Reza continued to test the snake and grass hopper codes which work well so far. He then worked on the Hawk coding. He is still testing and making changes.
Chris updated the documentation of Predator Prey. He implemented the activities with the new codes and new ideas. On Wednesday, he worked on the playstation codes and it is now ready to be test on the snake and grass hopper.
Wednesday, Brad worked on the activity write-up and updating the cheat sheet. Today, he went back to the gyro idea and codes that they previously found. He is trying to decode and understand the algorithm behind the program. He is also thinking on the Board Game but is waiting for Krista.
On Wednesday, Erika worked on the documentation of the Trash Collector activities. She updated the To Do tasks and updated the student and teacher folder.
Yesterday, I proofread the documents of Erica and made a few changes. Then, I went on and tried to work on my blocker which is making the robot stops following the line and starts the sorting. Reza came out with the idea of switching the black for a blue line and the blue sorting color with a black. I gave it a try and it is still not working. Today, I looked at the code again and tried to make a few changes. I am still working on that and tomorrow I am thinking on trying a different line following program.
Thursday, July 30, 2009
Tuesday, July 28, 2009
Tuesday, July 28
It's gorgeous and sunny again today!
Krista is out, but Brad worked on fine tuning the Racing Activity write-up and played around with the programs to see if he could make them more efficient and straight-forward.
Reza was working on testing more of the Predator robot code. He spent quite a bit of time helping test the Trash-Collector line following code, as well. Chris continued to work on the movement for the Prey robots and their interaction, and he also helped debug the Trash-Collector robot code.
Fara worked on the sorting code, and combining it with all of the other code modules for the Trash-Collector robot. She hit a blocker trying to figure out how to have the robot stop the line-following program when it reaches the sorting area and start the sorting program, so the group had a brainstorming session to come up with a solution. They ended up tweaking the program so the robot reads the raw values from the light sensor and placing the blue sorting square at the end of the line, so the robot will stop following the line when the light sensor outputs the reflected light value of the blue paper. Erika continued work on the activity write-up for the Trash-Collector, inputting the codes and breaking the activity down into sections.
Krista is out, but Brad worked on fine tuning the Racing Activity write-up and played around with the programs to see if he could make them more efficient and straight-forward.
Reza was working on testing more of the Predator robot code. He spent quite a bit of time helping test the Trash-Collector line following code, as well. Chris continued to work on the movement for the Prey robots and their interaction, and he also helped debug the Trash-Collector robot code.
Fara worked on the sorting code, and combining it with all of the other code modules for the Trash-Collector robot. She hit a blocker trying to figure out how to have the robot stop the line-following program when it reaches the sorting area and start the sorting program, so the group had a brainstorming session to come up with a solution. They ended up tweaking the program so the robot reads the raw values from the light sensor and placing the blue sorting square at the end of the line, so the robot will stop following the line when the light sensor outputs the reflected light value of the blue paper. Erika continued work on the activity write-up for the Trash-Collector, inputting the codes and breaking the activity down into sections.
Monday, July 27, 2009
july 27
Today we were down a few people.
Erica was working on the writeup for the trash collector and was having issues with the odt and doc formats. She also worked on the code cheat sheets and props for the activity.
Fara concentrated most of her work today on the lego designer and a little bit of the code.
I(Chris) worked on the code for the prey and also looking into some integration problems with the movement code. There will need to be some refactoring of the code that connects to the movement code to allow both the ps2 controller and the robot commands to work with the different movement routines.
Brad focused on making sure his writeup was complete.
Erica was working on the writeup for the trash collector and was having issues with the odt and doc formats. She also worked on the code cheat sheets and props for the activity.
Fara concentrated most of her work today on the lego designer and a little bit of the code.
I(Chris) worked on the code for the prey and also looking into some integration problems with the movement code. There will need to be some refactoring of the code that connects to the movement code to allow both the ps2 controller and the robot commands to work with the different movement routines.
Brad focused on making sure his writeup was complete.
Thursday, July 23, 2009
Thursday, July 23
Brad and Krista started wrapping up the racing activity. Some pretty awesome race car (and horn) sound files have been added to make the races a little more interesting. The teacher and student folders are each almost complete, both including a function cheat sheet. The only major thing left to do is to make a file with an example of a track, with dimensions, so it can be reproduced elsewhere. Krista also started on the formal write-up for the gyro sensor and braille labeled the robots that will be traveling this weekend.
Fara wrote the color sorting program for the recycling bot which works great when it is run on it's own, but has some problems running with the entire program. Reza has helped with a few little blockers and Fara intends on continuing the work tomorrow.
