Junk Drawer Robotics

4-H Robotics: Engineering for Today and Tomorrow

The 4-H Robotics: Engineering for Today and Tomorrow curriculum is designed in three tracks. In Track 1 (Virtual Robotics), youth can participate using the virtual activities on-line or via a DVD-ROM. Track 2 (Junk Drawer Robotics) encourages youth to use household materials to engineer robotic designs. In Track 3 (Platforms) youth with access to specific educational robotics platforms (Lego, VEX, Robotix, etc.).

Please contact any of the following persons for more information:

Jeanne Lothridge at cjlothridge@ucdavis.edu or 951-683-6491 x 228 or 714-708-1612

Richard Mahacek at rlmahacek@ucdavis.edu or 209-385-7418.

Steven Worker at smworker@ucdavis.edu or 530 754-8519

Junk Drawer Robotics

The Junk Drawer Robotics track provides youth experiences in science processes, engineering design principles and technology processes working with household items and parts to complete simple design challenges. This track builds upon the structure of the 4-H SERIES project. These robotics activities follow the basic SERIES design by using science process skills, cross-age instruction, the learning cycle, and the apprentice structure, and then add in the two additional elements of engineering and technology. After the discovery and framing through scientific thinking, the curriculum extends to designing and building using engineering and technology.

Level 1: Give Robots a Hand
In this level youth will be exploring and learning about robot arms. The arm is one of the most useful and imitated parts of the human body. It is flexible with joints; shoulder, elbow, wrist, that allow it to be placed in many positions to reach and grab. The hand with its fingers and thumb can grab, hold, pick up, and more. Designs for robot arms can allow a robot to be used to grab, lift, move, or position items into a machine, to control a spot welder, or to assemble parts for an item.

Level 2: Robots on the Move
Mobile robots make up an array of applications allowing robots to go and do things in locations and situations that humans would not like or could not go. Mobile robots can go into dangerous situations, can fly, go under water, traverse remote areas or planets, carry instruments and sensors, and much more. In this level youth will explore legged, wheeled, and underwater robots. We will explore friction, basic electrical power and motors, engineering constraints, gears systems, and buoyancy.

Level 3: Mechatronics
For greater control and usefulness, robots merge mechanical objects with electronic components. In this level, youth will explore components of electronic devices and basic programming elements. Various sensors will be used to help robots explore the world and react in programmed control.

2011 4-H JDR Workshops

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