Vol. 38, No. 18

1-4-2005
By: Randy Gammage

LEGOs link engineering majors with kid designers

Ohio State’s College of Engineering is cultivating an interest in science and engineering among middle school students, one robot at a time.

Starting in mid-September, students from OSU’s honors engineering program and Jones Middle School in Upper Arlington met two evenings per week at the Center for Automotive Research (CAR), in preparation for a regional qualifier for the FIRST (For Inspiration and Recognition of Science and Technology) LEGO League Challenge Project.

“This gives us the opportunity to turn some of these young minds on to science and engineering,” said Giorgio Rizzoni, director of CAR and professor of mechanical and electrical engineering. “While a career in science or engineering may not be glamorous, we can show these kids that engineering can be fun, and also can have a significant impact on society.”

The nine Jones team members, including Rizzoni’s sixth-grade son, Alex, collectively known as the Golden Builders, competed in a Dec. 4 regional qualifier and will now advance to the Jan. 14-15 state competition at Wright-Patterson Air Force Base, Rizzoni said. They also won first place for their research project, one of four major awards presented (along with overall, robot design and robot performance). The research project award is presented to the team whose quality research, innovative solutions and creative presentation best reflect an in-depth understanding of the various scientific disciplines and issues involved with the challenge project.

Rizzoni, the university’s Ford Motor Company Chair in Electromechanical Systems, served as coach of the team with Larry O’Flynn, eighth-grade science teacher and department head at Jones Middle School. O’Flynn said the technology expertise the OSU students supplied to the project was indispensable.

“Without the OSU engineering students we couldn’t have done this,” he said. “They’ve really been a driving force in keeping the kids focused on what they \0\0have to do.”

The FIRST LEGO League (FLL) is the result of a partnership between FIRST and the LEGO Company. FLL offers children ages nine-14 an opportunity to use real-world context and hands-on experimentation.
Using LEGO bricks, sensors, motors and gears, the teams construct and program their unique robot inventions each year to meet a specific challenge. The focus this year was on designing robots that address the specific needs of people with disabilities. Robots are programmed to simulate common everyday activities, such as walking, reading distant signs and climbing stairs, O’Flynn said.

“These middle school students are learning to see the world in a different light, and are exploring how they can use technology to create equal access for all people,” he said.

The research project involved the creation of a more accessible design for the CAR building. As part of their work, Jones students were asked to navigate the CAR building while restricted by crutches, a wheelchair or a blindfold.

“I learned that it was hard getting through the building, especially the stairs,” said Samuel Pape, a seventh grader at Jones. Similarly, he discovered that programming the robot to navigate the stairs also was the most difficult task.

In FLL competition, points are scored when the robot: climbs the stairs, goes through a gate, brings food to the pets or lifts a food tray to place it on a table top in a two-and-a-half minute span. The robots are preprogrammed to perform tasks centered on helping someone with disabilities, while navigating an 8-foot by 4-foot course.

Sixth-grader David Mehrle said larger, less attractive wheels on the robot solved the stairs dilemma. The team found that various parts, selected for style, would often fall off when called to action.

“I’ve learned that for this competition, as far as the robots, looking good isn’t always the best thing, but functionality is,” he said.

Expressing a keen interest in becoming an electrical engineer one day, Mehrle said he can break down a computer and rebuild it, but had little programming knowledge prior to joining the challenge project. He has been playing with LEGOs at home since he was three years old, and estimates he has enough single pieces to fill a small plastic swimming pool.

Tom Sokol, third-year electrical engineering student at OSU, managed the Jones and OSU students working on the Golden Builders team, as well as five other middle school teams meeting at various locations. The experience has allowed him to apply what he has learned in the classroom.

“I’m enjoying the opportunity to share what I’ve learned about robotics with others,” Sokol said. “Being in a leadership role has made me a lot more confident in my own abilities and has prepared me for when I’m out there in the industry and in charge of a team of engineers.”

While this year’s Golden Builders team gained valuable experience that can be applied to another successful run next year, Rizzoni said he considered this year’s squad a success from the beginning.

“We won the day we brought these middle school students in here to work together with OSU students,” he said.

Each year, FIRST LEGO League competitions are held at the state, national and international levels. Teams consist of up to 10 players, with the emphasis on team building, problem solving, creativity and analytical thinking. For details on FIRST LEGO League, visit the Web at www.firstlegoleague.org. Team registration for 2005 competitions will begin in the spring. \0\0

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