High School, Robotics Projects, Lessons, Activities (Page 2)

Build a Model Planetary Lander with Arduino

Science Fair Project Idea

Engineering Design Process

Imagine that you need to make sure valuable cargo — like a robot or even human astronauts — can land safely on Mars. How would you do it? In this project, you will build your own model planetary lander using an Arduino. It will use a distance sensor and automatically deploy landing gear before impact. Can you avoid a crash landing? Read more

How to Control a DIY Mini Drone with an Arduino™

Science Fair Project Idea

Engineering Design Process

Most drones fly with a mix of human input and autonomous control based on feedback from electronic sensors. This allows the drone to fly up and down when the human operator presses a joystick on a controller, but automatically hover at a fixed distance above the ground when the operator lets go of the joystick. In this project, you will explore drone programming with an Arduino. What types of inputs and sensors can you make your drone respond to? What behaviors and responses can you program… Read more

Build a Sound-Tracking Search and Rescue Robot

Science Fair Project Idea

Engineering Design Process

HELP! Locating survivors trapped under rubble is a difficult and dangerous task. After a natural disaster, like an earthquake, rescuers must act quickly to save as many lives as possible. They can use robots with different types of sensors to help find survivors. In this project you will build a sound-tracking robot that can use two microphones to drive toward a sound source. Designing the robot's algorithm will be up to you. Read more

Make a Magnetic Slime Robot

Science Fair Project Idea

Engineering Design Process

Could you use a magnetic slime "robot" to retrieve a battery accidentally swallowed by a small child? Scientists think so! Watch this video to learn about magnetic slime that, when driven by external magnetic fields, can squeeze through small spaces and even grasp objects. Can you make your own magnetic slime robot that can accomplish some of the same tasks demonstrated by the researchers? You can start by adding iron filings to slime to make your own magnetic slime (see this Science Buddies… Read more

Build an Obstacle-Avoiding Robot (BlueBot Project #4)

Science Fair Project Idea

Scientific Method

In the animal kingdom, many different critters use whiskers to help them find their way around in the dark, through murky waters, or even to help them hunt prey. Whiskers can be very useful when the animals cannot rely on sight. Did you know that you can also build a robot that uses "whiskers" to find its way around? This project will show you how to build a simple robot that uses whiskers as "bump sensors" to help the robot detect when it is about to bump into an obstacle, so it can turn… Read more

Control Motors with Your Muscles!

Science Fair Project Idea

Engineering Design Process

Have you ever wished you could control your own suit of power armor like Iron Man? What about building a set of Wolverine-like retractable claws? You can get started by using electromyography (EMG) sensors, which can measure the tiny electrical signals generated by our muscles when they contract (Figure 1). You can interface these sensors with a microcontroller like an Arduino and use the output to control LEDs or motors. Getting these sensors to work can be tricky. The electrical signals… Read more

DIY Mini Drone: Altitude Control Circuit

STEM Activity

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How do you make a drone fly up and down? In this activity, you will build a simple circuit to control the altitude of a popsicle stick drone. See this page for a complete list of our mini drone projects. You may wish to do the projects in order. Read more

Drone Control with an Analog Joystick

STEM Activity

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How do you steer a drone using a controller with a joystick? Find out in this activity as you program an Arduino to interface with an analog joystick, similar to those found in most video game controllers. You can use the joystick to make a mini popsicle stick drone tilt side to side or move up and down. See this page for a complete list of our mini drone projects. You may wish to do the projects in order. Read more

Make Soft Robotic Skin

Science Fair Project Idea

Engineering Design Process

When you think about robots, do you think of something made from metal? What if robots could have stretchy, flexible skin just like humans? How would they detect when someone tapped them on the shoulder or something rubbed against their arm? In this project, you will learn how to make artificial robotic skin using flexible rubber with an embedded conductive fabric. You can also connect the artificial skin to a microcontroller and use it to control outputs like LEDs or motors. Read more

A Robot Waiter That Can Carry Drinks

Science Fair Project Idea

Engineering Design Process

Have you ever seen a waiter balance an entire tray of drinks without spilling any? How do they do it? Do you think you could build a robot waiter that can do the same thing? In this project, you will learn how to build a self-balancing robotic tray. You can incorporate the auto-leveling tray into one of our many other robotics projects, like the Bluebot or robotic arm. Read more

High School, Robotics Projects, Lessons, Activities (46 results)

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