modern electronics teaching resources - Terco

34Motivating, recruiting and challengingWhat does it do?The Formula Flowcode mazesolving robot vehicle canbe used for a wide range oflearning activities for studentsaged 12+.BenefitsA low cost, all-inclusive solution fortechnology studentsGreat for motivating students to learnmoreFeaturesIncludes a cut down version of Flowcodegraphical programming softwareSuperb technical specificationE-blocks compatibleMicromouse competition compatibleDescriptionThis robot vehicle hasbeen designed to addressthe requirements of thetechnology educationcurriculum between theages of 12 to 16. It is alsoused up to university levelfor motivation, learningand project work. Therobot is great for runningcompetitions, and for opendays where you can motivatestudents to want to learnmore about electronics andtechnology in just a few hours.HardwareThe robot vehicle is based on a plasticmoulded chassis with two wheels,gearboxes and motors and is powered byAA batteries. The circuit board connectsdirectly to a PC using the USB port, andprovides a high specification PIC18F4455controller with many features including 2user switches, 8 LEDs, sound level sensor,light sensor, buzzer, motor controller (inc.Pulse Width Modulation) line followersensors, and distance sensors.SoftwareThe robot is supplied with a reducedfunctionality version of our Flowcodesoftware. Students develop the program,simulate its functionality on-screen andthen click on a button to downloadthe program to the robot. Flowcode iscompatible with most E-blocks add-ons anda full version can bebought separately.The buggy can alsobe programmedwith C andAssembler.Curriculum / learningobjectivesA set of teacher’s notes is availablethat describes a sequence of learningopportunities from getting an initial outputthrough to line following and maze solvingtasks. The range of tasks can be extendedinto the mechanical engineering wherestudents make theirown precision chassiswhich includes higherspecification motors withwheel encoders for fullmaze solving.Activities includeline following........and mazesolving usingthe left handwall followingtechnique.Ordering informationFormula Flowcode micromouse . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . HP794Maze walls . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . HP458Pro class starter pack . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . HP454Note that the Pro class starter pack consists of 10 FormulaFlowcode robots, a Site licence of Flowcode, 5 LCD displays, IDCcables, and storage trays.