Today, robotics classes are becoming very popular. For schoolchildren, such lessons help form and develop critical thinking, learn how to creatively approach the process of solving problems of various levels of complexity, and also gain teamwork skills.
New Generation
Modern education is moving to a new round of its development. Many teachers and parents are looking for an opportunity to interest children in science, instill a love of learning and charge them with the desire to create and think outside the box. Traditional forms of presentation of the material have long lost their relevance. The new generation is not like its forefathers. They want to learn in a lively, interesting, interactive way. This generation is easily oriented in modern technologies. Children want to develop in a way that not only keeps pace with rapidly developing technologies, but also directly participate in this process.
Many of them are interested in: “What is robotics? Where can you learn this?”.
Education and robots
This academic discipline includes suchsubjects like design, programming, algorithmics, mathematics, physics and other disciplines related to engineering. The World Robotics Olympiad (World Robotics Olympiad - WRO) is held annually. In the educational field, this is a massive competition to better understand what robotics is for those who first encounter a similar subject. It gives an opportunity to try their hand at participants from more than 50 countries. About 20 thousand teams come to the competition, which include children from 7 to 18 years old.
The main goal of WRO: development and popularization of scientific and technological creativity (scientific and technical creativity) and robotics among youth and children. Such Olympiads are a modern educational tool of the 21st century.
New Features
In order for children to better understand what robotics is, the competition uses theoretical and practical skills gained in the classroom as part of club work and the school curriculum for the study of natural sciences and exact sciences. Passion for the robotics discipline gradually develops into a desire to learn more deeply about such sciences as mathematics, physics, computer science and technology.
WRO is a unique opportunity for its participants and observers not only to learn more about what robotics is, but also to develop the skills of creativity and critical thinking that are so necessary in the 21st century.
Training
Interest in the educational discipline of robotics is growing every day. The material base is constantly improving and developing, many ideas that until recently remained a dream are today a reality. The study of the subject "Fundamentals of Robotics" has become possible for a large number of children. In the lessons, the children learn to solve problems with limited resources, process and assimilate information, and use it in the right way.
Children learn easily. The modern younger generation, brought up on various gadgets, as a rule, has no difficulty in mastering the discipline "Fundamentals of Robotics", subject to the desire and craving for new knowledge.
It must be stated that even adults are more difficult to retrain than to teach pure but thirsty children's minds. A positive trend is the enormous attention to the popularization of robotics among the youth by the Russian government. And this is understandable, since the task of modernizing engineering education and attracting young professionals is a matter of the state's competitiveness in the international arena.
Importance of the subject
Today, the topical issue of the Ministry of Education is the introduction of educational robotics into the circle of school disciplines. It is considered an important area of development. At the technology lessons, children should get an idea of the modern sphere of development of technology and design, which give them the opportunity to invent and build themselves. It is not necessary for all students to become engineers, but everyone should have the opportunity.
In general, robotics lessons are extremelyare interesting to children. It is important for everyone to understand this - both teachers and parents. Such classes provide an opportunity to see other disciplines in a different light, to understand the meaning of their study. But it is the meaning, the understanding of why this is necessary, that drives the minds of the guys. His absence nullifies all the efforts of teachers and parents.
An important factor is that teaching robotics is not stressful and completely absorbing for children. This is not only the development of the student's personality, but also the opportunity to get away from the street, unfavorable environment, idle pastime and the consequences that entail.
Origin
The very name of robotics comes from the corresponding English robotics. This is an applied science that deals with the development of technical automated systems. In production, it is one of the main technical foundations of intensification.
All the laws of robotics, like science itself, are closely related to electronics, mechanics, telemechanics, mechatronics, computer science, radio engineering, electrical engineering. Robotics itself is divided into industrial, construction, medical, space, military, underwater, aviation and household.
The concept of "robotics" was first used in his stories by science fiction writer Isaac Asimov. It was in 1941 (the story "The Liar").
The very word "robot" was coined in 1920 by Czech writers Karel Capek and his brother Josef. It was included in the science fiction play "Rossum's Universal Robots", which was staged in 1921 and enjoyed great audience success. Today you can see howthe line indicated in the play has been widely developed in the light of science fiction cinematography. The essence of the plot: the owner of the plant is developing and setting up the production of a large number of androids that can work without rest. But these robots end up rebelling against their creators.
