Purpose:
Why spend time 'playing' with geeky tech toys? No matter how much fun they might be or just generally interesting why is that relevant to why you are here at school?
Here's how I would frame my answer that is partly a result of courses I've only recently started teaching through our manufacturing program as well as a sense that it is very hard to predict what any of us will be doing 10 years down the road. In production environments of all kinds as well as development environments it is common to be using controllers of one form or another. Controllers come in many forms from complex mechanical relay systems to robots to artificial intelligence systems. Underneath all of these systems are some common conceptual structures and skills. The Arduino platform is a highly capable system with moderate complexity through which we can explore these common conceptual structures. We will stay very focused on the fun and geeky applications of this technology but underneath it all there are valuable skills that we can all learn and benefit from.
Procedure:
This is an implementation week. Much of what you explore will stay here in the public domain for as long as I can support it (it will probably migrate to a different location when/if I retire) but I would recommend creating your own data structure that might be useful to a future you. Links and reading materials for each lab are available on the resource page for the lab.
1) Our first topic of discussion is to decide how we want to demonstrate the skills that you will be learning this term. Some of those skills process skills like learning to connect to and upload a program into your Arduino. Some of those skills will be coding skills. It is very easy in the contect of this material to watch someone else do the work and have almost no ability to implement it yourself. There are a number of possible solutions to this challenge but we will discuss it.
2) A framework for the lab and the use and access to resources: We will spend a little time discussing how I hope you will use the resources in this lab and how you might create your own Menlo Park if you should ever want to. Attention to and respect for the needs of others will be central to our learning community.
3) An introduction to the Arduino: We will discuss where and how to get your own Arduino or clone and what that means. What resources will be provided in the lab and what you will be expected to bring to the table.
4) In introduction to Ladder Logic as a precursor to programming: We will explore a different (though common industrial settings) language used to describe logical operations. This 'language' goes back to the 70's and has never really gone away. This language is commonly used in Programmable Logic Controllers (PLC's) that we will talk about here and there throughout the lab. This is a bit of an experiment but I hope that it will provide a visual transition to more traditional computer coding. We shall see....
5) Robotics and ROV opportunities: Arduino's are a standard tool for robotics development. There are a number of ongoing robitics programs/competitions in the region that could use some support and involvement from the college. There is also an ROV competion that Linn Benton CC and Clatsop CC have participated in over the years. We will discuss whether any of this is of interest and where we could go.
- LAB Deliverables:
1) Demo: Demonstrate that you can connect to your Arduino as well as a different model for which you may not have the driver.
2) Demo: Demonstrate that you can upload a program to the Arduino and change the blink rate of the onboard LED.
3) Document/Turnitin: Create a ladder logic drawing for a garage door with a photosensor on the floor (the usual way it's set up). The door opens regardless of whether the sensor is interrupted but stops if it's closing. Explain your reasoning.
4) Document/Turnitin: Identify and provide the link to 3 tutorials from this Arduino Tutorials page and describe the potential value they provide for projects you are interested in.
This link provides a central location for documents and links specifically relevant to this lab.
More general resources for this course and the lab are accessible from the Web Resources page.
