We learnt how robots find their way around using coordinates, let’t check how we can actually get there! By the way, what do robots look like? If you just pictured something resembling a human with arms and a head… Sorry, but you are about to find out that conception of robots is not that accurate!
Join us on this adventure through the world of Robots and Drones! You will learn all about their basic building blocks and how they work.
When I get lost I ask for help from a friend who lives in outer space. They message back my starting position. What are we?
I am a Drone and my friend is a GPS Satellite.
Did not fully understand it?! Fear not! You will become a drone expert by the end of this activity.
hello smart parents
If you are not familiar with the activities, please take the time to review the instructions for an optimal learning experience:
hello smart cookies!
LET’S CONTINUE OUR ADVENTURE?!
In Activity #1 The Language of Computers Zac found an old computer in the attic of their house. His mom, Dottie helped him to communicate with the computer in Binary.
In Activity #2 Secret Messaged Disclosed they got some strange messages from the computer. They used a Caesar Cipher and Vigenére square to decode them.
In Activity #3 Navigating the World they realised that the message was geographic coordinates pointing to a pretty interesting location. Join us to discover more about it!
Your fourth mission is to learn how to fly – not literally!
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Zac: Yeah, there is so much to learn about it!
Dottie: I know, it is a place full of history and technology. What are your favourite findings so far?
Zac: Well, here is a funny coincidence, all interstellar probes were launched from there. Interstellar probes are space probes particularly designed to leave the Solar System and enter interstellar space.
Dottie: That is a cool fact, but why do you think this is a coincidence?
Dottie: Wooow, of course, I see.. That is an interesting coincidence indeed! Good catch, you are a great detective! What else did you learn about them?
Zac: I found out that there are five interstellar space probes in total. In order of launch, they were:
- 1️⃣ Pioneer 10
- 2️⃣ Pioneer 11
- 3️⃣ Voyager 2
- 4️⃣ Voyager 1
- 5️⃣ New Horizons
They were all launched in the 70’s with the exception of the New Horizons in 2006.
Pioneer 10 & 11
Voyager 1 & 2
New Horizons
Dottie: Excellent! I know that the reason why they were launched in the 70’s is because of what was known as the once-in-a-lifetime alignment.
Zac: That sounds like an important and rare event!
Zac: So, you are basically saying that space probes go hitchhiking in space, getting a “ride” or push from planets? That sounds mind-blowing, I definitely want to learn more about that!
Interstellar Space Probes Trajectory. Source: NASA
Dottie: That is true, NASA makes information on the Voyagers and New Horizons live on their website. You can check them out later, there is a lot of good information about the missions there!
Zac: I know, I have done a good amount of research so far and I have reached an important conclusion!
Dottie: What is it?
Zac: If we want to progress with our investigation, we really need to visit that Cape Canaveral, especially the Air Force Station and Kennedy Space Center!
Dottie: Well, I get that this computer must have belonged to someone very important. It sent us encrypted text and we found out the coordinates to this location. But how do you think going there would help?
Zac: I guess it makes sense to take the computer there and tell them this story. I am sure this is somehow connected to our galaxy! Someone must be waiting for this computer.
Dottie: Yeah, that makes sense! Well, I was thinking of taking you on a holiday as your birthday is around the corner. We could go now, but you are going to miss school!
Zac: Yeah, and this is Robotics Week in school…
Dottie: Perhaps, I can teach you some robotics on the way there, so you don’t miss out on school too much. How about we start celebrating your birthday today by going on a trip to Cape Canaveral? As usual, you get to choose what we are doing for your birthday.
Dottie: So, let’s start learning about robots?
robotics
You will learn all about robot’s main components and how they work together!
Here are two great videos by Hank and Jessi from SciShow. Let’s check them out!
Interesting, right? The definition of Robot is just so much broader than what most people think! Robots come in a lot of sizes and shapes, the way they look depends on the type of tasks that they were designed to perform.
Robots are autonomous machines capable of sensing its environment, computing smart decisions, and acting in the real world
- 🔄 repetitive: such as cleaning (e.g. vacuum cleaners like roomba at homes)
- 📏precise: such as putting together car parts (e.g. robotic arms can weld, assemble, paint, etc.)
- 💣hazardous: such as exploring new planets (e.g. rovers like opportunity and curiosity on Mars)
- 💬simple interactions: such as banking (e.g. ATM’s automate a lot of simple tasks)
- 💦 intense labour: such as surveying and harvesting (e.g. Wall-Ye pruning vines)
We prepared some really fun activities related to Robots, check below a summary of what to expect from the activity sheet:
- 1️⃣ you will learn how your body parts relate to the robots parts
- 2️⃣ you will go hunting for robots
- 3️⃣ you will do some research to find your favourite robot (categories, list)
- 4️⃣ you will design your robot!
Comment below or Share your robot design on Social Media and tag us @smarteduclub or #SMARTEduChallenge
Congratulation on taking your first step to become a Roboticist!
Roboticists are professionals who design, build, program, and experiment with robots. They usually have backgrounds in disciplines like
- ⚡ electrical engineering design the control system with sensors and actuators
- ⚙️ mechanical engineering design the frame, body, actuators and end-effectors
- 👩💻 computer science design programs/artificial intelligence for complex tasks
Roboticists often work at universities, factories, and research labs. However, Amateur Robotics is a growing hobby all over the world, so you might consider that for starters!
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Dottie: Hmm, it looks a bit too small for a llama, so I would say it is an alpaca.
