Proposal number TF11-054
Proposal Form for FY10 Student Tech Fee Competitive Process (Oxford)
Project Lead’s Name: Professors Yu Tong Morton and Donald Ucci Email:
[email protected] &
[email protected] Telephone: 513-‐529-‐0749 Affiliation: SEAS 1. Project Short Title (5 to 8 words): Introduction to Robotics 2. Brief Description of Project: This project focuses on the incorporation of robotics in the freshmen level Miami University course, EAS 102, offered each semester by the School of Engineering and Applied Sciences (SEAS). EAS 102 has only EAS 101 and MTH 151 as co-‐requisite. Students from various non-‐SEAS divisions enroll in EAS 101. Hence, EAS 102 is available to students from many departments across the university. During fall 2009, we introduced the LEGOS™ NXT kits to two sections of students in EAS 102 to build various autonomous robots controlled by a microprocessor programmed through a computer interface using the NoteXactly C (NXC) Language that is taught as part of the course. The students utilized different sensing devices, such as light sensors, touch sensors, ultrasonic sensors, and color sensors, to navigate through different physical pathways and mazes developed by the instructor. The data they generated are stored and downloaded into a computer. Statistical analysis of the sensor data was performed and conclusions made to improve the performance of the robot. Students created programs using a mathematical software tool to perform the analysis. Similar courses exist at leading technology universities. The course originated at MIT and has been adopted by various institutions nationwide. There is a dedicated text book written expressly for the purpose of teaching the course that provides information on the LEGO™ pieces and kits, the microprocessor, and the Interactive C programming language1. The integration of all these components of the course provides an interesting and exciting challenge that students around the world embraced and from which they learned useful engineering principles, scientific analysis, teamwork, and cooperation skills. 3. Impact on Students Served or Evidence of Student Need, starting with the number or percentage of students or courses served: Our initial offering of the course and project for EAS 102 in fall 2009 was a great success. We had a total of 31 students enrolled throughout the course. Ten weekly laboratory projects and a three-‐week final competition project were carried out in the course of the semester. In the weekly project, students learned the fundamentals of electrical, mechanical, and computing components of a robot. During these hand-‐on learning process, they also acquired skills for troubleshooting and problem solving. For the final project, we require the students to design a robot that can autonomously navigate through a color maze, following pre-‐scribed traffic rules, and make mandatory visits to locations. Students learned to carry out complicated engineering design and implementation of the design under limited time constraints. In addition to learning the elements and practice of basic design principles and 1
Robotic Explorations: A hands-‐On Introduction to Engineering, by Fred G. Martin, Prentice Hall, Upper Saddle River, NJ,2001.
mathematical and scientific analysis methods used in a typical engineering project, the robotics competition provides students with motivation and excitement enabling them to obtain a real-‐world feel for the engineering environment and problems they will face in advanced study or in their careers in industry, research, or government workplaces. Justification for Funding this Project: This semester (spring 2010), we have over 200 students registered in 11 sections in EAS 102. The robotics competition is incorporated by a total of 4 sections of the course due to limited funding to purchase additional robotics kit. At the writing of this proposal, our feedback is overwhelmingly positive. We anticipate an average of 240 and 35 students taking this course each spring and fall semester respectively. We currently have 20 kits which are sufficient for 4 sections (total of 80 students). We request an additional 40 kits to support the entire class of students enrolled. Additional funding support is requested to purchase rechargeable batteries and miscellaneous items. During the past and current semester, we used upper-‐class undergraduate student aides to assist in the laboratory sections. We would like to continue this practice as it has proven to be a learning experience for both the students taking the class and the student aides assisting the lab. Furthermore, it provides the instructor with additional means to obtain feedback and assessment of the students’ learning. A nominal stipend for student aides is also requested. REFERENCES Randell D. Beer, Hilel J Chiel, and Richard F. Drushel. Using autonomous robotics to teach science and engineering . Communications of the Association of Computing Machinery, 42(6):85–92, June 1999. Fred G. Martin. Circuits to Control: Learning Engineering by Designing LEGO robots. PhD thesis, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, MIT Media Laboratory, 20 Ames Street Room E15–315, Cambridge MA 02139, 1994.
Norbert Wiener. Cybernetics: Control and Communication in the Animal and the Machine. Technology Press, Cambridge, MA, 1948.
4. Detailed Budget – Include all items requested for this project and update the total cost field: Item Category
Item Requested
Number Requeste d
Unit Cost
Total Cost
Software
Freely available
0
0
0
Hardware
Lego NXT 2.0 kit (includes all sensors, servo 40 motors, gears, Lego parts, wires, etc.) Rechargeable lithium batteries 40 None 0
$280
$11,200
$50 0
$2,000 0
Student Assistant Salary
10 Student assistants, each at $7.50/hr, a total 10 of 30 hours per student requested
$225
$2,250
Graduate Assistant Salary &Tuition
None
0
0
0
Other (Explain)
Miscellaneous (tool, wire, etc.), shipping
VAR
VAR
$500
TOTAL
$16,950
Contractual Services/Installation Shipping / Maintenance
Add additional lines/pages as necessary.
5. Briefly describe any additional funds available for this project, if any: Currently, there are no existing funds available. 6. What happens to the project in year 2 and beyond? Describe any ongoing costs such as software or hardware maintenance, supplies, staffing, etc. and how these will be funded: Assuming the project is successful (after our assessment), means to maintain it in the future will be nominal consisting primarily of funds to repair and purchase new microcontrollers and LEGOS™ units from time to time as the initial units can be reused. 7. How will you assess the project? Post-‐Project Assessment Criteria: Identify one or more milestones and/or expected project outcomes that indicate project progress and completion. How will you assess the value to students? Measures of enhanced student learning or usage are highly desired. These items should be chosen to facilitate independent evaluation of project completion and value to students.
Student surveys will be administered to assess the success of the project. Retention data, especially in the various engineering departments, will be used to determine the impact of the newly re-‐designed course on students. 8. Attach any other supporting information regarding this request. Please supply a vendor’s URL rather than scanning printed material. This could be from the Department chair(s) if curriculum is being changed. This could be from Dick Pettitt for SUG, if you requesting that space be changed. Details about the Handyboard can be obtained from: http://www.robotstorehk.com/handyboard/handyboard.html
Details about the LEGO™ kits can be obtained from: http://www.robotstorehk.com/lego/lego.html
