1. STEM Robotics Doug Porter Saint Ursula Academy Cincinnati ,Ohio 45206
20 Years as a teacher
6th Grade Life Science
7th Grade Earth and Space Science
8th Grade Physical Science
Tech Prep
General Biology
CP Biology
Honors Biology
AP Biology
Anatomy and Physiology
Forensics
Robotics: Coach, Competition director
Instructor, Writer

2. What is a robot?

3. Characteristics Robots are…
Tools (make work easier, safer in some way)
Mechanical (move, or manipulate objects)
Sensors (respond to, or detect changes)
Autonomous/Remote Control
Programmable ?
Yes
Yes/No No
Yes
Yes
Yes

4. What is the purpose of your robotics program?
Develop Science, Technology, Engineering, and Math skills (STEM).
Develop critical thinking, problem solving skills
Develop team work
Tie STEM activities to existing courses/programs

5. Getting Started Cheaply
Junkbots
Motors
Battery Holders
Switches
Electronics
The art of creative dumpster diving

6. Classroom Challenges Junkbots
Make an electric car that runs.
Make it stop before it hits the wall.
Think outside the box, what do the rules allow, limit?
Make a mechanical sensor that stops the car before it hits the wall. (Let the students modify the rules)
Repeat: Learn from others, modify, improve.
After the first few examples let the students choose the challenge and let them make the rules.
EX: Stop at the edge of a table, sumo bots

7. BEAM Robotics “Mark Tilden”
BEAM = Biology, Electronics, Aesthetics, Mechanics:
Biology -- It's tough to beat 4 billion years of evolution; the world around us is a wonderful source of inspiration and education. Bear in mind, of course, that unlike Mother Nature, you also have the advantage of gears, motors, bearings, and good glues! Bioengineering
Electronics -- It kind of goes without saying, but this is what we'll use to drive our creations. BEAM robotics, though, strives for rich behaviors from simple circuits. Here's the key: simple and understandable circuits, surprisingly complex in behavior. Physics
Aesthetics -- This just means your creations should look good. I'm an engineer, but even I appreciate a good-looking design. Besides, if a design looks "clean," it's more likely to work (and easier to test / debug) than a design that's tangled and unruly. Engineering, Art, Design
Mechanics -- This is the less-than-obvious secret of many successful BEAMbots -- with a clever mechanical design, you can reduce the complexity of the rest of your robot (reducing the number of motors and sensors, for example). Physics, Engineering
BEAM

8. Biology Sensing and Responding to the environment
Solarbotics parts and network
Make Magazine Project Ideas

9. Educational Robotics Lego Robotics: RCX: Programmable Autonomous
RCX: Programmable Autonomous
NXT: Programmable or Remote
Tetrix: Programmable or Remote
First Competitions

10. VEX Robotics: Programmable or Remote
VEX World Competition:

11. Programming Mindstorms Robolab RCX Robots Robot C NXT, Tetrix Robots
VEX

12. Other Competitions
BEST Robotics
BotBall
Botball Store

13. Links and Resources Parts/Kits Junkbots/BEAM Educational Kits
Educational Kits

14. Links and Resources cont.
Books/Magazines
Davids Cooks Robot Guides
Software
RobotC Tutorials, Teacher Materials, Workshops and Software
Training
Carnegie Mellon University
Robot C Virtual Worlds