Zac: Interesting, the alpaca is hitchhiking, I wonder if they read the book too?! He looks experienced in hitchhiking, I am sure he could teach me some tips and tricks for when I go to the Galaxy! Can we give them a ride, please? For my birthday?!
Dottie: Oh Zac, will you ever ask me for something easy? Sure we should always try helping others, so let’s just ask when they are going.
Zac: Wooow great, this is my best birthday already!
Dottie: Good afternoon, do you want a ride in this direction?
Albert: Good afternoon Ma’am and boy. Yes, that would be wonderful! Where are you guys going?
Zac: We are going to Cape Canaveral in Florida. Do you know where that is?
Alberto: Florida, that sounds wonderful! Can I join you?!
Dottie: Sure, there should be enough room for you in the backseat. What is your name?
Zac: I am Zac and this is my mom, Dottie. So you are just moving from Mexico here?
Alberto: Sí sí, this is my first time in America! Nice meeting you Dottie and Zac, very friendly American family, thank you!
Tell me more about the place you are going to in Florida?! I heard there is a lot of Mexicans there!
Zac: Cape Canaveral is by the cost. We are going to the Air Force Station from where they launch rockets into space.
Alberto: Cool, that sounds like a wonderful place!!! I love the beach and rocket launch sounds muy interesting. It would be amazing to get some footage of a rocket launching with my new drone!
Dottie: Sorry Alberto, but I don’t think there will be any rockets launching now. Moreover, even if that was the case, you would not be allowed to do that, as your drone could ruin their launch plans.
Zac: That’s a pity! Mom, could drones be considered a type of robot too?!
Dottie: That is a great question Zac.
DRONES
Let’s consider the drone below. Hover the mouse to check the description of the parts:
Source: image from Parrot
Now that you got an overview the structure, let’s check this video by Jesse – The travelling Scientist – where he explains the science behind flying drones!
After learning a lot more about drones, let’s go back to Zac’s question: Can drones be considered a type of robot?
Well, robots are autonomous machines, meaning that they don’t need to be controlled all the time, they just do the job by themselves. Most drones needs to constantly receive commands from the remote controller to tell them what to do next, they only have some limited intelligence to avoid obstacles.
So, the main difference between most drones and robots is that, they cannot navigate the world on their own. However, there are smart drones in research labs that can navigate the world on their own and even accomplish some really impressive tasks, including working in cooperation with other smart drones!
Robots are autonomous machines, only a few smart drones have this capability of navigating the world on their own.
If you are still a bit confused, fear not! We prepared prepared an activity sheet to help you, it includes the following:
- 1️⃣ Detailed description of a drone’s main components
- 2️⃣ Detailed summary of their operations and controls
- 3️⃣ Really fun card game to play with a family member!
Make sure to read the first two pages carefully because they will help you win the card game!
If you were doing the activity by yourself, you can ask someone to ask you the questions and you can see how many cards you get right. If another family member did the activity with you, let us know who won the card game!
Comment below or Share the final result on Social Media and tag us @smarteduclub or #SMARTEduChallenge
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Dottie: If the directions are right, Kennedy Space Centre should be just around this corner!
Dottie: Sure, I can just check if they are an alpaca friendly place and get our tickets while you guys stretch your legs and get some fresh air. I will be right back.
Zac: We won’t go anywhere!
Alberto, can you show me your drone in the meantime?
Alberto: Sí sí, of course! I am still new to this drone thing, maybe you could help me. This is not an alpaca friendly device, it is very hard to put it together with my hands.
Zac: Sure, I can help! It seems pretty straight forward to assemble. We just need to unfold the propellers, and press the on button in the drone and controller, now they are connected!
Alberto: Wow, that was much easier and faster than I thought. I can see here that the battery is full, so maybe we can do a quick test flight and get some footage. What do you think?!
Alberto: Muy bien, let’s do it!
Use the app below to help Alberto and Zac with their footage. You will also get a tour of the facilities, so make sure to read the name and the description of each of the them to learn more about Cape Canaveral Air Force Station!
Watch the battery level! You may need to come back to the starting point to change the battery.
Let's Fly
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Target: (?, ?) Current: (8, 10) Battery: 100%
Source: image from Kennedy Space Centre
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Zac: You are welcome Alberto. We are happy to help you and I am happy to apply my robotics and geographic coordinate knowledge, I knew it would come in handy some day!
Policewoman: Good afternoon, were you guys flying this drone?
Zac: hmm… yeah?! But I know everything about the geographic coordinates and we made sure there were no rocket launches today.
Dottie: Hi guys, I am back, all good here?
Alberto: Dottie and Zac have nothing to the with this! I am sorry, the idea was mine, the drone is mine. Please don’t do anything to them, you can take me in custody if you want. I knew…
do you want some inspiration?
WELL DONE!!!
👏 Impressive work, well done for making it here! We hope you are enjoying the activity and come back for the last one!!!
🙏 Support us by sharing SMART Edu Challenge with your friends using the buttons below!
👇 Comment your robot’s name and its features. Also, let us know who won the drone card game! We would love to hear what you thought of the story! What are your predictions for their future?!
Stay tuned!
Activity #5: Exploring the Universe
We know it would not be fair to finish the #SMARTEduChallenge like this. So we are working on the a bonus activity for you!
Best one yet, learning about and designing robots was great fun, massive excitement with my boys to see what happens next, can’t wait for challenge #5
Thank you for your feedback Ivan, we are delighted to hear that you enjoyed it!