Rube Goldberg conventions already exist lots of them. Existing conventions involve having participants bring their respective contraptions to operate individually.
The key to this idea is a set of predefined input/output parameters allowing the participants to show up and link their creative Rube Goldberg contraptions together. The goal is to build the World's Largest Rube Goldberg Machine.
The great event is widely publicized, inviting all tinkerers and inventors to bring their Rube Goldberg contraptions. The participating tinkerers have all pre-registered, each signing up to have their machine conform to a set of predefined input/output parameters which will link their weird machine with the contraption ahead and behind it in the formation. Example input/output parameters include: an input of a ball bearing rolling down a small trough at a certain height/speed, resulting in an output of a fan blowing a specific amount of air in a certain direction.
Early morning on the big day, the tinkerers and inventors show up and begin to assemble their respective Rube Goldberg machines. Inspectors test and retest each inventor's section of the giant Rube Goldberg machine, verifying the reliability and compatibility with the next section. Hasty repairs and last minute adjustments are made.
The sun, reaching a particular position at noon, shines through a magnifying glass, lighting a candle, which burns a string, dropping a billiard ball onto a hinged spoon, which flips a ball bearing into the air, landing in a tin funnel, ...
three hours later the last section of the giant Rube Goldberg machine comes to life
...rolling a marble down a winding trough, dropping on to a thin rubber membrane stretched over a coffee can, bouncing into a domino, knocking down a row of succeedingly larger wooden blocks, nudging a roller skate carrying a plate down a ramp, the roller skate hits a block of aluminum connected to a switch, stopping it abruptly and tossing a glob of twisted dough off the plate into a toaster oven.
Four minutes later, a steaming hot croissant pops out! Viola!-- booleanfool, May 05 2004 The Amazing Rube Goldberg http://www.geocitie...nue/Newsstand/7000/ [booleanfool, Oct 04 2004, last modified Oct 05 2004] Pioneer Farming -- Invention Convention http://www.campsilo...nts/invention.shtml [booleanfool, Oct 04 2004, last modified Oct 05 2004] Calling All Inventors; Rube Goldberg Contest http://www.bownet.o...ifted/Inventors.htm [booleanfool, Oct 04 2004, last modified Oct 05 2004] The Official Rube Goldberg Website http://www.rubegoldberg.com/ [booleanfool, Oct 04 2004, last modified Oct 05 2004] Cog http://www.ebaumsworld.com/honda-ad.htmlRube Goldbergesque Honda commercial (Flash, about 2 min. long) [waugsqueke, Oct 04 2004, last modified Oct 05 2004] Example of golberg machine http://www.wired.co...k-go-rube-goldberg/Set to music [popbottle, Feb 05 2014] It'd definetly be cool to watch +-- swimr, May 05 2004 Violas in the park.-- FarmerJohn, May 06 2004 Marble madness....
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. 'Pop' [+]-- skinflaps, May 06 2004 Love any Rube invention and I admire anyone who can create such things. + How about an illus. (don't look at me!)-- dentworth, May 06 2004 How would you handle the animals? Rube always had some object "falling on sleeping cat's tail, causing cat to wake up and jump into the air, ..." It's hard to get animals to act with set parameters.-- phundug, May 06 2004 Put them on rollerskates on a track.-- yabba do yabba dabba, May 06 2004 Good point [phundug]. The contraptions with animals would have to be staged close to the beginning of the overall machine, so as to minimize their wait.
[Waugsqueke], Great site you posted! (A flash video of a Rube Goldberg machine sponsored by Honda Accord; lasts a couple of minutes). I have watched it about ten times. Coolest commercial I have ever seen.-- booleanfool, May 06 2004 I think it should make a cheeseburger.-- Voice, Feb 05 2014 random, halfbakery