Gwilym Jones
Rugby target practice board with electronic scoring system
St Patrick's College, Wellington
Year 11 Technology, full year project
Teacher: John Davidson
Gwilym was asked to design something suitable as a recreational activity for Year 11 boys. He decided to design and produce a rugby target practice board, with an electronic scoring system.
Gwilym began by researching similar solutions, and planning out his approach, including a timeline for the project. He sketched possible mechanical methods of scoring when the centre ring of a target is hit by a thrown ball but came across seven-segment LED displays and chose that as his best solution. He identified key factors, resources and potential sources of knowledge, including stakeholders who could help solve electronic issues.
Gwilym was introduced to the PICAXE microcontrollers the previous year, but this new project extended his electronics knowledge through requiring a larger microchip and a far more complicated circuit to control the seven-segment display. This required at least seven output pins and excluded the PICAXE-08 and 08M chips that were the limit of his and his teacher's experience. The next size up is the PICAXE -18X, which required Gwilym to research the PIXAXE-18X in depth, to discover how it needed to be wired, what its capabilities and limitations were and what specific commands it recognised.
Gwilym wrote a program to do everything required and used the simulation function of the Program Editor software to determine if it could work. He then drew a schematic circuit of the PICAXE-18X with its download circuit, outputs to drive the LED display, and inputs from microswitches that would be connected to the different sections of the target.
There were many problems encountered when building the circuit board. The first was incorrectly wired as the schematic had been drawn upside down. The second had minute short-circuits due to the design of the multipurpose board. A third, using a project breadboard that required no soldering, was successful for determining if the wiring was correct and testing the inputs and outputs of the microchip but proved unreliable when more than one microswitch was connected. Circuit number four was a direct copy of the breadboard design but hardwired onto a Kiwi Patch Prototyping board. This proved to be a successful circuit allowing multiple microswitch inputs without the unexplained random events of the breadboard circuit.
The problems encountered were tackled in various ways. If Gwilym could not solve it, he asked his teacher. If the teachers could not solve it, they asked their mentors. When this also proved unsuccessful it was back to the combined efforts of teachers and student.
With a robust and working circuit, Gwilym completed his plywood target board. For the target rings to trigger the microswitches, movement was required. This was provided by backing the boards with foam, taken from an old chair. He assembled the target board and circuit and thoroughly evaluated it with his class mates, 
breaking it in the process. He modified the battery pack to withstand the movement created by the thrown balls and now has a robust, working outcome.
Teacher comment
Gwilym displayed exceptional tenacity and perseverance in the face of difficult problems with no obvious solution.
