Science Buddies: "Ask an Expert"

I am trying to construct a wood platform that rotates both clockwise and counter - clockwise. It needs to be able to hold an adult and be propelled by an electric motor that can be operated from a short distance from the platform. It doesn't need to be fancy, I just need it to rotate people at a decent speed. I have some basic ideas about the construction, but don't know what mechanical parts to use. Please help me figure this out.

Harry,

I have seen many examples of mechanically powered (pushed by hand) rotating platforms, but one powered by an electric motor certainly complicates things. You can easily find instructions on homepage simple electric motors (e.g. http://fly.hiwaay.net/~palmer/motor.html or http://electronics.howstuffworks.com/fr ... emotor.com), but you are looking for one that generates plenty of power. See if you could obtain one that's readily available or borrow one from somebody first. That may be the easiest thing, unless you are interested in motors themselves.

Shijun

Here is the alternative second link: http://www.simplemotor.com/

I noticed the previous one might fail to show up.

Shijun

Thank you so much for the links. I can get a motor from a friend of mine that should work, I just need to figure out exactly how to hook it up to the wooden platform.