Historical examples
It is interesting that the beginnings of robotics appeared in ancient times. This is evidenced by the remains of moving statues that were made in the 1st century BC. Homer wrote in the Iliad about maidservants made of gold, capable of speaking and thinking. Today, the mind that robots are endowed with is called artificial intelligence. In addition, the ancient Greek mechanical engineer Archytas of Tarentum is credited with designing and building the mechanical flying pigeon. This event dates back to around 400 BC
There are many such examples. They are well disclosed in the book of Makarov I. M. and Topcheeva Yu. I. "Robotics: history and perspectives". It tells in a popular way about the origins of modern robots, and also outlines the robotics of the future and the corresponding development of human civilization.
Types of robots
At the present stage, the most important classes of general purpose robots are mobile and manipulative.
Mobile is an automatic machine with a moving chassis and controlled drives. These robots can be walking, wheeled, caterpillar, crawling, floating, flying.
Manipulation is an automatic stationary or mobilea machine consisting of a manipulator with several degrees of freedom and software control that performs motor and control functions in production. Such robots are available in floor, portal or suspended form. They are most widely used in instrument-making and machine-building industries.
Movement methods
Wheeled and tracked robots are widely used. The movement of a walking robot is a difficult task of dynamics. Such robots cannot yet have a stable movement inherent in a person.
Regarding flying robots, we can say that most modern aircraft are just them, but they are controlled by pilots. At the same time, the autopilot can control the flight at all stages. Flying robots include drones (UAVs) and their subclass - cruise missiles. Such devices are lightweight and perform dangerous missions, up to firing at the command of the operator. In addition, there are design vehicles capable of independent firing.
There are flying robots that use the movement methods that penguins, jellyfish and rays use. This method of movement can be seen in the Air Penguin, Air Ray, Air Jelly robots. They are manufactured by Festo. But RoboBee robots use insect flight methods.
Among crawling robots, there are a number of developments similar in movement to worms, snakes and slugs. In this case, the robot uses friction forces on a rough surface or surface curvature. Similar movementuseful for narrow spaces. Such robots are needed to search for people under the rubble of destroyed buildings. Snake-like robots are capable of moving through water (such as the ACM-R5 made in Japan).
Robots moving on a vertical surface use the following approaches:
- like a man who climbs a ledge wall (Stanford robot Capuchin);
- like geckos equipped with vacuum suction cups (Wallbot" and Stickybot).
Among the floating robots, there are many developments that move on the principle of imitation of fish. The efficiency of such movement is 80% higher than the efficiency of movement with a propeller. Such designs have a low noise level and high maneuverability. This is why they are of great interest to researchers of underwater space. These robots include the University of Essex Robotic Fish and Tuna, developed by the Field Robotics Institute. They are modeled after the movement characteristic of tuna. Among the robots that imitate the movement of a stingray, the development of Festo is known: Aqua Ray. And the robot moving like a jellyfish is Aqua Jelly from the same developer.
Circle work
Most robotics clubs are geared towards primary and secondary schools. But children of preschool age are not deprived of attention. The main role here is played by the development of creativity. Preschoolers must learn to think freely and translate their ideas into creativity. That is why robotics classes in circles for children under 6 years of age are aimed at the active use of cubes and simpleconstructors.
School curriculum is definitely getting more complicated. It provides an opportunity to get acquainted with various classes of robots, try yourself in practice, delve into science. New disciplines reveal the potential of the child to acquire professional skills and knowledge in the chosen field of engineering.
Robotics
Modern development of robotics is at such a stage that it seems that a powerful breakthrough in robotics is about to happen. It's the same with video calling and mobile gadgets. Until recently, all this seemed inaccessible to mass consumption. And today it is a commonplace that has ceased to amaze. But each exhibition of robotics shows us fantastic projects that capture the spirit of a person from the mere thought of their introduction into society.
In the education system, it is the complex installations of robots that make it possible to implement a program using project activities, among which are popular:
- Mechatronics Control Kit.
- LEGO Mindstorms.
- Festo Didactic.
- Fischertechnik.
Management
By type of system management there are:
- biotechnical (command, copying, semi-automatic);
- automatic (software, adaptive, intelligent);
- interactive (automated, supervisory, interactive).
The main tasks of robot control include:
- planning movements and positions;
- planning forces and moments;
- identification of dynamic and kinematic data;
- dynamic accuracy analysis.
The development of control methods is of great importance in the field of robotics. This is important for technical cybernetics and automatic control theory.
