Course Title: Autonomous Robotics with PuzzleBot
Starting 1st April 2025 for 5 weeks
Duration: 5 Weeks
Contact Time: 2 Hours per Week
Total Contact Hours: 10 Hours
Prerequisites:
Basic programming knowledge is an advantage but not essential
Basic knowledge of mathematics
Course Objectives:
By the end of this course, participants will:
1. Assemble and set up their PuzzleBot.
2. Write and upload basic movement control programs.
3. Implement obstacle detection and avoidance using a laser sensor.
4. Program vision systems, with a traffic light example.
Week 1: Getting Started with PuzzleBot & Movement Basics
Objectives:
• Understand PuzzleBot hardware and components.
• Set up the development environment.
• Write basic movement commands.
Activities:
1. Introduction to PuzzleBot: Overview of motors, sensors, and control board.
2. Setting Up the Software Environment: Installing required libraries.
3. Basic Movement: Writing Python scripts to move forward, turn, and stop.
Homework:
• Experiment with different movement speeds and turning angles.
Week 2: Introduction to autonomy
Objectives:
Understand open-loop control
Understand closed-loop control
Path Following
Activities:
1. Implementation of an open-loop control in the Puzzlebot
2. Implementation of a closed-loop control for the Puzzleboth
3. Simple Path following algorithm for the Puzzlebot
Homework:
• Experiment with different controller parameters and different paths
Week 3: Obstacle Detection and Avoidance
Objectives:
Understand and implement obstacle detection using TOF sensors.
Develop an obstacle avoidance algorithm.
Activities:
Using TOF Sensors: How do they work, and how do they read sensor data?
Decision-Making in Robotics: Programming conditional logic to avoid obstacles.
Implementing Obstacle Avoidance: Writing a program to move around objects dynamically.
Homework:
Modify the obstacle avoidance algorithm to improve reaction time.
Week 4: Colour Recognition for Stop/Go SignalsObjectives:
Understand the basics of image processing for robotics.
Implement colour detection for red and green signals.
Testing & Debugging: Running the robot in a simulated environment.
Activities:
Introduction to OpenCV for Robotics: Capturing and processing camera input.
Colour Filtering & Thresholding: Detecting red and green signals.
Integrating Colour Recognition into Movement: Stopping on red, moving on green.
Final Task:
Improve vision algorithm to work under different lighting conditions.
Week 5: Final Challenge
Objective:
Combine movement, obstacle avoidance, and signal recognition into one autonomous system.
Presentation:
Merge all functionalities into a single script.
Showcase your final project.
Test your algorithms on a small obstacle course with a fully autonomous Puzzlebot.
Final Examination.
Get your very own PuzzleBot and learn the basics in 5 weeks!
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