Ideas for Robotics Missions

FLL 2010 Body Forward Missions Idea
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qbhZZxRU2X4

Lateral Arm Idea
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=de4xdOVVROQ&NR=1

Planet Green Videos on Nanobots and Bionic Arms

http://planetgreen.discovery.com/videos/dean-of-invention-how-nanobots-could-fight-cancer.html

http://planetgreen.discovery.com/videos/dean-of-invention-building-the-bionic-body.html

http://planetgreen.discovery.com/videos/dean-of-invention-how-microbots-can-eliminate-tumors.html

Practice Opportunity

If you can come, please do! This opportunity will prepare us for our presentations in front of the judges.

Miller Elementary Robotics Club will share robots with the residents at Waldenwoods Retirement Community on Saturday, November 6th at 3:00 p.m.   The presentation will take approximately 90 minutes and will consist of the following:

·         Students will show the robots they made,

·         Sing a song for residents,

·         Answer questions residents may have about the robots.

Students will enter the building from the Lilley road entrance.  The address is: 42600 Cherry Hill, Canton, MI 48187. 

Parents, we need some parents to chaperone. Our presentation will be from 60-90 minutes. We will leave immediately after our presentation. In other words, any student's driver must stay at the facility.  :)

Hope you can make it!

Research

Make sure you check out the posts from September 27th and 30th. They include research that will be included on the test Thursday. You DO NOT have to know every detail from these articles. You should pay attention to relevant vocabulary and main ideas.

DJ Bones -- Final Version

DJ Bones

Bone Song 1 -- Final Version

Bones Song

Millerbots Mission Possible Video

Students have been making great progress.  In the videos below, we can see students' work individually, as well as what it would be like if we integrate them together.

I am looking forward to students fulfilling the vision of Integrated Mission 0 through 4 this weekend so we will have an exciting scrimmage on upcoming Sat. 10:00-1:00.

Go Millerbots!
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bC6x8KY0p7U
-  Integrated Mission 0 through 4 with one arm. (This is now Public Video on Millerbots Youtube Channel!  Millerbots shows Gracious Professionalism through mission solution demonstration)


(Individual mission can be seen below.)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=teRGngJ1vXs
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=V5pVq9yF6oM

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=H9_DktZTWso

Updates

Shirts were ordered and will be passed out next Saturday.
Your Miller Robotics Checks should be cashed this week. Apologies for the delay.

We are still in need of two more pair of scrubs. Can you help?

The two finalized songs will be posted shortly. Students should practice these songs. Use expression! Get into it! Dance!

There will be a test after theThursday meeting. We will start the test at 7:15 p.m. you may leave when you finish. Remember, any research links found on this blog are fair game. Also, knowledge of programming and FLL core values will be assessed.

Tournament Information

Downriver Robot Rescue Tournament
Nov 13
Allen Park Middle School, 8401 Vine, Allen Park, 48101
9:00 - 4:00
Doors open 8:00 am
Concessions available

Map

Update on Robot Game Rulings

For the latest FLL robot game rulings, please check out the link directly below periodically. The rulings are constantly updated and do apply to the competition.  I highlight the minimum set that we should be aware of.

http://www.firstlegoleague.org/media/twocol.aspx?id=268

FLL Robot Game Ruling 13, 12, and 10).

13 - CARDIAC PATCH + PACE MAKER
Yes, you can deliver the cardiac patch and the pace maker to the heart at the same time. Nothing says you can't, and the 2nd bullet of Rule 8 says you can. Just don't "stick" or otherwise connect them in a way that would violate the 3rd bullet of Rule 13.

(Rule 13 can be found in the link directly below and I highlight them here.
http://www.firstlegoleague.org/uploadedFiles/Challenge_Specific/Body_Forward/Body%20Forward%20-%20Rules.pdf
Rule 13 - MISSION MODELS - Mission models are the objects that are already on the field when you walk up to it.
• You may not bring duplicate mission models to the table if they could confuse scoring.
• You may not take mission models apart, even temporarily.
• You are limited as to how you may connect anything to a mission model. Gently flipping and/or shaking
one (the heavier if the two are different) must allow gravity to completely separate them. The ref does not
allow a start with an illegal connection. See Rule 20.
• Don’t walk away with mission models from the competition area. Bring them back if you do. Thanks.

 )

12 - LIGHT/COLOR SENSOR QUANTITIES
Many teams misinterpreted the previous version of Ruling 12, and many teams have asked and argued hard for the 3rd allowable sensor to be a color sensor OR a light sensor, for a variety of good reasons. So starting now, the allowable total of three optic sensors can be any combination of color and light:

That's 3C+0L, 2C+1L, 1C+2L, or 0C+3L. Body Forward only. No HiTechnic.

