ET-375: Introduction to Robotics

Course, prefix, number, & title: ET-375 Introduction to Robotics

Hours (Class, recitation, Laboratory, studio): 3 class hours, 3 laboratory hours

Credits: 4

Pre-requisites (if any): ET-110 and either ET-540 or permission of the Department

Course Description in college catalog:

This course is designed to introduce robotic construction, programming, operation and basic theory to students. Topics included are electronic components, analog and digital signals, CPU, microcontroller, I/O ports, continuous rotation and servo motors, light sensors, ultrasonic sensors, IR sensors, encoders, robot controllers, structure and motion of a robot, power, and programming of robots. Also covered are building a gear formation, speed and torque, transmitter and receiver, and autonomous mobile robots. Students will construct and test microcontroller-based robots in the laboratory.

Academic programs for which this course serves as a requirement or an elective:

A.A.S. Computer Engineering Technology

A.A.S. Electronic Engineering Technology

A.A.S. Internet and Information Technology

Certificate Program - New Media Technology

General Education Outcomes: Below is a listing of General Education Outcome(s) that this course supports.

1. Use analytical reasoning to identify issues or problems and evaluate evidence in order to make informed decisions

2. Reason quantitatively as required in various fields of interest and in everyday life

Course-specific student learning outcomes:

Students demonstrate that they can calculate electric currents, voltages, and power in circuits such as transistor switching networks by solving homework, quiz, and exam problems and exercises; demonstrate that they can write programs in the C language to control a robot on quizzes, exams and projects; test their programs in simulated robotic environments and using physical robots; demonstrate the analysis of robotic microcontroller input and output signals and pins with associated interface circuits and components in their laboratory reports; analyze of motors used in robots by applying Kirchhoffs Laws, Ohm Law, and electromagnetic concepts to the motor equivalent circuits on homework, quiz, and exam problems and questions.

Program-specific outcomes

ABET Criterion 3 Student Outcomes addressed by ET-375:

Student Outcome (1) - an ability to apply knowledge, techniques, skills and modern tools of mathematics, science, engineering, and technology to solve well-defined engineering problems appropriate to the discipline;

• Performance Indicator ETCT1-2 Solve applied problems by employing computer programming skills and associated software including circuit simulation software.
• Performance Indicator ETCT1-5 Analyze systems in a mathematical environment at or above the level of algebra and trigonometry.

Methods by which student learning will be assessed and evaluated; describe the types of methods to be employed; note whether certain methods are required for all sections:

ET 375 Lecture Course Topics- Table of Week Numbers and Lecture Course Topics:

Course objectives/expected student learning outcomes

Week	Lecture Topics
1	Robot Block Diagram; Engineering Notation, Ohm's Law, Kirchhoff's Laws, Series & Parallel Ckts.
2	Power, Diodes, Transistors, Capacitors, Electronic Ckts.
3	Inductors, DC Motors; Motor Equivalent Circuits, Loads, Speed, Torque, Performing Motor Calculations.
4	Unidirectional Motor Driver Circuits; Bidirectional H-Bridge Motor Driver Circuits, Motor Speed Control using PWM and PCM.
5	Robot Physics: Vectors, Displacement, Velocity, Acceleration, Average Velocity, Mass, Force, Newton's Second Law.
6	Vector Addition, Friction and Normal Forces, Weight, Free Body Diagrams; Mechanical Power; Translational Model of Robot with Motors, Robot moving up an inclined plane.
7	Angular Displacement; Angular Speed, Angular Acceleration, Linear and Angular relationships; Robot Differential Drive Steering, Encoders, Radius of Arc of Turn
8	Torque, Rotational Inertia (moment of inertia), Power, Gear Passes, Motor No Load Speed and Stall Torque; Model of Robot with Motors: Angular Speed and Torque Quantities, Robot Mechanical and Electrical Power, Robot moving up an inclined plane considering angular quantities.
9	Robot Sensors including ultrasonic sonar, potentiometers, tachogenerators, encoders, hall effect compasses; Triangulation Ranging and GPS.
10	C and ROBOTC Programming: Introduction to programming in the C language, Preprocessor Directives, Compiler Libraries, and program comments
11	C programming: Array Variables; Input and Output Operations and Functions; Arithmetic, Relational, Logical, and Assignment Operators.
12	C programming: If-Else Statements; For, While, and Do-While Loops; Goto Statements.
13	C programming: Creating Functions and Function Arguments; Bitwise Operators.e
14	C Programming: Motor & Sensor Setup; Motor Array Variables: Motor Speed; Sensor Array Variables: Sensor Normalized Values and Raw Values; Encoders.
15	Final Exam

ET 375 Lab Course Topics- Tables of Week Numbers and Lab Course Topics:

Course objectives/expected student learning outcomes

Week	Lecture Topics
1	Lab 1: Electronic Components, Circuits, and Circuit Simulation
2	Lab 2: Transistors, Capacitors, Switches, Function Generators, and Oscilloscopes
3	Lab 3: DC Motors, Motor Driver Circuits, and Motor Speed Control
4	Lab 4: LEGO MINDSTORMS NXT Robots, Motors, Encoders, and Sonar Sensors
5	Lab 5: ROBOTC for MINDSTORMS, Motor Encoder Functions, Linear and Angular Speed Relationships, and Radius of Turning Circles
6	Lab 6: Writing Programs in ROBOTC: Triangle Path, Figure Eight, Obstacle Avoidance, and Random Roaming
7, 8	Lab 6 continued
9	Lab 7: Writing Programs in ROBOTC: Roaming with Encoders and Sonar Based Obstacle Detection and Wall Following Behaviors
10	Lab 8: Proportional Control in Robotics and Maze Navigation
11	Lab 9: Light Sensors, Line Following, and Proportional Control
12	Lab 10: Color Sensors and Multicolor Line Following
13	Lab 11: Line Following, Object Manipulation and Transportation
14	Lab Project: Students Choose a Robot Design, Build, and Program the Robot

Academic Integrity policy (department or College):
Academic honesty is expected of all students. Any violation of academic integrity is taken extremely seriously. All assignments and projects must be the original work of the student or teammates. Plagiarism will not be tolerated. Any questions regarding academic integrity should be brought to the attention of the instructor. The following is the Queensborough Community College Policy on Academic Integrity: "It is the official policy of the College that all acts or attempted acts that are violations of Academic Integrity be reported to the Office of Student Affairs. At the faculty member's discretion and with the concurrence of the student or students involved, some cases though reported to the Office of Student Affairs may be resolved within the confines of the course and department. The instructor has the authority to adjust the offender's grade as deemed appropriate, including assigning an F to the assignment or exercise or, in more serious cases, an F to the student for the entire course." Read the University's policy on Academic Integrity opens in a new window(PDF).

Disabilities
Any student who feels that he or she may need an accommodation based upon the impact of a disability should contact the Office of Accessibility Services in Science Building, Room S-132, 718-631-6257, to coordinate reasonable accommodations for students with documented disabilities. You can visit the Office of Accessibility Services website.