Robot Bugs

Build your own robot and watch how it moves!

Year groups: 7–11 (ages 11–16)

Educational objectives

Students will have the opportunity to make their own robot from the initial assembly of all the parts. They will be able to build an electric circuit and see the results by watching the robot move.

Key student learning

Building this circuit has a practical purpose – making a robot that moves in a particular way.
Pushing switches affects the way the circuit connects and hence how the robot moves.
Practical uses of engineering and electronics.
Students will follow instructions, evaluating and amending their robots to ensure they work.

Materials needed per robot

2x 3 V, 13,100 RPM DC motor
2x white cable ties
4x yellow 10/0.1 wire (approx. 10 cm each)
2x red 10/0.1 wire (approx. 10 cm each)
3x green 10/0.1 wire (approx. 10 cm each)
2x black 10/0.1 wire (approx. 10 cm each)
Strong double-sided sticky tape or servo mounting tape
Battery box with switch for 2x AA batteries
2x 8 mm pulleys (2 mm bore)
2x grommet, open, 6.4 x 6.3 x 1.7
2x 43 mm lever solder switch (microswitch)
2x AA batteries
Foam PVC (Foamex), 9 x 2 cm
Sticky tape
Electrical tape
Additional items for decorating
Soldering iron and solder
Heatproof mat
Scissors
Optional hot glue gun

This will cost approximately £2.30 per robot, but depending on how many you are going to build the costs will vary (the more you build, the cheaper each robot becomes).

Practicalities

Most schools will have access to the majority of this equipment; one supplier we have found that stocks all the relevant materials is Rapid.
Depending on facilities and time available at your school you could set up the robots before the session using the first activity page, ‘Initial steps’. This would involve doing all the soldering and bending the Foamex in advance. Another option would be to get older students to help in the initial stages, bearing in mind any safety rules your school may have about soldering. However, if you have more time available in your science club or lesson, it is good for students to do the initial setup themselves. This stage of the process will take about 25 minutes per robot, depending on previous experience. You may want to cut wires in advance as well, but this is not necessary.
Once the initial assembly is complete it will take about 20 minutes to connect all the wires and get the robots working. It is worth allowing 30 minutes for this so that students can try out their robots as well.
Putting all the equipment needed for one robot into a clear plastic sandwich bag makes it much easier to hand out to students and avoids a lot of mess as well.
One of the best places for students to try out their robot bugs is on the science lab floor, because of its smooth surface.
You may want students to use a glue gun to firmly stick the microswitches, wing and motors in place – but only once they have made sure their robot works.
When you are not using the robot bug you should take the batteries out to avoid the microswitches turning on by accident.

Warning

The robot bug is quite fast, so be prepared when it is first switched on!
Wires may catch, so you will need to make sure wires are kept apart by sticking them together once they are in the right place.

Discussion

What would happen if you connected the wires differently?
What could you use this robot for?
What is a robot?
What is the future of robots?
Could you make a different robot with the same kit?
What would happen if one motor sticks out more than the other?
Are there any problems with the way your robot is moving? Can you do anything to improve it?

Extensions

You could build a simple maze out of bits of MDF to see whose robot can navigate its way round the obstacles fastest.
You could even use the activity for a staff training day – adults love it just as much as children. There are many different variables you could use as the basis of a contest, such as whose robot can go the fastest in a straight line.
You could make this whole activity a theme day where students build the robot from start to finish and examine other simple robots as well.
Robots could be decorated (pipe cleaners have proved popular). Alternatively students could try and build a casing so that the loose wires on the robot are not visible; for example students could make a ladybird shell out of a dust filter mask.
You could use the activity as the starting point for thinking about the potential for robots in the future.
For students who are blind or partially sighted you could do the same activity using Wikki Stix (sometimes called Bendaroos), or you could stick different-sized labels on each wire so the colours are distinguished.
For a very advanced class you could introduce ‘robot wars’ where students build their own robots that battle against each other. Winners can be determined in a number of different ways, such as the robot that pushes the other one out of the arena first.
Students could experiment with the same kit and see what other robots they can build or if they could use the same kit and put it on a different base.
Students could try adding additional parts to the robot to see if they can alter the way it moves. A good example of this is sticking cable ties to the ‘antennae’ to make them longer.
Students could experiment with changing the diameter of the wheels and trying different materials for the tyres. This would be a good demonstration of friction.

