That's Hot! Robot Brain Programming
The "stimulus-sensor-coordinator-effector-response" framework explains how you jerk back your hand when you touch something hot. Can you program a robot to mimic this process?Copyright (left) 2004 Microsoft Corporation, One Microsoft Way, Redmond, WA 98052-6399 USA. All rights reserved. (right) AZ Dept. of Health Services Director's Blog http://directorsblog.health.azdhs.gov/wp-content/uploads/2013/02/MP900438746.jpg
With the challenge to program computers to mimic the human reaction after touching a hot object, students program LEGO® robots to "react" and move back quickly once their touch sensors bump into something. By relating human senses to electronic sensors used in robots, students see the similarities between the human brain and its engineering counterpart, the computer, and come to better understand the functioning of sensors in both applications. They apply an understanding of the human "stimulus-sensor-coordinator-effector-response" framework to logically understand human and robot actions.
Biological engineers and neuroscientists perceive the human body as a functioning, controlled system, similar to a robot. Engineers who design robots apply mathematical principles similar to those used in human brains and systems to the creation of smarter computers and sensors. Some engineers study how pressure sensors in human fingers help you pick up a glass without breaking it, and use that information to design better touch sensors for robots so that they can pick up objects in a similar manner. Other engineers research how the human eye works so that they can design cameras with higher performance and speed.
After this activity, students should be able to:
- Explain how human senses and the brain interact to accomplish a task.
- Describe how electronic sensors interact with a robot to accomplish a task.