Programming Robot Art Show
We started off this section of physics by expanding our knowledge of circuits and electricity in general. We did quite a bit of work researching what a circuit was, how electricity was produced, etc... In the very beginning we familiarized ourselves with several vocabulary terms that we would need to know during this unit. Some of these terms were:
1. Current: The rate at which electric charges flow past a point in a circuit.
2. Voltage : The electrical force that would drive an electric current between two points.
3. Power: Brightness
4. Resistance: An obstacle to a current that weakens, reduces, and slows down the current.
After we familiarized ourselves with these terms we started part one of our project. We were put into pairs and instructed to follow the instructions in a hand book to start our coding adventure. Using the SparkFun kits, the STEM laptops, and a special coding program named Arduino. In the SparkFun kit we were given these supplies:
1. Several resistors
2. LED lights
3. Wires of assorted colors
4. Buzzers
5. A breadboard
6. And much more
Using the supplies listed above we went through all 16 exercises in the handbook and let me say this... It was really fun. Every experiment brought something new, whether it was making LED lights flash in a certain pattern or having the buzzers make a song. I never expected coding to be so fun.
The final part of our Coding/Programming unit was by far the hardest. Our task was to make "Robot Art". We had to code a song with a matching light show. So my group decided to go all out. My partner (Lauren Whyte) and I teamed up with Ethan Rapp and Kate Mayfield so we could make this project the absolute best it could be. Lauren and I were in charge of making the song, so we chose the Super Mario Bros Theme Song. Ethan and Kate programmed the light show. And just for effect we printed out little Mario characters and attached them to the LED lights so whenever the lights lit up, the characters did as well.
In the end our project was a great success. Nothing went wrong during the presentation and we ended up getting a full grade on it. However, there were many things I believe we could have done better. I think we could have tried to manage our time better. In the end we were rushing to complete the light show. Also, I think my group of 4 should have taken more time to make sure that everyone was fully involved and understood the protocol. Other than that, I was very pleased with this project and how it turned out. Besides the Rube Goldberg machine I'd have to say this was one of the most enjoyable projects this year!
1. Current: The rate at which electric charges flow past a point in a circuit.
2. Voltage : The electrical force that would drive an electric current between two points.
3. Power: Brightness
4. Resistance: An obstacle to a current that weakens, reduces, and slows down the current.
After we familiarized ourselves with these terms we started part one of our project. We were put into pairs and instructed to follow the instructions in a hand book to start our coding adventure. Using the SparkFun kits, the STEM laptops, and a special coding program named Arduino. In the SparkFun kit we were given these supplies:
1. Several resistors
2. LED lights
3. Wires of assorted colors
4. Buzzers
5. A breadboard
6. And much more
Using the supplies listed above we went through all 16 exercises in the handbook and let me say this... It was really fun. Every experiment brought something new, whether it was making LED lights flash in a certain pattern or having the buzzers make a song. I never expected coding to be so fun.
The final part of our Coding/Programming unit was by far the hardest. Our task was to make "Robot Art". We had to code a song with a matching light show. So my group decided to go all out. My partner (Lauren Whyte) and I teamed up with Ethan Rapp and Kate Mayfield so we could make this project the absolute best it could be. Lauren and I were in charge of making the song, so we chose the Super Mario Bros Theme Song. Ethan and Kate programmed the light show. And just for effect we printed out little Mario characters and attached them to the LED lights so whenever the lights lit up, the characters did as well.
In the end our project was a great success. Nothing went wrong during the presentation and we ended up getting a full grade on it. However, there were many things I believe we could have done better. I think we could have tried to manage our time better. In the end we were rushing to complete the light show. Also, I think my group of 4 should have taken more time to make sure that everyone was fully involved and understood the protocol. Other than that, I was very pleased with this project and how it turned out. Besides the Rube Goldberg machine I'd have to say this was one of the most enjoyable projects this year!