CREATE A ROOMBA CHALLENGE-- Challenge 16   -  A Fast Robot Floor Cleaner? (NXT 1 & NXT 2) - click here

CREATE A ROOMBA CHALLENGE-- Challenge 16   -  A Fast Robot Floor Cleaner? (NXT 1 & NXT 2) - click here.

Challenge 46M -  Robot SUMO! - click here

In this section, you will find a set of Teamwork Activities to help your team get to know one another and to help them to work with each other to accomplish much more than any of them working on their own. These activities are optional, but may be used to start or end a team work time for fun and team building.

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  Lego Builders Greet around the World
  
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  Find Your Twin
  
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  Ride the Bus
  Playdough Pictionary
  
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  Be the Bot
  

Equipment Needed: Boom box with CD and some kind of upbeat music

Time required: 15-20 minutes

This is a good get acquainted game that can be used with most any audience.

Brief Introduction to this Get Acquainted Activity:

Building Legos and working with NXT Robots is something that began in a builders workshop in Denmark and now is a universal building system that is used by youth around the world in designing and building all kinds of Lego Worlds.

In 1934 Ole Kirk Christiansen, master carpenter and joiner adopt the name LEGO for their products, formed from the Danish Words:”Leg GOdt” which means play well. Later they realized that in Latin the word means, “I put together.” His Grandson Godfred Kirk Christiansen starts creating models out of the LEGO blocks when he is 17 years old.

From that small beginning almost a hundred years ago, we now have the classic bricks that we all grew up with and now the LEGO Technics pieces that we use in building robots and the NXT Robotics system from LEGO.

We are going to take a trip to meet other kids around the country and around the world to see what they like to do with their LEGOS. So to prepare us for that adventure we first have to learn and practice some very important greetings, so we will fit into the cultures we will visit. So we need some traveling music and when the music is playing, I want you to move around through the room and mingle, but when the music stops, I want you to find a partner. At that time, I will give you some instructions and a demonstration on how to do the handshake or greeting in the part of the world that we will land in. When we are done with our visit, we will share the traditional LEGO send off known across the world. you will say to each other…

and practice saying it with me—Glad to have met ya (pause and have them say that part) I know I’ll never forget ya, (pause and have them say that part).. See you back here in just a little while.

Let’s practice saying that again, Glad to have met ya (pause and have them say that part) I know I’ll never forget ya, (pause and have them say that part).. See you back here in just a little while.

So let’s start the music. Remember to mingle when the music is going and find a partner when it is done.

START MUSIC –Play for about 10-20 seconds

STOP MUSIC

“Find a Partner”

We have landed in the wonderful state of Oregon—remember that they pronounce it “Ore-gun”

Well in Oregun, LEGO builders greet each other with a hardy Lumberman’s handshake:

Demonstrate with a partner---Oregon Lumberman’s Handshake: One of you begin the handshake by thrusting out your fist with the thumb raised. Your partner grabs the thumb and then sticks their thumb up on that same hand. You continue until all four hands are stacked and look like you are grasping the hand of a crosscut tree saw and you saw back and forth as if cutting down a tree.

Now we need to share our parting words: Glad to have met ya (pause and have them say that part) I know I’ll never forget ya, (pause and have them say that part).. See you back here in just a little while.

Now Find a new partner and we will continue our travels.

Now we traveled up to the great state of Maine where one of the favorite things to do in Maine is fishing off the coast, so in main we will do the Maine Fisherman’s Handshake:

Demonstrate with a partner—Maine Fisherman’s Handshake: Cast out with your fishing rod you’re your partners opposite shoulder, then REEL in and then pat the inside of your partners forearm with your hand that will feel kind of like a cold wet fish shaking.

Now we need to share our parting words: Glad to have met ya (pause and have them say that part) I know I’ll never forget ya, (pause and have them say that part).. See you back here in just a little while.

Now Find a new partner and we will continue our travels.

We traveled to the wonderful state of Wisconsin and in Wisconsin lots of LEGO Builders live on Dairy farms, so we must do the Wisconsin Dairy Handshake:

Demonstrate with a partner—Wisconsin Dairy Handshake: One member interweaves fingers with thumbs raised and then turns it over for their partner to milk the thumbs.

Now we need to share our parting words: Glad to have met ya (pause and have them say that part) I know I’ll never forget ya, (pause and have them say that part).. See you back here in just a little while.

Now Find a new partner and we will continue our travels.

Finally we land in Canada where LEGO Builders give the Hockey Check Greeting where the they greet each other by bumping shoulders and Say, See ya out on the Ice Eh?

Demonstrate with a partner— Canadian Ice Hockey Hand Shake:-- Bump opposite shoulders and say “See ya out on the Ice, Eh?

Now we need to share our parting words: Glad to have met ya (pause and have them say that part) I know I’ll never forget ya, (pause and have them say that part).. See you back here in just a little while.