Reza got the tracking functions for the snake predator to completely work but needs to make a slight change to the design to allow the touch sensor to be pushed, without having the bot flipping the prey or itself over. He plans on working on more of the cricket predator tomorrow morning before he leaves for Chicago.
Fara wrote the color sorting program for the recycling bot which works great when it is run on it's own, but has some problems running with the entire program. Reza has helped with a few little blockers and Fara intends on continuing the work tomorrow.
Reza got the tracking functions for the snake predator to completely work but needs to make a slight change to the design to allow the touch sensor to be pushed, without having the bot flipping the prey or itself over. He plans on working on more of the cricket predator tomorrow morning before he leaves for Chicago.
Tuesday, July 21, 2009
Tuesday, July 21
Gorgeous and sunny all day today!
For the Predator/Prey activity, Reza redesigned the robot so the touch sensor would work better and updated the grasshopper code accordingly. He also worked on the codes for the other Predator bots. Chris continued work to integrate the PS2 controllers into the Prey robot codes.
Brad worked on the racing bot program, trying to set up the code to switch lanes only when it needed to and follow the track otherwise. He hit a few blockers, with the code doing unexpected things, but is working through them.
Krista focused on the Activity Zero robots and tested multiple different designs for attaching the sensors so they would be easier to put on and take off of the robots. She found one design that would allow the sensors to clip on easily, but it requires more parts than are included in one gray NXT kit.
Erika and Fara tested all of their old codes on the new grabber robot and updated those that didn't work. They also finished the search code with help from Brad, using the same concept as the line-follower code. They put all of their codes together into a Grabber_Movement code, which searches, approaches the object, grabs the object, moves toward the path, and follows the path. They are experiencing a few blockers, though, in that the ultrasonic sensor is inconsistent and sometimes "sees" things that aren't there. Thus, the program doesn't have a very high repeatability rate.
For the Predator/Prey activity, Reza redesigned the robot so the touch sensor would work better and updated the grasshopper code accordingly. He also worked on the codes for the other Predator bots. Chris continued work to integrate the PS2 controllers into the Prey robot codes.
Brad worked on the racing bot program, trying to set up the code to switch lanes only when it needed to and follow the track otherwise. He hit a few blockers, with the code doing unexpected things, but is working through them.
Krista focused on the Activity Zero robots and tested multiple different designs for attaching the sensors so they would be easier to put on and take off of the robots. She found one design that would allow the sensors to clip on easily, but it requires more parts than are included in one gray NXT kit.
Erika and Fara tested all of their old codes on the new grabber robot and updated those that didn't work. They also finished the search code with help from Brad, using the same concept as the line-follower code. They put all of their codes together into a Grabber_Movement code, which searches, approaches the object, grabs the object, moves toward the path, and follows the path. They are experiencing a few blockers, though, in that the ultrasonic sensor is inconsistent and sometimes "sees" things that aren't there. Thus, the program doesn't have a very high repeatability rate.
Monday July 21, 2009
On Monday, most of us just continued where we had left off last week with our robots. Brad continued to work with the code for the racing bot. He tried to perfect the lane changing code and will continue working with that on Tuesday. Erica and Fara both worked on their robot. They were able to change some things from the grabber robot to made a new robot that worked for their needs. They are now focusing on the coding aspect of the robot. Chris and Reza worked on their predator/prey bots. Reza worked on the grasshopper and snake code, while also doing some IR work to make sure it works correctly. Chris worked with the PS2 controller movements for the prey and has been making some code modifications to get this working correctly.
Thursday, July 16, 2009
Thursday July 16
Today moved along very similarly as yesterday.
Fara continued modifying the recycling bot, using ideas for Erika and Andy's grabber. Fara also began the write up for the accelerometer sensor.
Chris continued his work with the PS2 controllers for the prey bot by starting to test some code while Reza continued work on (almost perfected) code for the predator bots.
Brad began writing and testing lane switching code for the racing bot. He and Krista have also made a small sample track that has round corners which seems to work much better. Slight modifications on the bot has also been made.
Fara continued modifying the recycling bot, using ideas for Erika and Andy's grabber. Fara also began the write up for the accelerometer sensor.
Chris continued his work with the PS2 controllers for the prey bot by starting to test some code while Reza continued work on (almost perfected) code for the predator bots.
Brad began writing and testing lane switching code for the racing bot. He and Krista have also made a small sample track that has round corners which seems to work much better. Slight modifications on the bot has also been made.
Wednesday, July 15, 2009
Wednesday July15
Brad was out sick today so Krista worked on the write up for the Racing activity. The outline of the 4 activities is complete along with ideas for each round of racing that should take place. She also added a second lane to the "test track" so when Brad is back they will be able to start working on lane switching.
