Where to go from here
Session 6
Congratulations! You are now a Sparki robot master! :) I hope you are hungry to test your new found skills. Even if the workshop is over, there are still many things you can do with Sparki. Enhance your problem solving skills and exercise your independence! Described here are a few ideas of other things you can do with Sparki.
Maze Solving
One of the simplest way to solve a maze with a robot is by using the Wall Following Algorithm. Suppose you are a person inside a maze without loops. One way to find an exit is by keeping one of your hands always touching a wall. Check the animation below.
Can you figure out a way to translate this in Sparki’s terms? (hint, you can use Sparki’s infrared reflectance sensors). If you’re having difficulty you can check out the lesson here in Sparki’s official site.
You can also build walls for the maze and use Sparki’s “eyes” (ultrasonic rangefinder) as well. In fact, someone already made this on youtube!
Object Retrieval
How about you try to do this? (video below)
Android app to control sparki
You can use MIT’s App Inventor to make an android app you can use to control Sparki with your phone (and see the readings of its sensors). You can see the full documentation in sjdavisrobotics.com. This is made by the same guy who did the maze following with cardboard walls mentioned earlier.
Signal Filtering Techniques
After playing with Sparki for more than a bit, you might notice that sometimes a sensor might return strange values. For example, Sparki’s eyes (the ultrasonic rangefider) might read really large (and erroneous) distances from time to time even when there is a near object in front of it. Simple techniques can be used to reduce the effect of this noise and false readings.Check the lesson out from Sparki’s official website.
Theremin
A theremin is a musical instrument that is played by holding your hand in front of the sensor. The farther out from the sensor, the higher the tone. You can use the ultrasonic range finder as input and the buzzer as output.
Making Music with the Accelerometer or Magnetometer
You can read the X, Y, Z values of the magnetometer or accelerometer and generate musical notes with the readings. A musical note is defined by its frequency and duration.
Hill Climb
Use Sparki’s accelerometer to figure out the highest point in the hill. Can you figure out how to do this? Hint, check the figure below!
