Pinball Puzzle

Hello, I am a grade 11 student attending Northern Secondary School. Want to play a fun physics game that will challenge your brain? Try Pinball Puzzle, a game where you will be tasked to expertly guide a marble into the correct pocket. 

This project was designed with the use of Fusion 360.

I started by creating a rectangular prism which would become the base for the marble run. Then, I sketched out a grid of holes which the obstacles would be inserted into. After that was finished, I moved on to creating two walls on either side of the prism which creates a space for the marble to fall through. Included on the inside of these walls is a joint to fit a transparent screen. Finally, I created pockets at the bottom of the marble run. Each pocket has a divider which is curved at the top to ensure that the marble will drop into one of the pockets. 

Various obstacles are used in the “Pinball Puzzle,” each with its own design specifications. However, they all branch off from the same base shape. To create the obstacles, I started by constructing a 90mm x 4.5mm diameter pin that fits in all the holes in the base. For the red ramp, I connected two pins with a tangent line to ensure smooth marble travel. The green vertical piece and the blue curved piece also use the same tangent properties. The most complicated part was the spinning grey piece, which was constructed by creating a wheel around the pin. Attached to that wheel are several rectangular prongs.

To create the dropper I first designed a slot system on the base (created in step one) that would allow the dropper to slide side to side. I then create a cup similar to the shape of a measuring cup with a hole at the bottom, allowing players to drop the marble through like a funnel. 

The card is an important piece of the game. It sets up the puzzle and outlines the player’s possible moves. Each card is designated a level and is organized into a system where the higher numbered levels are harder. There are three key pieces of information highlighted on each card. The first is the hole which the marble must be guided in, shown by the red circle at the top right of the card. Another piece of information is the image of dots, which uses a coordinate system to show the player where the obstacles will be placed. Finally, the card also shows the possible pieces that the player can use to guide the marble. 

The marble was created using the revolute tool, and painted black to contrast the wooden base.

The world's newest exciting game! Pinball Puzzle!