What Is a Sensor?
Human senses (left) and some LEGO sensor equivalents (right).Copyright (left) 2004 Microsoft Corporation, One Microsoft Way, Redmond, WA 98052-6399 USA. All rights reserved. (right) Robot square http://robotsquare.com/2015/10/06/explor3r-building-instructions/
Students gain a rigorous background in the primary human "sensors," as preparation for comparing them to some electronic equivalents in the associated activity. A review of human vision, hearing, smell, taste and touch, including the anatomies and operational principles, is delivered through a PowerPoint® presentation. Students learn the concept of "stimulus-sensor-coordinator-effector-response" to describe the human and electronic sensory processes. Student pairs use blindfolds, paper towels and small candies in a taste/smell sensory exercise. They take pre/post quizzes and watch two short online videos. Concepts are further strengthened by conducting the associated activity the following day, during which they learn about electronic touch, light, sound and ultrasonic sensors and then "see" sound waves while using microphones connected to computers running (free) Audacity® software.
Sensing is all about measuring physical quantities and interpreting these measurements. The human body is a continual source of inspiration for engineers who design sensors, including electronic robot sensors. A robot's light and ultrasonic sensors are like eyes; its sound sensors are like ears; its touch sensors are like skin. Engineer-designed sensors are used in a wide variety of applications, everything from automatic lights and door openers to burglar alarms to medical ultrasound technology. Engineers are involved in human body research and efforts to replicate the functioning of its many systems. For example, they design artificial organs, bio-sensors that monitor chemical levels and walking robots. By relating the functioning of human senses to human-made equivalent sensors used in robots, students heighten their understanding of both.
After this lesson, students should be able to:
- Compare human senses to robot electronic sensors.
- Explain the operational principles of electronic sensors.
- Describe on a basic level how sensors are integrated into robots via logic and computer programming.