Fara and Erika worked on changing the model. It has been difficult to find an object that works well for the recycling bot because the claws do close completely on most objects. If the claws are not all the way closed, they wiggle around a lot and the object is often dropped. They've been trying to modify Andy's claw contraption into their robot but it is still a work in progress. Fara also started som preliminary testing on the accelerometer sensor.
Reza continued his work on the tracking and movement functions for the predator bot while Chris researched and created libraries for the PS2 controller. They have now firmly decided that they "prey" bots will be controlled with the PS2's while the predators will rely on their code to track and catch the prey.
Fara and Erika worked on changing the model. It has been difficult to find an object that works well for the recycling bot because the claws do close completely on most objects. If the claws are not all the way closed, they wiggle around a lot and the object is often dropped. They've been trying to modify Andy's claw contraption into their robot but it is still a work in progress. Fara also started som preliminary testing on the accelerometer sensor.
Reza continued his work on the tracking and movement functions for the predator bot while Chris researched and created libraries for the PS2 controller. They have now firmly decided that they "prey" bots will be controlled with the PS2's while the predators will rely on their code to track and catch the prey.
Tuesday, July 14, 2009
Tuesday, July 14
It's sunny and gorgeous outside! Finally!
Today, Krista and Brad tested all three of the line-following algorithms for the racing robot on an octagon track. They were having trouble with the line-following on the corners, so they're trying to figure out a way to make a good circular/oval track. They also worked to figure out the best place to locate the light sensor on their robot, and will continue this tomorrow.
Chris and Reza worked on the code for the PS2 controller and worked on setting up the libraries necessary for that. They also made the decision, regarding the Predator/Prey activity, to make all the prey human-controllable via the PS2 controller. Reza also worked on devising predator functions to be used in all of the activity. Today, he worked mainly on predator functions for the grasshopper.
Erika and Fara worked some more on their search, grab, and line-following modules. They're still having problems with the search module, in that the ultrasonic sensor "sees" the trash objects in its peripheral vision and begins moving forwards immediately. By the time it reaches the object, it is up to a few inches away, because it stopped its rotation before the object was directly in front of it. They are playing with ways to have the robot turn a few more degrees after detecting an object to correct this. Erika also worked on determining which types of "trash" objects work best for the robot claws. It was found that an empty cup or other such light object gets tossed around too much by the wobbling arms. The robot can't grab large objects tightly enough to carry them, but the ultrasonic sensor can't detect small objects. A field trip might be necessary to see what types of large, easily-squished balls can be found. Fara also worked on the activity write-up for the Trash-Collector.
Today, Krista and Brad tested all three of the line-following algorithms for the racing robot on an octagon track. They were having trouble with the line-following on the corners, so they're trying to figure out a way to make a good circular/oval track. They also worked to figure out the best place to locate the light sensor on their robot, and will continue this tomorrow.
Chris and Reza worked on the code for the PS2 controller and worked on setting up the libraries necessary for that. They also made the decision, regarding the Predator/Prey activity, to make all the prey human-controllable via the PS2 controller. Reza also worked on devising predator functions to be used in all of the activity. Today, he worked mainly on predator functions for the grasshopper.
Erika and Fara worked some more on their search, grab, and line-following modules. They're still having problems with the search module, in that the ultrasonic sensor "sees" the trash objects in its peripheral vision and begins moving forwards immediately. By the time it reaches the object, it is up to a few inches away, because it stopped its rotation before the object was directly in front of it. They are playing with ways to have the robot turn a few more degrees after detecting an object to correct this. Erika also worked on determining which types of "trash" objects work best for the robot claws. It was found that an empty cup or other such light object gets tossed around too much by the wobbling arms. The robot can't grab large objects tightly enough to carry them, but the ultrasonic sensor can't detect small objects. A field trip might be necessary to see what types of large, easily-squished balls can be found. Fara also worked on the activity write-up for the Trash-Collector.
Friday, July 10, 2009
07/10/09 TGIF!!!!
Krista did the design in the Lego Designer for a new Race Car Model. She built two buggy model and made a few changes while constructing them. She updated the new version in the designer.
Chris worked on the Predator Prey Challenges and activities. He also fixed the model in the designer.
Reza continued to work with the programming. He tested the communication code and it works perfectly. He also tested the movement code which seems like it was going well from my observation. He also helped Faradjine with debugging.
Fara worked on the sorting by color code and also following the line code. so far it is working well for red, blue and green. She also started the description for the activity.
Have a good Week-End!!!
Chris worked on the Predator Prey Challenges and activities. He also fixed the model in the designer.
