Robotics

Robots are used for all sorts of things. They can be built and programmed different ways to accomplish different tasks. Not all robots are built out of metal and gears. Legos can be used to create robots too.

 There are two main components to a robot. The first is the actual structure. The structure of a robot has to be built specific to the task of the robot. If you want a robot to walk upright, then the balance must be equal so it doesn’t fall over.

 The second component is the program. A robot needs to be told what to do. A program can be made specific to the structure and task. For example, you could write a program that tells the robot to wait until it sees a certain color to move a certain way. There are many possibilities for a program.

Programming

The programming software that Lego has offers hundreds of options for programming. There are lots of different command blocks to tell the robot what to do. 

For example, movement, wait, touch sensor, color sensor, and motion sensor commands. 

Depending on what is being built, a program must be set up that allows the robot to function correctly. This means putting the built-in commands in the correct order for it to work.

Here is part of the program for a color sorter:

Color Sorting Robot

Color Sorting Robot

            Our group did the color-sorting robot. 

The total completion time was approximately 3 hours. The structure consisted of a conveyor belt that allowed the sorter to move, the main terminal that had the program, and many different motors and sensors. The program was fairly long, and it worked like this:

   1)   The program starts. The user can scan different color bricks through a color sensor and load them into the sorter.

   2)   After all bricks have been loaded, the sorter moves to a designated area and drop a certain colored brick in.

   3)   The sorter moves back to the starting position, where it bumps against a touch sensor.

   4)   When it bumps against this sensor, the program tells the sorter to move to the next color. This cycle repeats until all bricks have been sorted.

     **NOTE that we are holding down the wire in the back so that is doesn't get caught in any of the gears-we are NOT controlling it that way**

Mousetrap Catapult

There are many components to making a successful catapult. This is how I made mine: 

First I started with the simple mousetrap. I took off all the parts except for the spring. The first thing that must be built is the head, which the ball will sit in and be launched from.

 As you can see above, I made the head out of an egg carton so it would fit well.

 Next, I placed a block of wood on the mousetrap to stop the arm from swinging all the way. This will help later when the catapult is assembled.

  I built a base about ½ a foot tall out of legos. The reason for this is because the higher off the ground, the more time it will stay in the air, the more distance it will cover.

 Then I mounted the mousetrap on a 45^o angle to the base. 45^o will maximize the distance: it has just the perfect balance of horizontal and vertical distance. The arm hits the wood at 45^o a foot above the ground, maximizing the distance covered.