Dec 13, 2010: Monday

Today, we still kept on working on the Prezi and programming for the robot.  No good results yet for the programing. Our group will keep on trying.

Dec 9, 2010: Thursday

The whole day today was wasted on trying to do the programming for the robot. We tried to change the programming for the robot so many times, and it didn't even change anything. We made the robot download at least 5 different programs. Well, we'll try next time.

"I haven't failed. I've just found 1000 ways that won't work." - Thomas Edison

Dec. 7, 2010: Tuesday

Today, we finished making the course! We tried testing the robot on the path to see the bad parts. Turns out, it passes the first color in the path but then just starts doing circles when it hits the next color. One of my group members tried fixing the programming but it didn't do anything. I guess we'll have to keep on trying.

Dec 3, 2010: Friday

Today, one of my group members and I had to change the course a little while we were making it. We noticed there was going to be a big open space in one part of the map so we decided to make the track longer. We also had to change the track at the end of the track a little. My other group members worked on the Prezi presentation and it came out rather nice.

Dec 1, 2010: Wednesday

Today, our group kept on working on what we started on Monday. Except now, my group member and I switched spots. Since he was sick the time we were assigned our spots, we had to re-adjust so I'm now working on the mat and he's working on the Prezi presentation. He has more experience with it. Unfortunately, I was only able to do the edges of the mat, 182 cm by 228 cm... Pretty big.

Nov 30, 2010: Monday

Today, the whole class finally got down to work. I finished doing the bibliography and started on the groups Prezi presentation which I'm supposed to put everything that the group worked on. The other people in my group started on the programming. Unfortunately, One of our teammates was absent today so we did a little less than everybody else.

Nov 22, 2010: Monday

Today, our group worked on setting up a design brief together. I think it turned out pretty well, again, due to the fact that we were on a very short and limited time. We included safety features, colors of lines, and what objects the track might have. After we finished making one up, we sent it to our teacher. I hope we get a good grade!

Nov 18, 2010: Wednesday

 Today, the class saw a video on batteries. I didn't know why we watched it considering our project is getting closer to the deadline. I thought it spent a big part of our class time for no reason. The video was fun to watch, nonetheless. After that, our group started to share the bibliographies we had. We haven't printed it though. Everyone in the class is leaving and it's pretty rowdy, so until next time.

Nov 16, 2010: Tuesday

Today, our group got a lot of work done.  We did part of the programming and started figuring out the dimensions for our project since we're going to have to change it a little. We didn't have a choice on how large our mat (where we would conduct our experiment)so we had to start adjusting the dimensions of our plan, so it would fit in the mat. We're currently working on that now. As for the programming, our group hasn't gotten the chance to test it.

Design Specification

Design Specification

The obstacle course that our rover/robot will use to simulate exploring the surface of Mars has the following specifications.

Our lines will include the color blue, yellow, orange, green, red, and black. Objects that might be in Mars are going to try to be reflected onto our project. Such objects include a crashed rover, a rock, a volcano, a deceased bot, defective rover, and a rover pod. All of these robots will be stationary. There will also be two Hexbugs moving around the course for the robot to maneuver around them. These will be non-stationary objects. The course will be 182.88cm by 228.6cm. There won’t be any special tasks the robot must do to complete the course except to move around such objects listed above and to avoid the non-stationary objects swiftly.

Design Brief: Nov. 12, 2010- Friday

Today, we began our design brief for the project we are currently working on. I think I did a pretty good job at it considering we only had about 30 minutes on it. So, as our teacher suggested, I will post my design brief from our project. I will post my design Specification in the next blog post.

Design Brief

While investigating human ingenuity and mechanical versus human environments, we use an NXT Lego Mindstorms robot. This robot needs to explore the surface of Mars. We will program it to complete an obstacle course which the robot will complete in less that __10__ minutes. 

We will program/teach the robot to complete the course using the following program blocks: We will use the light sensor block, the move block, and the stop block.

The course is more realistic and interesting by focusing certain design elements. We chose to include moving elements that you might find in Mars like a rover that cant communicate with Earth anymore so its moving around with the same system. That will be represented by Hexbugs moving around the course.