Reza continued to work with the programming. He tested the communication code and it works perfectly. He also tested the movement code which seems like it was going well from my observation. He also helped Faradjine with debugging.
Fara worked on the sorting by color code and also following the line code. so far it is working well for red, blue and green. She also started the description for the activity.
Have a good Week-End!!!
Wednesday, July 8, 2009
07/08/09 !!
Today was a day full of sharing.
Krista and Brad worked on making a (second) new model of the racing bot- the touch sensors were removed in replace of a third motor that will swivel the US sensor in order to search for other racing bots nearby. They started completely from scratch so this took most of the day. after brad left (frustrating with gearing problems) Krista spent the rest of the day figuring out and testing the gearing to allow the swiveling US.
Fara and Erika (along with some help from both Reza and Chris) worked on coding the trash collecting bot. They have had some trouble finding objects to represent "trash" that will work with both the US sensor and the claw mechanism. They also had some difficulties with different parts of the code but have figured out most of the problems.
Reza and Chris worked on more of the predator/prey activity and code. They came up with a good story for the activity (involving an unsuspecting leaf, grasshopper, snake and hawk) that will work very well with the overall theme of the activity. The robot is finished in the digital designer so soon, a second bot will be built to start working on communication/evasion and searching.
Krista and Brad worked on making a (second) new model of the racing bot- the touch sensors were removed in replace of a third motor that will swivel the US sensor in order to search for other racing bots nearby. They started completely from scratch so this took most of the day. after brad left (frustrating with gearing problems) Krista spent the rest of the day figuring out and testing the gearing to allow the swiveling US.
Fara and Erika (along with some help from both Reza and Chris) worked on coding the trash collecting bot. They have had some trouble finding objects to represent "trash" that will work with both the US sensor and the claw mechanism. They also had some difficulties with different parts of the code but have figured out most of the problems.
Reza and Chris worked on more of the predator/prey activity and code. They came up with a good story for the activity (involving an unsuspecting leaf, grasshopper, snake and hawk) that will work very well with the overall theme of the activity. The robot is finished in the digital designer so soon, a second bot will be built to start working on communication/evasion and searching.
Tuesday, July 7, 2009
Tuesday, July 7, 2009
It was finally sunny again today after some morning rain!
Today, Chris worked on finishing the design for the Predator/Prey robot and putting it into the Lego Designer. He also looked into ideas for the Predator/Prey activity and the story to go along with it. Reza finished the communication functions for the Predator/Prey robots. He worked on the activity write-up and, with Chris, discussed the storyline and how to work in into the activity.
Brad and Krista made a test model for their non-gyroscopic racing robot today and tested the robot using the line-follower program. They also worked on creating a broad overview of the racing activity. In the afternoon, Krista worked on improving their vehicle model.
Erika and Fara continued to work on the trash collector program today. They made small modules of code to search for objects and to grab objects, and they tested these on the robot. However, they had trouble getting the robot to stop turning immediately when it sees an object during the search, so when it drives forward it always ends up a few centimeters away from the object. They also noticed that the front portion of the robot, which contains the grabbing claws and all three sensors, is too heavy for its minimal attachment to the body of the robot and it bounces around a lot during movement. At the end of the day, they started working on improving the robot's design so it will be more stable when moving and turning.
Today, Chris worked on finishing the design for the Predator/Prey robot and putting it into the Lego Designer. He also looked into ideas for the Predator/Prey activity and the story to go along with it. Reza finished the communication functions for the Predator/Prey robots. He worked on the activity write-up and, with Chris, discussed the storyline and how to work in into the activity.
Brad and Krista made a test model for their non-gyroscopic racing robot today and tested the robot using the line-follower program. They also worked on creating a broad overview of the racing activity. In the afternoon, Krista worked on improving their vehicle model.
Erika and Fara continued to work on the trash collector program today. They made small modules of code to search for objects and to grab objects, and they tested these on the robot. However, they had trouble getting the robot to stop turning immediately when it sees an object during the search, so when it drives forward it always ends up a few centimeters away from the object. They also noticed that the front portion of the robot, which contains the grabbing claws and all three sensors, is too heavy for its minimal attachment to the body of the robot and it bounces around a lot during movement. At the end of the day, they started working on improving the robot's design so it will be more stable when moving and turning.
Monday, July 6, 2009
Monday July 6, 2009
Today, we had quite sporadic weather as usual.
Aside from that, Krista continued to work with Brad on the Segway bot. Brad worked with the gyroscope code to try to make his own, however, with all of the constants necessary for it to work correctly, Krista and Brad decided to use cars instead. They did put the segway in the designer, so if anybody has time and wants to mess with that, they can. They
Chris began to put the predator/prey bot into the Lego Designer. He is doing some model tweaking as he goes to make it better and easier.
