2 min.
Today’s workshop is the first of a series entitled “RoboFactory” that will be held by Maker Emanuele Alfano, who will demonstrate how to build an analogic robot with light sensors. The next workshops will also be held on Saturdays (Feb. 21, 28) from 4-6:30 pm at the Phyrtual Innovation Gym.
Participants will learn how to solder and the basics of electronics by building an analogic robot with light sensors, just like he ones that will be used at the RomeCup. Explorer robots search for lights in a labyrinth and avoid obstacles.
The workshop is based on soldering a motherboard and subsequently mounting it on the laser-cut robotic mechanisms. At the end of the workshop, students will be able to bring their first self-built explorer robot home.
The course is open to aspiring robotics engineers in primary and first-degree secondary school.
Emanuele Alfano is in year four at the Istituto Tecnico Galileo Galilei, the school that won the Robotics World Championship in Brazil. Emanuele, together with Alessio, designed the motherboard that illuminated the first dress produced in the Phyrtual Innovation Gym Fab Lab (see Maker Fashion: Alice in the Wonderland Gym).
RomeCup Robo Explorers
The mini robots that participate in the RomeCup Competition are programmed to move independently and identify light sources on a playing field. The robots avoid obstacles, identify lights (explorer junior) and gas and sounds (explorer senior) and signal their presence by emitting a sound. Robots with touch sensors are not admitted.
Explorer robots are contained in a rectangular shape (200 x 200 x 250 mm). The playing field is on a 2 by 4 metre white surface. The edge of the playing field is delimited by a black border (140 mm high). The playing field contains cubic white obstacles (400 x 220 x 300 mm) that are laid out to form corridors (at least 300 mm wide). The playing field edges are also considered obstacles
The junior category competition includes three 3-minute tasks, the maximum time a robot has to complete its objectives. The senior category competition includes four tasks with a time limit of 5 minutes each.