Links to everyday life

Domestic Robots

Although this activity is about a simple robot there are many examples of robots in everyday life. Robots are now starting to be used in the home, where they are usually referred to as domestic robots. They include robots for vacuuming, mowing the lawn and entertaining (such as serving drinks). These robots can be programmed and then left to do the task themselves.

Boy with drinks robot, October 1984.

Industrial robots

These can be programmed and automatically controlled for manufacturing purposes. Within industry they can be used for painting, packaging and assembly.

Unimate 2000B industrial robot c.1979.

Medical Robots

These are made to assist in complex or minimally invasive surgery. Some complex prosthetics could also be considered robots as they react to the environment without the user needing to input any information, e.g. how tightly they grip an object without crushing it. Other robot devices include ones used to lift patients in hospitals and ones used to automate tedious tasks in laboratories.

‘Bloodbot’ with inventor Alex Zivanoovic, March 2001.

The science – an introduction

A robot is an artificial device that performs a task, reacting to its environment autonomously.

This robot uses a simple circuit to enable the wheels to move. Batteries provide electrical current that runs through the wires and to the individual components of the circuit. This energy is converted to electromotive force inside the motor, which enables the motor to move, spinning the wheels. Microswitches provide an added complexity: when a microswitch is pushed it reverses the opposite wheel, making the robot rotate so it will turn away from an obstacle and be able to start moving again.

STEM club links

These resources support integrated Science, Technology, Engineering and Maths activities in STEM clubs. Here are some specific links:

Science

By looking at different circuits students will see how they relate to a practical purpose in the robot that has been made.

Engineering

By exploring the way the wires connect and the order in which they connect you will be able to support engineering.

Technology

Creating a cover for the bug that hides all the wires but does not stop it moving is a good practical technology exercise in this investigation.

Maths

Students can investigate the weight of the bugs, especially any additional items added, and see if weight and size influence the way the bug moves.

Curriculum links

This resource has been developed specifically for use within Key Stage 3 STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering and Maths) clubs to provide enrichment and extension of the curriculum. However it may also be used for teaching elements of the curriculum at KS3 and KS4 in an engaging, inspiring and memorable way.

Key Stage 3 Science

Key concepts
1.1. Scientific thinking
b. Critically analysing and evaluating evidence from observations and experiments.
1.4. Collaboration
a. Sharing developments and common understanding across disciplines and boundaries.
Key processes
2.1. Practical and enquiry skills
b. Assess risk and work safely in the laboratory, field and workplace.
2.3. Communication
a. use appropriate methods, including ICT, to communicate scientific information and contribute to presentations and discussions about scientific issues.
Range and content
3.1. Energy, electricity and forces
a. Energy can be transferred usefully, stored or dissipated, but cannot be created or destroyed.
c. Electric current in circuits can produce a variety of effects.
Curriculum opportunities
The curriculum should provide opportunities for pupils to:
a. research, experiment, discuss and develop arguments
b. use real-life examples as a basis for finding out about science
f. use creativity and innovation in science, and appreciate their importance in enterprise
k. make links between science and other subjects and areas of the curriculum.

Key Stage 4 Science

How Science Works
1.3. Communication skills
a. recall, analyse, interpret, apply and question scientific information or ideas
c. present information, develop an argument and draw a conclusion, using scientific, technical and mathematical language, conventions and symbols and ICT tools.
Breadth of study
2.3. Energy, electricity and radiations
a. Energy transfers can be measured and their efficiency calculated, which is important in considering the economic costs and environmental effects of energy use.
b. Electrical power is readily transferred and controlled, and can be used in a range of different situations.

Links to the Science Museum

Medical research robot now on display in the Health Matters gallery in the Science Museum.

Some useful links for more information

The BEAM reference library has information about parts that make up a robot and other simple robots that can be built.
The University of West England has information about scientist Grey Walter and his invention the Bristol tortoise, a cybernetic tortoise which was exhibited at the Festival of Britain in 1951. The Bristol tortoise is on display in the Making of the Modern World gallery at the Science Museum.

The Science Museum cannot be held responsible for the quality or accuracy of the content of web pages from other sources.