- Robot building stations
You will need one station for every 2-3 students. Each station consists
of:
- Computer with an available serial port: MAC, PC, or a
Workstation.
- Software: Interactive C
- Robot controller : Handy Board
- Building materials: LEGO Technic resource sets, sensors,
motors, etc.
- Essential Tools
Soldering iron, soldering stand,
solder, needle nose pliers, wire cutters, wire stripper, wire wrapping
tool, 30 guage wire, epoxy or hot glue gun (better) for mounting
sensors onto LEGO parts, pliers, tweezers, vise, heat shrink tubing
for insulating solder joints, hair dryer for activating heat-shrink
tubing. Most of these materials can be bought from Radio Shack an
electronics supplier, or go scrounging in your physics/electronics
labs.
- Other Useful Tools
These are not necessary for the beginners but will be nice to have
in the long run:
hex keys, jeweler's screw drivers, x-acto knives, multi meters, measuring
tape, power extension cords, etc.
- Ordering Information
You can order a Handy Board completely assembled (highly
recommended) or in parts (much cheaper but requires serious soldering
and assembly experience). The completely assembled version comes ready
to run along with cables, a battery charging unit and serial
interface. Here are some
suppliers and here is the latest information on the Handy
Board. You also get a free version of IC 2.853. You may order (for
a price) a newer, allegedly better version, IC 3.1, from the
suppliers. The Handy Board costs approximately $280.00 and IC 3.1 is
$35.00.
LEGO parts can be ordered by phone directly from LEGO Dacta (the
educational division of LEGO) at 1-800-527-8339. Generally, it is best
to ask them for a catalog first (request the catalog on Technology,
Science & Math products). We recommend getting the
Technology Resource Center (part# 9609, $200.00). This kit contains
several thousand different LEGO pieces, but contains only one 9 volt
motor. You will need at least two motors per robot and four motors per
kit is best. You can order extra 9 volt motors (part #9883, $16.00).
Do not order any of the 4.5 volt parts as the 9609 kit is compatible
with 9 volt power, and so is the Handy Board. You can also order LEGO
touch sensors (part# 9888, $17.00). At the moment all other listed
LEGO sensors are not worth getting as they are incompatible with the
Handy Board.
The motors and the sensors have to be (re)wired to plug into the Handy
Board ports. You will need 0.1 inch male header pins to form the plugs.
These can be obtained from electronics suppliers (for example, DIGIKEY
1-800-344-4539, part#929834-07-36-ND, $1.00 for a strip of 36 pins, get
at least 20 strips).
- Initially touch and light sensors will suffice. The Handy Board
pages discuss several other types of sensors. The touch sensor is basically
a switch. The light sensor is a simple photo resistor. Both are pretty straight
forward to wire and can be purchased from Radio Shack. The switches cost
$2.00 a piece and photo resistors come in packs of 5 for $2.00. You may not
want to order any touch sensors from LEGO at all. Details of wiring these
are in the documentation that accompanies the Handy Board.