10 – COLOR SENSOR ---IS--- ALLOWED (as of 9-29-10)
The LEGO manufactured "color" sensor, which is the only light-activated sensor in the retail Mindstorms NXT robot set, is now given the green light as an allowable sensor in the FLL robot game. Consider it added to the list in Rule 6. Testing has shown that this sensor is about equal in capability to the standard "light" sensor for robot game purposes, so you are allowed to use it as a color sensor or as a light sensor – it doesn’t matter. Only the LEGO manufactured sensors are allowed. Other brands such as HiTechnic brand are still not allowed.

Bone Song 1 Karaoke

DJ Bones (Karaoke style)

Please notice that some of the lyrics have changed. The actual, new lyrics are printed below.  Also, the end is not recorded. We ran out of time at the meeting on Saturday. Look for a new recording Monday night.

Bone Cancer in Kids/ Nanotechnology Links (Millerbots 2)

http://kidshealth.org/kid/htbw/SSmovie.html
http://kidshealth.org/kid/cancer_center/HTBW/bones.html
http://kidshealth.org/parent/medical/cancer/cancer_osteosarcoma.html
http://kidshealth.org/parent/medical/cancer/cancer_leukemia.html
http://kidshealth.org/parent/_cancer_center/treatment/cancer_nutrition.html

http://pbskids.org/dragonflytv/games/game_nano.html
http://www.explainthatstuff.com/nanotechnologyforkids.html
http://academickids.com/encyclopedia/index.php/Biomedical_engineering
http://kids.britannica.com/comptons/article-197470/bioengineering
http://nanogloss.com/nanobots/how-nanobots-can-repair-damaged-tissue/

DJ Bones (updated)

(to the tune of DJ Got Us Falling In Love Again)

So we back in the school
Got our bones rockin' from side to side

Thank God there’s broccoli
Or I’d be a jellyfish from the sea, from, from the sea!

Hands up, and suddenly we are usin’ our bones,
No control of my nerves
Ain't I seen these before

I think I remember they’re good for me, dark, dark, dark, green!

Cause people tonight, I’ll be eating all my vegetables!
Yeah, people tonight, I’ll be sipping up some calcium!

So move, move, and use your bones, bones, and have a long long long long long life

Cause people tonight, I’ll be eating all of my vegetables

Keep downing milk like this
So tomorrow I’ll be having strong, strong, bones, strong, strong, strong bones

Don’t want weak bones to break
Or else I wouldn’t be here right now, here, here right now.

Trauma, healed by nanobots
Put bones back together
Rebuild bones piece by piece
If it's leukemia
Bots can rebuild mar-ar-row-o, o, o, o, o, o, o, o

So people tonight, I’ll be eating all of my vegetables
Yeah, people tonight, I’ll be sipping up some calcium
 
So move, move and use your bones, bones and have a long long long long long life


MILLERBOTS!

Mission Possible 0 through 6

Our new grouping of missions and their corresponding programs are listed below.  The M0, M1, ... M6 are the mission programs for our robot to execute, starting from the base each time.  This is also the list of tasks that the students can work on at home, so that they can present their progress to the team during our weekly meetings, either "in robot" (as opposed to "in person") or through recorded videos (see previous post, for example).  I would also challenge the team to use one arm to accomplish both M2 and M3, and another arm for both M5 and M6.

• M0 Prosthetic Arm (Grab Patent), interrupt, +25 -5, 15 sec

• M1 Drop Bone Bridge, reverse back to base, +15, 30 sec (3 trials)

• M2 Grab Syringe and Nurse, reverse back to base +25, 10 sec.
• M3 Deliver patch, pace maker, and bionic eyes and back to base, +20+25+20, 15 sec.
• M4 Code Name “Around the world”: - Soccer Goal, Pressure test, Dispense med., Nerve I/O mapping, Deliver white cells, and Prof. team work), interrupt, +25 +25 +15 +15 +25 -5, 30 sec.
• M5 Short Bone Repair, reverse back to base +25, 20sec.
• M6 Cell Identification, Brain & Door, +20+20, 30 sec.

•

Millerbots Video

You can now see some of our actions on Youtube.

0. Three seconds race experiment to compare wheels
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pba9UiHTCX0
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2hLfjZ7NhYw


1. Mechanical Arm Patent
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tIoY-wfizU4
2. Syringe and Nurse
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=V5pVq9yF6oM
3. Special Bone Repair
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=teRGngJ1vXs
4. Patch and Pace Maker
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=H9_DktZTWso

Go Millerbots!

Bone Song 1 Karaoke

Bone Song 1 Karaoke

Cool Links and This Week's Team Goals

Below please find a list of six tasks that the kids can work on at home.  This is also the list that the team will focus on this week (coming Thursday and Saturday).

