1. Wind Power (B & C) Great Lakes Coaches Clinic - Nov. 6-7, 2015
Jim Grant - Thomas Middle School
Dr. Eric Rowley - Wright State University

2. Agenda Basics of Wind Power Rules and Scoring Part I Construction
Part II Written Test
Recommendations
Open Discussion
*Thanks to Russ Burleson and Allan Chalker for material in this presentation.

3. Before We Begin… New Coaches - WELCOME!
Returning Coaches - Thank you for your continued involvement
Purpose of this session…
is NOT to teach you how to compete in the event.
IS to help you coach and guide your students through the event.
is NOT to reprint every minute detail of the event.
IS to provide you with a resource you can refer to.

4. Before We Begin… Do… Ask questions. Share ideas. Do Not
Seek a competitive advantage.
Assume the rules are the same… there are many changes.

5. What is Wind Power?

6. Different Types of Wind Turbines

7. Rules Overview Wind power rotor/fan blade design
Team of 2
Eye Protection B Required
Part 1 (Practical Portion)
50% of score
Part 2 (Written Test)
High Score wins
Ties broken using highest, high-speed voltage and highest, low-speed voltage
Wind power rotor/fan blade design
Power Generator general questions
Power Storage questions
Power Transmission questions
Historical wind power designs

8. Construction Overview
Blade Assembly (BA) is attached to a Compact Disc (CD) mount as shown to the right
No part of the BA may be more than 20cm (B) or 14cm (C) from the center of the CD mount

9. Construction Overview
BA CD Mount must be flat with no part of the BA behind the mount for 3cm from the center of the CD mount
BA must not extend more than 2cm behind the CD mount
No limit on how far forward the BA extends

10. Measurement Overview
BA must be placed in a box (assemblies and box must be labeled with the team #) and must be impounded
Two measurements, one at high speed and one at lower speed
Can be with one or two stations
Students must wear B Eye Protection
When given permission by the Event Supervisor (ES), they may configure, change, and mount their BA
Teams may give their BA a slight tap to start
Measurements are made for 30 seconds
If the device fails during a run or stops turning for a period of 10 seconds, the score at that speed will be multiplied by 0.8
Teams have 3 minutes to do the setup and measurement for each speed, which leaves 2.5 minutes for setup
Event supervisors will have one or two 20” box fan(s) for testing at each station
A standard CD motor will be used to create the voltage and the load resistor will be between 5Ω and 7.5Ω

11. Construction Suggestions
Build lots of BA and try different designs
Determine the effect of different nonmetallic materials
Commercial blades or third party designs are only allowed with modification
Determine the effect of number of blades
Determine the effect of different blade shapes and rotations
Protect the BA for transit with a container

12. Written Test Teams are given a set amount of time (20-30 min)
Topics include:
Wind Power Rotor/Blade Design
Power Generator Questions
Power Storage Questions
Power Transmission Questions
Historical Wind Power Designs

13. Written Test Wind Power Rotor/Fan Blade design
Examples (not to be inclusive):
Advantages/disadvantages of 2 blade, 3 blade, … , n blade systems
What are the different types of designs and what are their advantages/disadvantages
Name three sources of loss in generation, in storage, in transmission

14. Written Test
Power Generator General Questions (solar, wind, hydroelectric, tidal, thermal energy, and geothermal)
May also include general power generation questions
May also include hybrid systems and other types of power generation topics

15. Written Test Power Storage Questions
What are the different ways to store energy from wind power? How is it discharged?
What are the issues with power storage from Wind and other forms of energy generation?
What are sources of loss with power storage?

16. Written Test Power Transmission questions
What are standard transmission voltages?
Why do we use AC or DC for transmission?
What are the sources of loss of power transmission?
What are ways to reduce the loss?

18. General Coaching Tips Always send the maximum number of competitors
Look for mistakes, Help with “administrative” tasks and cleanup, Develop competition experience for the future.
Event supervisors can make mistakes
Councel students on the appropriate way to point out errors, Document errors as possible
DON’T be afraid to use the appeals process!
Don’t forget logistics
Have backup supplies, safety apparatuses. Preplan communication, transportation, and food.

19. General Coaching Tips Know the UPDATED: Safety Goggle Rules
General Rules
Spirit of the Problem
Science Olympiad is as much about the preparation as it is about the competition.

20. General Coaching Tips Check the national website often.
Coaches should be familiar with the material, but the work should be done by the students
Practices are for covering material, sample tests, and practicing measurements—studying should be done as homework
Coaches and students should know the rules better than anyone
Start early and practice at least one a week
More practice will lead to better results

21. General Coaching Tips
Be ready for people to focus on different aspects on the written test.
Always look for good pairs of students who work well together and complement each other.
Students should:
Come prepared to practices with completed homework and all questions
Listen and participate.
Be willing to study on their own and do more work than assigned

22. Suggested Resources PhET Simulations - https://phet.colorado.edu
Physics Classroom -
Science Olympiad Site -
SciOly Discussion Forums -
Various State SO Sites -
Wikipedia -

23. Suggested Resources
rbine.pdf
online.blogspot.com/2013/09/generator-wind.html
wind-turbine.html
turbine-to-power-home.html

24. Closing Thoughts Moderation in all things!
Regularly check
Clarifications, FAQs, Policies (Lasers, Safety, Building, etc)
Use free tools if running event / tournament
Checklists / scoresheets for select events: soinc.org event pages, Complete tournament scoring system: sourceforge.net/projects/soscoring/
Event sign up system: sciolyeventsignup.com

25. Closing Thoughts Invitational tournament at Wright State Univ.
Opportunity to have ‘National experience’
invitational
We are always in need of volunteers

26. Closing Thoughts Please publicize SO and recruit new participants
Keep SO mission in mind
Create an interest and passion for science
Improve STEM education and workforce skills
Recognize and celebrate achievements of students and teachers