Reza spoke with Chris at the beginning of the day to get information on what he was doing and what he had done this past week so he can get caught up. With that info, Reza began working on some code for the predator/prey bots. Today, he specifically worked on the communication code.
Erika and Fara had been working on the code with the grabber robot. They found that some of the original code did not work well, or work as well as they had hoped, so they decided to write some of their own. They will be working on this through tomorrow.
Aside from that, Krista continued to work with Brad on the Segway bot. Brad worked with the gyroscope code to try to make his own, however, with all of the constants necessary for it to work correctly, Krista and Brad decided to use cars instead. They did put the segway in the designer, so if anybody has time and wants to mess with that, they can. They
Chris began to put the predator/prey bot into the Lego Designer. He is doing some model tweaking as he goes to make it better and easier.
Reza spoke with Chris at the beginning of the day to get information on what he was doing and what he had done this past week so he can get caught up. With that info, Reza began working on some code for the predator/prey bots. Today, he specifically worked on the communication code.
Erika and Fara had been working on the code with the grabber robot. They found that some of the original code did not work well, or work as well as they had hoped, so they decided to write some of their own. They will be working on this through tomorrow.
Thursday, July 2, 2009
Thursday (Faux-Friday!), July 2nd
Today, everything to do with the forklifts have been packed away to be sent to San Diego (excluding one forklift that is currently charging). This includes all robots, pallets, chargers, usb cables as well as a kit full of extra parts and cables for "just in case". Reza has gone over the activity document for the last time, this will need tobe reviewed by someone else on Monday.
Chris worked on some code for the predator/prey activity. He also made some pretty big changes on the robot, removing the tank treads in favor of wheels which offer more even maneuverability for the infrared sensors. He plans on finalizing and building the model in the digital designer next week.
After much difficulty, and a little help from Krista, Fara finished building the trash collecting robot in the digital designer. She then began working on code for this activity, which will continue progress next week.
Brad tested out some new code (including some that used the PS2 controllers!) with two slightly different models of the segway bot. The newest version of this bot, which Krista built, has a much tighter center of gravity and preforms much better than the original version. Changing code around deamed pretty tricky and a fair amount of experimentation ensued. More testing will continue at the beginning of next week; after this, we will decide if the segway/gyro bots would be suitable for a racing activity. If the gyro bot does not seem approptriate, a different "race car" model will be developed next week.
Chris worked on some code for the predator/prey activity. He also made some pretty big changes on the robot, removing the tank treads in favor of wheels which offer more even maneuverability for the infrared sensors. He plans on finalizing and building the model in the digital designer next week.
After much difficulty, and a little help from Krista, Fara finished building the trash collecting robot in the digital designer. She then began working on code for this activity, which will continue progress next week.
Brad tested out some new code (including some that used the PS2 controllers!) with two slightly different models of the segway bot. The newest version of this bot, which Krista built, has a much tighter center of gravity and preforms much better than the original version. Changing code around deamed pretty tricky and a fair amount of experimentation ensued. More testing will continue at the beginning of next week; after this, we will decide if the segway/gyro bots would be suitable for a racing activity. If the gyro bot does not seem approptriate, a different "race car" model will be developed next week.
Wednesday, July 1, 2009
First Day Of The Month, July 1ST
As the day started, Erika and Fara tested the activity 0 robots, they tested for each sensor and made sure they worked properly. Afterward, Erika packed the robots and also some of the forklift's model pieces. In the meantime, Fara was working on the model, trying to adjust it so it can fit in the Lego Designer, she started the design and so far it is working well. Erika finished her day by completing her writing draft for the trash collector.
On the other side, while Reza was working on finalizing the Forklift model by changing the codes and designs, Chris on his side, was finalizing the robot model for the Predator Prey Challenge. Both completed their task successfully. They will probably start working on the testing and ideas tomorrow.
Finally, Krista and Brad were working on their final design for the racing/segway model. Krista was testing the gyroscope with a sample program made by Brad, she tested all of them. Meanwhile, Brad was working on the code he found online, trying to understand each part and testing it.
On the other side, while Reza was working on finalizing the Forklift model by changing the codes and designs, Chris on his side, was finalizing the robot model for the Predator Prey Challenge. Both completed their task successfully. They will probably start working on the testing and ideas tomorrow.
Finally, Krista and Brad were working on their final design for the racing/segway model. Krista was testing the gyroscope with a sample program made by Brad, she tested all of them. Meanwhile, Brad was working on the code he found online, trying to understand each part and testing it.
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