1. Design a strategy and mechanism to drop the Bone Bridge, AKA Mission Special Bone Repair,
(No programming, Be a high level strategist, Use lego pieces and Emulate the robot motion with your hand to test your ideas.)
Challenge: How to drop the bone bridge at the exact location and angle needed
2. Design a strategy and mechanism to do Mission Bone Repair
(No programming, Be a high level strategist, Use lego pieces and Emulate the robot motion with your hand to test your ideas.)
Challenge: How to drop the cast at the exact location and angle needed.   How to release the cast gently
3. Programming a dead-reckoning robot to support "Program 1" missions
4. Programming a line following robot to support "Program 1" missions
5. Programming a dead-reckoning robot to support "Program 3" missions
6. Programming a line following robot to support "Program 3" missions


Interesting FLL 2009 (Mission Smart Move) videos on Youtube:

400 Pts in 1:39 !!!
https://webmail.pccsmail.net/owa/redir.aspx?C=f5984882eaf1436faf2d646db5789a0a&URL=http%3a%2f%2fwww.youtube.com%2fwatch%3fv%3dqfZYDcRdkHE

Creative ideas of a Neitherland team, note the guide wheel against the south wall/border and the bridge across chassis roller
https://webmail.pccsmail.net/owa/redir.aspx?C=f5984882eaf1436faf2d646db5789a0a&URL=http%3a%2f%2fwww.youtube.com%2fwatch%3fv%3d76YQan9fTDA

400 Pts in 67 seconds, note the arm (posted by fastcats)
https://webmail.pccsmail.net/owa/redir.aspx?C=f5984882eaf1436faf2d646db5789a0a&URL=http%3a%2f%2fwww.youtube.com%2fwatch%3fv%3dh3PS7nIihOw

Fastcats' robotics arm recreated and explained
https://webmail.pccsmail.net/owa/redir.aspx?C=f5984882eaf1436faf2d646db5789a0a&URL=http%3a%2f%2fwww.youtube.com%2fwatch%3fv%3dhF4VJbz8HtY

Arguably the most creative way to complete missions in 2009 Smart Move
https://webmail.pccsmail.net/owa/redir.aspx?C=f5984882eaf1436faf2d646db5789a0a&URL=http%3a%2f%2fwww.youtube.com%2fwatch%3fv%3dM34vc7qjV68

A state championship game in IL
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=usw0uSBKQyc

Millerbots Channel
https://webmail.pccsmail.net/owa/redir.aspx?C=f5984882eaf1436faf2d646db5789a0a&URL=http%3a%2f%2fwww.youtube.com%2fuser%2fMillerbotsRules%3ffeature%3dmhum

Robotics Line Following Tips

How do you follow a line with a single light sensor?
Follow the edge of the line.

How do you tell the robot to turn?
Feed a steering command to the "Move" block.
An input plug for the steering value is available at the data hub of a "Move" block.  Feed your steering command to the input plug.

How do you know which direction should the robot turn, to follow the edge of the line?
Pick a target intensity value between Black and White, for the light sensor reading.  Then steer to the black if the light sensor see too much white, and steer to the white if the light sensor see too much black.

How do you know which side is black and which side is white?
Depending on where the robot or the light sensor is located on the line.  On the left side of a black line, left side is white and right side is white.  On the right side of a black line, right side is white and left side is black.

If your program assume the light sensor is located on the right side of a black line, but it is actually on the left side, what happen?
The robot would steer away from the line because your program assumption becomes wrong if this happen.  Try to control the robot so it will start from the "right" side of the line and never leaves that side.  Note that the "right" side can be either left or right depending on your assumption.)

Is the line following program complicated?
It does not have to be.  Shown below is an example that has only three blocks. 

The robot keeps doing this to adjusting itself left and right.  Note that (Light_Sensor_Reading -50) is the steering command feeding into the "Move" block. 

Bone Song 1

by the Millerbots
(to the tune of Dynamite)

I eat good food because I want strong bones

Yummy broccoli

Organic Milky

Food digests and travels through the blood

I want strong bones

I eat my Flintstones

I drink my milk milk milk milk

Esophagus Intestines strum strum strum strum (act like you're strumming a guitar)

The villi absorb all the um um um um (point to head like you're thinking)

Oh yeah, it’s calcium um um um um (act like you remembered)

It makes bones strong and strong and strong (make muscles)

And they grow long and long and long 

I eat good food because I want strong bones

Yummy broccoli

Organic Milky

Food digests and travels through the blood

I want strong bones

I eat my Flintstones

Osteoporosis

What you eat for lunch

Without calcium

Then your back will hunch (hunch back)

Your bones could break (break)

With a lack of milk

So we gon’ drink our milk

For bone density

If your bones should break

The docs can fix them up with bone foam

It’s titanium

It’s flexible and strong like real bone

And I I I I don’t want that

Cuz I I I

I don’t want to break, I don’t to break

I’m gonna drink my milk and eat well

Milk and eat well

Drink your milk and eat well el el el el….

I eat good food because I want strong bones

Yummy broccoli

Organic Milky

Food digests and travels through the blood

I want strong bones

I eat my Flintstones