually not a torch in the car as standard either which could be very helpful by the side of a motorway at night.
Do you think this would be helpful?
Before you go too far, it depends precisely what you mean by all in one but you might need to consider one possible limitation and how to address it.
When changing a wheel, it is normal to loosen the nuts a bit while the ground provides resistance to the tyre i.e. before jacking up. The car is then jacked up and the nuts are loosened further and removed. It is generally not advisable to loosen those nuts too much while the wheel is resting on the ground in case the wheel falls off.
So you will need to be able to address how you can maintain the wrenching capability while the tool is also being used to keep the car jacked up.
Maybe have the wrench on a retractable wire?
HTH
Good luck.
EDIT - I see great minds...
Other jack models - rally cars usually have tubes welded into their sills, to take specialised 'axle' (really 'sill' ) stands.
And for use on-stage in case of a damaged wheel/tyre they use corresponding jacks that slot into the sill tubes:
Much more stable and safe!
Again, do your research - thee will be other options about!
John
And for use on-stage in case of a damaged wheel/tyre they use corresponding jacks that slot into the sill tubes:
Much more stable and safe!
Again, do your research - thee will be other options about!
John
Firstly, thanks so much to everybody for the replies, they are really helpful! This forum post actually forms part of my research so you guys may even get immortalised in my GCSE paper ;-)
You will be glad to hear I don't have to build a functional prototype, just a model.
The idea with the wheel nuts is that it will loosen them slightly whilst the car was on the ground. You would not really want to be leaning on a tyre arm whilst the car was up in the air anyway as its not very safe.
Re; jacking I was thinking about a high torque motor driving screw, this same motor will also be used to loosen all the wheel nuts.
for the light I was thinking about a torch and flashing orange strobe.
I would install a small pump to inflate the tyres.
I did think about an airbag jack but having looked at them they are quite big and I think people would feel less safe using them.
Thanks again and would really appreciate any further thoughts.
You will be glad to hear I don't have to build a functional prototype, just a model.
The idea with the wheel nuts is that it will loosen them slightly whilst the car was on the ground. You would not really want to be leaning on a tyre arm whilst the car was up in the air anyway as its not very safe.
Re; jacking I was thinking about a high torque motor driving screw, this same motor will also be used to loosen all the wheel nuts.
for the light I was thinking about a torch and flashing orange strobe.
I would install a small pump to inflate the tyres.
I did think about an airbag jack but having looked at them they are quite big and I think people would feel less safe using them.
Thanks again and would really appreciate any further thoughts.
Chris32345 said:
Unless things have changed significantly from when I was a did GCSE you actually had to make the item you design?
And this is far beyond the skill's and capabilities of any school shop
When I was at school there was design and realization; where you made it; and design and communication. The latter was more about product design and how ideas develop from initial idea through to proposal. I think this is more inline with the OP, hence all ideas are good ones and then you whittle them down before doing in depth drgs of the final proposal.And this is far beyond the skill's and capabilities of any school shop
Edited by Chris32345 on Saturday 14th September 19:53
On topic: the tool kit in a landrover would be great if it was built to cope with the weight of the car. Worth taking a look at though.
Scissor jack with the winding handle doubling up as a wheel nut breaker bar and socket. Comes with 2 little wheel chocks as well.
Problem with the torch is that it will inevitably be flat when I need to use it.
If you don’t have to make the final idea i’d Go with a small compressor that runs off a 12v supply. Into this you could plug an air powered impact gun and an air jack (piston or bag type). The light could be on the main body of the thing. Nothing mind blowing but would give plenty scope for sizing the thing, packaging it to fit into, e.g, a spare wheel well, material selection etc.
I’ve got a micro torch which lives in the cigarette lighter, permanently charging when required.
Like this but it sits flush with the original lighter cap
https://m.dhgate.com/product/rechargeable-cree-q5-...
Like this but it sits flush with the original lighter cap
https://m.dhgate.com/product/rechargeable-cree-q5-...
IMHO
The problem is with jacks and nut wrenches etc is that people don't familiarise themselves with the tools in the comfort of their home drive.
Not much good waiting till your on the hard shoulder of a DC or a unclassified muddy country lane, 11.00pm rain snow wind blow, and thinking
where's the jack, where's the spare, have I even got one?
Paul G
The problem is with jacks and nut wrenches etc is that people don't familiarise themselves with the tools in the comfort of their home drive.
Not much good waiting till your on the hard shoulder of a DC or a unclassified muddy country lane, 11.00pm rain snow wind blow, and thinking
where's the jack, where's the spare, have I even got one?
Paul G
finishing touch said:
IMHO
The problem is with jacks and nut wrenches etc is that people don't familiarise themselves with the tools in the comfort of their home drive.
Not much good waiting till your on the hard shoulder of a DC or a unclassified muddy country lane, 11.00pm rain snow wind blow, and thinking
where's the jack, where's the spare, have I even got one?
Paul G
Agreed. My wife always laughs at me and calls me Biggles or James May because my pre long drive checks remind her of a pilot's pre-flight checks. The problem is with jacks and nut wrenches etc is that people don't familiarise themselves with the tools in the comfort of their home drive.
Not much good waiting till your on the hard shoulder of a DC or a unclassified muddy country lane, 11.00pm rain snow wind blow, and thinking
where's the jack, where's the spare, have I even got one?
Paul G
But, unlike her, I've never been caught without the alloy wheel unlocker thingy, a rusted-over scissor jack or had a missing handle, a missing can of tyre inflator or had a flat spare tyre
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