Mark Bell

ExploroBot: Program It

Your ExploroBot looks nice, but it really doesn’t do much yet, does it? That’s about to change. In this chapter you’re going to create the program that sends the bot down the tunnel (and back) to trigger the locked tomb door. So, let’s get started.

SnapShotBot: Program It

You might think that programming the SnapShotBot is a little more involved than the previous bots. Although this program might be a little larger in size, the truth is that you’re already experienced with all the programming blocks you’ll need.

GrabberBot: Planning and Design

With those requirements in mind, let’s move forward and develop a solution to this challenge.

SnapShotBot: Planning and Design

There are many elements to this challenge’s bot. First, we have to figure out how to properly place the bot in the room. Then, the bot needs to take a picture of the library. After that, the bot needs to circle around the basket (still holding the twine) and return to the team so that they can pull the two ends of the twine to retrieve the basket and the key. Like I said, we have a lot to accomplish with this little bot. So let’s get to work.

PushBot: Planning and Design

The bot for this next challenge will perform its tasks by doing the opposite—pushing the figurines into their proper locations.

StringBot: Program It

The StringBot is a unique little bot. When you ask someone to describe a robot, my guess is that he or she will probably have a mental picture of a wheeled robot or a bot with legs. Our StringBot has neither—it’s going to move along a string. But whether your bot has wheels, legs, or some other method for moving, it has to be programmed properly to accomplish its desired tasks. The StringBot needs to move along a string, successfully drop a small object into a jar, then return to you. This chapter will show you how to make that happen.

Robot Commander Remote Control App

The ROBOT COMMANDER app can operate every aspect of your EV3 robots. It can control motors, both large and medium. It can give you a joystick or slider bars to control motors singly or in combination. It can also report the status of your sensors. This is exceptionally useful for testing a new design without writing any software.

Tomb, Trap, and Trigger

The Archeology Storyline: The story starts on Day 2 of an expedition to explore a Mayan tomb. Evan, the young owner of a new EV3 kit, is with his archeologist uncle. The tomb has traps and obstacles - will Evans robots save the day?

Discovery, Secret, and Home

The Archeology Storyline: The past few days had been a flurry of activity, with Evan assisting Uncle Phillip, Max, and Grace to take pictures and measurements, draw sketches, and weigh artifacts. Evan had never had this much fun in his life. He had taken part in opening King Ixtua’s tomb and helped discover the king’s burial chamber.

Bravery, Wisdom, and Honor

The Archeology Storyline: Evan’s uncle had unrolled the small scroll with gloved hands, careful not to tear the thin parchment. After Max had finished photographing the Mayan writing on the scroll, Uncle Phillip had given the scroll to Grace for translation. That had been two hours earlier, and now Evan was sitting with his uncle and Max in the tent, waiting for Grace to complete her initial review of the scroll’s contents...