It has been a while since I wrote an article for my robotics portal, so I thought I would write about a topic I have been mentoring a student recently.
This concept for this article is how to create a line following robot that is self calibrating. When a robot is self calibrating, the requirement for taking light readings and updating the code when changing venues or light conditions change is avoided.
On the 15th March 2018, the Robocup Junior WA Committee ran a Rescue Line Workshop at All Saints’ College.
The workshop was a great success with a large turnout who enjoyed the session and learnt the basics of building a robot (both hardware and software) for the Robocup Junior Australia Rescue Line challenge.
Great news today, Reinhard Grafl has released EV3 Basic 1.2.
This update adds some new functionality and also fixes some known issues. It also brings the numbering in line with the Small Basic versions.
Continuing my series about robotics and using non Lego devices with EV3 Basic, here is an article which demonstrates how to use a camera and heat sensor.
The Robocup Junior Australia competition has introduced a new Rescue division this year (2017) for a Maze rescue. The Maze rescue challenge is much closer to a real life example of a how a rescue robot can save lives.
Maze rescue does not involve any line following, as real buildings don’t have lines on the ground marking paths to follow. The robot must navigate a building, represented by a maze, by identifying walls and working its way around the maze. It needs to explore every corridor and room to locate victims wearing Hi-Vis vests (represented by bright colours on the walls) and identify whether a victim is alive or dead (by looking for a heat source).
This seventh article covers using the Mindsensors IR Temperature Sensor for EV3 or NXT and Charmed Labs PixyCam (CMUcam5) for Lego with the EV3 Basic extensions for Microsoft Small Basic.
As discussed before, I am continuing to mentor for the All Saints’ College Robotics club, even though both my sons are now at university. I am also the Rescue Advisor on the Robocup Junior West Australian Committee for 2017.
Having a hobby that allows me to play with Lego and write software that actually does something physical in the real world is awesome. I would recommend purchasing a Lego Mindstorms EV3 set for any boy or girl that wants to learn to code while having lots of fun.
This sixth article covers using the Mindsensors Multiplexer for NXT/EV3 Motors with the EV3 Basic extensions for Microsoft Small Basic.
Previously on this blog, I have mentioned that I mentor for the All Saints’ College Robotics club and volunteer on the Robocup Junior West Australian Committee.
Combining my childhood love of Lego with my career as a software developer has provided me with an exciting, fun filled hobby. Using my knowledge to mentor primary and secondary school students and help them find a love of robotics and software development is extremely fulfilling and a driving force behind why I do what I do.
This fifth article covers using the Mindsensors EV3 Sensor Multiplexer with the EV3 Basic extensions for Microsoft Small Basic.
This fourth article covers a really cool trick for working with the EV3 colour sensor. It resolves a couple of issues that I discovered when I first started working with Lego Mindstorms EV3.
The Robocup Junior Australia Rescue competition uses tiles to create the line following course. The starting point for the tiles is the Robocup Junior Rescue Field mat from Modern Teaching Aids which can be used whole or cut into 15 tiles.