Ok….well as good LEGO Builders it’s important to remember our LEGO partners from other places—

So I would like you to find your Oregon Lumberjack partner and do your Oregon Lumberman’s Handshake

and then spend just a minute visiting with them about –What is the coolest thing you have built with LEGOS?

Now I would like you to find your Maine Fisherman partner and do your Maine Fisherman’s Handshake

and then spend just a minute visiting with them about – What actual building, machine or landmark do you think it would be cool to build out of Legos?

Now I would like you to find your Wisconsin Dairy partner and do your Wisconsin Dairy Handshake

and then spend just a minute visiting with them about – Where would you like to go on vacation if money were no object?

Now I would like you to find your Canadian 4-H Partner and do the Canadian Ice Hockey 4-H handshake

and then spend just a minute visiting with them about – What job do you think would be cool to have? What great traveling partners you all make….I hope we have a chance to travel again in the future!

Write down your answers to each of the following Questions. Then find your twin that answered the same as you and have them sign your question.

You have the opportunity to travel around the country on a field trip meeting many other Lego Builders. As you take this opportunity to travel, you will have to make some choices along the way of things you would prefer to see, to do, and to eat as we go on our field trip. To start out each part of the trip, the group will as a group, make the sound of the roar of the engine to take off toward the next stop and then the group will make the sound of the brakes as we are ready to make our next stop. At each stop you will need to make a choice between two choices available. There is not an option of staying on the bus….You will need to make a choice and step out of the right or left side of the bus based on your preference.

Set this up by putting two lines of chairs representing the sides of the bus or two lines of masking tape on the floor where the youth stand between them to simulate being on the bus..The youth must exit out the left or right side of the bus indicating their choice for the situation.

Which do you like Better….Step out that side of the bus

We have a chance to visit an animal shelter and help out with the animals…If you would like to play with some kittens and cats on the left or on right some puppies and dogs

Our next stop is at a MoviePlex Theater…on the left is a scary movie, on the right is a comedy movie

We have stopped at the historic Drake Relay Grounds…where Olympic champions have spent their time….on the left if you would like to run this historic track and on the right if you would rather walk around the track.

Our next stop is for a healthy snack…on the left is Fruits and on the right are vegetables

It’s time for Dinner…your choices are Fettucine Chicken Alfredo on the left and on the right a big juicy steak.

We have another stop for recreation…on the left if you would rather swim, on the right if you would rather hike.

Last stop for food…on the left for fast food and on the right for Home Cooking.

We finally got clearance to finish our field trip visiting Washington, D.C. , if you would rather fly there on the left, if you would rather drive there on the right.

Have the 4-H Robotics Team members play as one team or if you split them into several teams, they are only working to get their team to guess what it is they are building with the playdough. Each player will take a turn at building what is on the card. The object is working as a team to guess what it is that the team member is building. The difference is you are not competing but cooperating to figure out what it is they are building….Now some people may build slower than others and that is ok….you are not on a timer, but trying to do what you can to help your team members guess what you are building….If a team member building gets stuck, they can choose a partner to help…they go off out of hearing range of the team and make a plan and then come back and work together to build out of playdough. Oh and they can’t spell out the object name with the playdough. If more than one team is participating, just have the team say “Got It” when they get it and not blurt out what it was so the other teams can continue until they get it with their team member building.

You just need a can of playdough and the words that they will build with playdough on index cards.

After the activity, it is important to ask the group what things did members do that made it easier to guess the object that they were building. Which team members really shined in the process of this game and what would they share about their success with the other team members.

Sun

Chair

Stars

Soccer Ball

Computer

Team

Pool Table

Chicken

Camera

Rain

Bowl

Fishing

Acitivity Adapted from game shared by Karen Pattison, Iowa State University Extension, 4-H Youth Specialist

Supplies: 1 sheet of paper and pencil per group of 2 or 3 youth

In this activity for Be the Bot, you will divide the team into groups of two or three, where one of them will be the robot and the other one or two members must write down in a list format the exact instructions for their robot to go from sitting to retrieving a water bottle or other prop from somewhere in the room. They will learn how precise and complete the instructions must be for a robot to complete a task or challenge.

When they have completed recording their instructions, it is time for them to give the instructions line by line to their robot and have the robot complete the instructions only doing exactly what the instructions list. This may take some reminding of the robot that they can only do “EXACTLY” what the instructions tell them to do.

Robot Program Instructions

Be the Bot Activity 2

Form teams of two (anyone that is not already on your team ). Choose one of you to be a “bot”. Work together to write down in list format the exact directions for a “bot” to get from where you are in the room to where there are suckers laid out, retrieve 2 suckers and return to your place.

Once the directions have been written, your “bot” will shift one “team” to the left. The new “bot” will follow EXACTLY the directions AS WRITTEN, to get suckers for your team.

