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  • Grade(s): 9-12
  • Time: 1.5 weeks
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Description

Students will add the Optical Sensor to their V5 Workcell and code the arm to pick up and sort disks based on the color detected by the sensor. Students will use [If then] blocks to determine how the arm on the Workcell should move when each color is detected. They will also explore how sensors are used in industrial robotics.

Essential Question(s)

  • How do I use the V5 Optical Sensor with the Workcell to pick up disks and sort them by the color detected?

Understanding(s)

Students will understand:

  • How to code the V5 Optical Sensor in VEXcode V5.
  • How to use [If then] blocks with the conditionals to trigger the arm on the Workcell to perform certain behaviors.

Objective(s)

  • Identify that the V5 Optical Sensor is a sensor used to detect the color of an object as well as if an object is near or far from the sensor.
  • Identify how to use the <Optical detects color> block in VEXcode V5.
  • Identify how to use the [Set optical light power] block in VEXcode V5.
  • Identify how to use the [If then] block in VEXcode V5.
  • Identify how to create and use variables in VEXcode V5.
  • Identify how to launch VEXcode V5.
  • Identify how to open an example project in VEXcode V5.
  • Identify how to open a saved project in VEXcode V5.
  • Identify how to name and save a VEXcode V5 project.
  • Identify how to download and run a VEXcode V5 project.
  • Identify how to add blocks to a VEXcode V5 project.
  • Identify how to configure a V5 Optical Sensor in VEXcode V5.

Vocabulary

Optical Sensor
A V5 sensor that can be used to detect the color of an object, the proximity of an object, and ambient light.

Materials Needed

Quantity Materials Needed
1 per group

V5 Workcell

1 per group

Build Instructions

1 per group

VEXcode V5

1 per group

Engineering Notebook

1 per group

Device to run VEXcode V5

1 per group

Micro-USB cable

4 per group

Colored Disks (1x red, 1x blue, 2x green)

1 per group

Seek Checklist (Google / .docx / .pdf)

1 for the teacher

Timer

Educational Standard(s)

  • Next Generation Science Standards (NGSS) HS-ETS1-2: Design a solution to a complex real-world problem by breaking it down into smaller, more manageable problems that can be solved through engineering.
  • Computer Science Teacher Association (CSTA) CSTA 3A-AP-18: Create artifacts by using procedures within a program, combinations of data and procedures, or independent but interrelated programs.
  • Next Generation Science Standards (NGSS) HS-ETS1-4: Models (e.g., physical, mathematical, computer models) can be used to simulate systems and interactions—including energy, matter, and information flows—within and between systems at different scales.
  • Computer Science Teacher Association (CSTA) CSTA 3A-AP-13: Create prototypes that use algorithms to solve computational problems by leveraging prior student knowledge and personal interests.

Go to this page in the Knowledge Base to see a cumulative list of VEX V5 Workcell STEM Labs standards.