LERO101-2

MOVE GLOBAL - DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION

LERO101-2: Lego, and not-so-Lego, Robots

Course Syllabus

Instructor Information

About me: Alex Milewski

I am a Movement Artist, Engineer and Educator based in Boulder. I started my obsession with Engineering at age 8 when I got my first Lego mindstorms set for Christmas. I never looked back, and ended up graduating CU Boulder with a degree in Mechanical Engineering 15 years later (2013). I founded a tech startup in Australia in 2012, and ran that for 5 years out of school. I am also a professional dancer (primarily Breakdancing) and have taught and performed around the world. In 2009, I discovered that my passion for Engineering and Legos was eclipsed by my Love for sharing wonder and excitement with kids through teaching. My Robotics classes are a direct manifestation of my Love for Engineering and teaching, and i'm so grateful for the opportunity to share my passions with students!

Contact info^[1]

Class location: 3371 Hickok Pl. Boulder, 80301. **Please either park in the spot #8 (second from the end on the left) or in a "Visitor" spot: we cannot park in any other spot numbers without sad neighors.

Child safety and rules for everyone to be aware of

House Safety^[2]

No secrets^[3]

Body autonomy^[4]

Safe touch^[5]

Course Information

Course Description

This class is designed to serve as a continuation into the magical world of LEGO (and not so LEGO) Robotics. We will be using LEGO Mindstorms & Technic robotic parts. We will use Lego EV3 microcontrollers to control our creations!

Prerequisites:

Ages 7+
Express interest in STEM

Course Materials

All class materials will be supplied, students are always welcome to bring a creation from home to show and tell!

Project Challenge

The last 4 weeks of this session are dedicated to a “search and rescue” robotics project. There has been a radioactive waste leak at a trash incinerator, and the surrounding area has been contaminated. Your mission is to build a robot to seek out the survivors who are holed up in rescue pods and bring those pods outside of the contaminated zone. Students will need to follow the Project Specifications ^[6]to resuce as many pods as possible within the time limit.

Student Learning Outcomes & Objectives

Student Learning Objectives^[7]

Course Objectives^[8]

Class expectations^[9]

Engineering Design Process

Course Outline/Schedule

**Note: schedule is subject to change based on group interests/speed. The flow is vital.

Week 1: Structures and statics (building a bridge and calculating strength ratio)

Day 1^[10] (parents encouraged to join for the beginning of class)

Day 2^[11] (Finish bridges)

Week 2: Circular motion and gears (building a "fast" Lego car)

Day 1 ^[12](gear trains)

Day 2^[13] (finish cars)

Week 3: It’s electric… (introducing microcontrollers and motor control)

Day 1^[14] motor control

Day 2^[15] EV3 and coding

Week 4: Senses (introduction to basic sensors and coding)

Day 1 ^[16]touch sensors

Day 2^[17] IR (& Ultrasonic)

Week 5: Search and rescue project (starting larger group project)

Day 1^[18] the challenge intro

Day 2 ^[19]build day

Week 6: Retrieval project (finish hardware build)

Day 1^[20] build day

Day 2^[21] build day

Week 007: Retrieval project

Day 1^[22] build day

Day 2^[23] test day

Week 8: Finish retrieval project

Day 1^[24] final test day

Day 2^[25] last class of session

- May the Force be with you! -

[1]:

Office Hours: Whenever

Telephone: 7205158455

E-mail: alex@mechies.com

[2]:

Open Door Policy:

All inside doors will always be open during classes. My front door is always "open" as well, and all parents are encouraged to stop by (or stay) for class whenever possible!

Substances & guns:

There are no illegal substances of any sort in my home. Any legal & prescription substances are kept out of sight and not in "public" spaces. This is a gun-free home: there are no firearms or other dangerous weapons (beyond kitchen knives) here.

[3]:

I will never ask students to keep secrets from eachother or parents.

[4]:

All children have a right to physical autonomy and to feel comfortable. If they feel uncomfortable in their body, they are encouraged to honor that and I will always support them in that autnomy.

[5]:

I will only initiate consensual, safe touch like high fives. If a student initiates a casual hug, I will reciprocate that...

I also ask students to limit rough-housing and maintain their body autonomy with eachother in class, and will support students if they seem uncomfortable with physical play from peers (and communicate with parents if this happens).

[6]:

Contaminated zone will be elevated (top of a table)
Buffer zone is 3' radius around the table (no human can enter the buffer zone)
There will be 10 rescue pods, starting on the table
Rescue pods must be completely outside of buffer zone to be considered "saved"
TIme limit for rescue mission is 10 minutes

[7]:

Knowledge and implementation of the Engineering Design Process
Basic understanding of how motors and gears work, including worm & rack gears
Understanding gear ratios: speed and torque tradeoffs
Basic understanding of and practical experience with:
Touch, Light, Ultrasonic & IR Sensors
Introductory programming concepts (if statements, loops, etc)
Using Technic parts to build a simple “powered” car using rubber bands, weights, etc.
Understanding how an electrical motor works
Basic understanding of structural integrity and building sturdy machines
Using sensors, motors, coding and a microcontroller, to allow a machine to respond to stimuli in its environment
Working in a group to solve a specific problem