This paper focuses on the key role played by the adoption of a framework in teaching robotics with a computer science approach in the master in Computer Engineering. The framework adopted is the Robot Operating System (ROS), which is becoming a standard de facto inside the robotics community. The educational activities proposed in this paper are based on a constructionist approach. The Mindstorms NXT robot kit is adopted to trigger the learning challenge. The ROS framework is exploited to drive the students programming methodology during the laboratory activities and to allow students to exercise with the major computer programming paradigms and the best programming practices. The major robotics topics students are involved with are: acquiring data from sensors, connecting sensors to the robot, and navigate the robot to reach the final goal. The positive effects given by this approach are highlighted in this paper by comparing the work recently produced by students with the work produced in the previous years in which ROS was not yet adopted and many different software tools and languages were used. The results of a questionnaire are reported showing that we achieved the didactical objectives we expected as instructors.
A mobile robot simulator useful in research and education was implemented in Matlab, it models the differential kinematics as well as proximity sensors of the robot. It allows the performance assessment of navigation algorithms through various quality metrics that are useful for comparing and analyzing navigation algorithms of mobile robots. An example that simulates and compares two autonomous navigation algorithms is presented.
Using robotics to interest kindergarten children in science and technology in a playful way is a rather new idea in educational robotics. Aiming to foster the integration of robotics already in pre-school education this paper presents an innovative robotics project for kindergartens. Initialized by the Graz University of Technology and the University of Teacher Education, the project involved different scientific and educational institutions. The focus was put on the cross-generational aspect, integra ting kindergarten children, pupils up to the age of thirteen as well as senior citizens in order to initiate a vital social process between the different age groups. Within the project a robotics day in a kindergarten offering eleven different hands-on experiments, where children could ac- tively participate, was organized. The goal of the project presented in this paper was to familiarize children in preschool age as well as young school students with science and technology using different robotics platforms as pedagogical tools. Aiming at the investigation of the impact of the robotics project a first qualitative evaluation was conducted.
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