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Pomp Balloon Mechanism

About the Project

For the Georgia Tech Delta Chi Fraternity’s "Wizard of Oz" themed Homecoming display, I engineered and built a dynamic mechanical system to animate a large-scale, 3D chicken-wire "pomp" hot air balloon. The objective was to create a system that moved the structure back and forth across the façade of the house autonomously. Due to strict constraints, the system required a custom, non-invasive support structure that could not alter or damage the fraternity house exterior.

Timeline: Designed, fabricated, and deployed in a 4-day sprint (approx. 40 hours).

Key Contributions & Engineering Challenges:

  • Mechanical Systems Design: Designed a gravity-fed carriage system where the balloon traveled down an inclined line via gravity and was retracted by a motor. I utilized Deformable Bodies and Machine Design principles to engineer a cantilevered wooden support structure. This frame provided the necessary elevation to create the incline while adhering to the constraint of zero structural modification to the building.

  • Rapid Prototyping & Additive Manufacturing: I utilized 3D printing to fabricate custom mounts for the motor and Arduino microcontroller. A significant engineering challenge arose when the initial 3D-printed spool deformed under the high torque required to retract the balloon. I analyzed the failure and iterated the design, implementing a thermal insert and set screw configuration to better distribute the torque load across the shaft, effectively solving the deformation issue.

  • Mechatronic Integration: Selected a high-torque DC motor with a gearbox based on hand calculations regarding the weight of the pomp structure and friction coefficients of the line. The system was controlled by an Arduino, for which we wrote custom C++ code to manage the timing loops, winding duration, and release cycles.

Result & Impact: The final system successfully automated the "Wizard of Oz" display, reliably cycling the balloon back and forth during the event, winning the fraternity the "Best Mechanical Pomp" Award. The project demonstrated the ability to apply theoretical mechanical engineering concepts (stress analysis, torque calculation) to a real-world application under an extremely tight deadline.