In order to make sure that all safety issues are addressed we include the following safety notices:We will stay outside the course while the robot is moving around it and stop it when it seems to have gotten out of the track. And we will also not move around while the robot is moving so we wont trip on it

Nov. 10, 2010: Wednesday

Today, we kept on working on what we started on Monday. Our teacher made us do a research paper on Issac Asimovs three laws of robotics, and we have been working on that since Monday. I think it's a good way to learn more about the laws but in depth. Today though, our group also went and asked the teacher how we could improve our grade for the project we had been assigned to a while ago. She said we need to have non-stationary objects. I still don't know how we're going to make the robot avoid them...

Oct. 29, 2010: Friday

     Its been a long time since I've posted on this blog. Last friday, I couldn't post a blog because the class went too fast. Before that, I missed two classes. The teacher said we could post our blog today for last class, which was on Wednesday. So last two classes, the new group and I ( our teacher had been assigned our class new groups for the next project we are now doing) finished a paper on how mars rovers could scour the the planet using a light sensor. Now in class, we are making a project on how our Mindstorm robot could move around four objects using different colors as a guide for the robot. Our group hasn't thought of what to do, but the idea of the project  is to get a feel to how people program robots over at NASA.

Oct. 15, 2010: friday

     Today, the group and I worked on the experiment we were doing two class periods ago. This time, we actually got to program the robot and test it. We got the firmware right on the first try. We tried it a second and third time to see if any variables would be affecting the robot. Nothing happened. All tests were perfect until the last one where we tried adding a sound file to the end of the loop. It ended up messing our experiment. Now, we are working on the conclusion questions on the sheet of paper our teacher gave us at the beginning of the project. We didn't have time to finish.

Oct. 13, 2010: Wednesday

Right when I entered the classroom, the teacher made us go into library resources and click on Noodletools, a site to make bibliographies. I learned how to make an account and make a citation. Someone can use this site for by citing where he got his information from when he/she wants to start the job fast.

Oct. 8, 2010: Friday

Today, my team had to build our robot all over again, because it had been disassembled. My partner and I, though, were doing something else. We were watching tutorials on how to make our Mindstorm robot do cool stuff, like record the temperature or draw a perfect square. The other two people on our team were (as I stated in the beginning of my post) building the robot rather motivated.

Wed. Oct 6, 2010

Today, my group and I worked on trying to figure out the readings of our light sensor on the robot in different places. We had to reconstruct the light sensor so it wouldn't be dangling off the robot before that, though. We recorded the different readings from our robot on a piece of paper our teacher gave us ( more like a packet, but it doesn't matter). We started writing them down toward the end of class.

Oct. 4, 2010: Monday

When I first got to the class, we had a lecture from our teacher about how to come into class right and get right to work. She made us practice how we should get our computers, robot, and bin and get right to our seat. She told us we would have to repeat it until we got it right, but luckily we only had to do it once. After that, we finished practicing how to use the sensors on the robot from yesterday. Today, we practiced using the sound and ultrasonic sensors on the robot. We had to correct the firmware for the sound sensor over 3 times, but we got the ultrasonic sensor to work on the first round.

Sept. 30, 2010: Thursday

I think that, today, our group was very productive. We learned about sensors like touch sensors, light sensors, and sonar sensors. We tried using the touch sensors by going into the Lego Mindstorms Software and we made a firmware for the robot. It made the robot keep on running forward until the touch sensor bumped into something. Then, it made the robot stop.

Sept. 24, 2010: Friday

Our teacher announced that we will have a quiz next class. We spent our time studying for the quiz, watching videos that we have already watched before. Like how to program the NXT, or how to download the firmware to the robot. Besides that, we learned one new thing about how the robot analyzes how much rotations the wheel has done. It was called, "Smart Motors", and It was on a page that we had to read; not a video.

Sept. 22, 2010: Wednesday

    Today, we were barely productive. We received our robot and lego parts. Afterwards, we saw a video describing robot decision making. By we, It's going to always mean me and my team which is Me, AJ, Juan, and Ivan unless I say otherwise.

Sept 20, 2010: Monday

Today, the class and I saw a video discussing new robotic animals/critters that could revolutionize the Earth. We reflected on it afterward. After that, we finished up anything that we had not finished the class before.

Sept. 10,2010

Today, I learned how to program the Mindstorm robot to walk straight ahead and then move backward with Ivan, Juan, and AJ. I also learned how to look at the videos in the behavior section in the NXT video tutorial.