DIY Robotics 1B: Make Your Own Vehicle

In this class, participants will learn how to make how to make their own remote controlled vehicle.

The learning outcomes associated with this class have been WASC-accredited by UCSD Extension College Exploration.

Students will learn how to modify RC cars to control them with a microcontroller and add personalized features, including wireless communications, autonomous locomotion, various sensor readings and displaying. Topics include design considerations, building of chassis, programming, testing, debugging and final documented presentations.

DIY Robotics: Make your Own Vehicle

DIY Robotics Make Your Own Vehicle

 
Over the sessions of the course, you will learn about the theories and concepts of electricity and electronics, as well as the fundamentals of robotics. At the end of the course, you will have created your own mechanical, electrical, and kinetic vehicle (and learned about designing, engineering and electronics).

[tab name=”Course Goals/ Learning Objectives”]
The goal of this course is to provide a strong and creative foundation in creating robots. This is a hands-on class with creative engineering at its core. The course will take you through observation, documentation, investigation, and research of given topics, as well as hands-on building exercises. These practices will result in an understanding of relevant theory, as well as a tangible outcome in the form of a vehicle that the students can take home.
The class is geared to high school students, and it is useful if you have basic understanding of electricity and electronics (although this is not necessary; we will review necessary fundamentals of electricity and electronics in the beginning of the course). Some programming knowledge is also useful, since Arduino microprocessors will be needed using the Arduino language (available free at www.arduino.cc). Again, this is not a necessary requirement, but only a recommendation, since the level of programming necessary for this course is basic and will be reviewed in the initial sessions.
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[tab name=”Structure”]
This course is taught using classroom and lab instruction employing lecture/demonstration, in-class exercises, student participation, and class activities leading to a final project. Classes will include introductory concept presentations, followed by in-class exercises. The first couple of sessions will be more fundamental (general electricity, electronics, etc), but will subsequently expand to cover necessary knowledge for programming and component building. Throughout, there will also be handouts and brief presentations on relevant concepts.
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