Robot Program Instructions

Appendix 3: SUMO Robot Challenges in Building and Programming

These following resources will help you think through the process of building a SUMO Wrestling Robot and programming the robot to execute the important steps of finding the other robot, staying on the mat and engaging the other robot.

To participate in the SUMO Wrestling Robot Challenge, you will need to know the rules of the matches that are set by the HyperStream IT-Olympics Robotics Venue document:
http://hyperstream.org/index.php/competitions/it-olympics/robotics-venue/
You will find the robots will be competing on a 4 foot round circle that is black with a 1-½ inch white border. Matches are the best of three rounds for the winning robot. Each round is up to 3 minutes in length or until any part of one robot touches the floor surface off the SUMO mat circle. The robot requirements include that the robot must fit inside a 1 foot by 1 foot frame and must not weigh more than 2 pounds maximum weight.

Probably the easiest way to understand the robot matches is to watch a few highlighted in these HyperStream IT-Olympics Team highlight videos during the High School SUMO Robot Competitions at Hilton on Iowa State University Campus:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rPimhkNqqvc https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sYELmetsGAE&index=16&list=UUJeUNs86VYH8KZxbQa3JWTw

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Tc1cZmqlelI&list=UUJeUNs86VYH8KZxbQa3JWTw

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  Tires or Treads -  Really this comes out to a personal preference, there have been debates about whether treads give better traction but I think wheels do just as well. In fact I prefer wheels because they will give a little extra speed that the treads don't have, and this boost can help you reach the other robot and push them off the edge before they can spin to charge you. PRO TIP: the large thin tires are a no-no, too much torque at the ends when they sometimes start to spin when pushing against the other robot and you lose most of your traction. I prefer the medium sized, thick tires.
  

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  The Plow - The plow on all of our past robots have constituted about one third of the weight (give or take).  It needs to be at a gentle enough of an angle that the other robot can drive onto it, but steep enough that only the front wheels of the opposing robot can get on; otherwise the enemy will drive right over you.  The closer to the board you can get the front of the plow, the better the chance your plow will go under the other robot.  Once the other robot is engaged by your plow, if your front tires are forward enough then your traction will increase by about a quarter and often times your robot just walks the other robot to the edge.
  
  
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  Wires - Keep these as wrapped and 'inside' your robot as possible. Wrap them around beams, stuff them into open holes, etc.  They are a great thing for the other robot to grab onto.
  

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  Placement of the Ultrasonic Sensor - if the sensor sits too high or points upward, it will not always be able to 'see' the other robot. If the sensor is too close to the ground or points downward, then the sensor will think it can 'see' the other robot before the robot is actually in range.
  

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  Placement of the Light Sensor - The light sensor should go on the front third of the robot so the center of gravity is at least an inch behind it.  This way if you come close to an edge, the robot can stop before tipping onto the ground.  A light sensor on the back usually isn't necessary because if that sensor 'sees' the line, then either the robot is off the edge of the board, or it's getting pushed off the board by the other robot.
  

1. 
   It must start with a Wait time block for three seconds to allow the robot operator to exit the SUMO ring after starting the program.
   
2. 
   The robot must move slightly forward as its first move.
   
3. 
   The robot must turn and drive forward while searching for the other robot with the Ultrasonic sensor.  (Not too fast or the robot will have to spin in a complete circle to find the enemy again.)
   
4. 
   Charge the other robot when it detects it. (100% power no matter what!)
   
5. 
   Then one of three things can happen: you win, you lose the robot or you see the edge of the board.
   
6. 
   If you lose the detection of the other robot, your program needs to return to Step 2 turning and looking for the other robot.
   
7. 
   If your light sensor detects the white border on the edge of the board, it needs to back up. And turn looking for the other robot.
   
8. 
   The best position to engage the other robot is straight on the front of your plow.
   

Other modifications to add to the program and robot:

1. Touch sensors to start the program so that when the left touch sensor is pushed, the robot will turn to the left and drive forward as its first move after going forward. When the right touch sensor is pushed, the robot will turn to the right and drive forward as its first move after going forward.

2. Be creative

Another Lego SUMO Robot Competition in Vienna, Austria, with restrictions on base of robot https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3tguWcKTXQI but you get the idea of what the robot needs to do.

ROBOT Resources (All available on the 4-H Beginning Robotics NXT website for download)

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  9695-grand-four-belt-rover
  
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  9797_LME_UserGuide_US_low
  
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  Ball Back Wheel Construction for Domabot, 5 minute bot
  
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  Challenge 11 Climb a Mountain
  
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  Cross the Pit – NXT
  
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  Domabot Full Robot Build with All Sensors
  
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  LEGO 9797 Part Names
  
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  MindstormNXTinventorySheet combined 979797 & 979695 Blue and Grey Kits with Common Elements