Improving Robotics Competition Autonomous Operation by Using Sensors

Abstract

The field of robotics has been growing rapidly in the last few years and is expected to continue rising. Therefore, we need to provide our middle and high school students with the tools and experiences to gain the necessary knowledge in order to take full advantage of their skills once they complete their post-secondary degrees and enter the workforce. The most challenging part in a robotics competition is to put together the hardware and software and create an artificial intelligence like behavior so that robots can help humans in tasks that range in complexity. Using sensors will provide a more accurate operation of robots when in autonomous operation that will provide information about its environment and will allow robot operation to adjust accordingly. The purpose of using sensors in the autonomous operation is to increase the score obtained when competing or provide better results when used in real life scenarios. Key Terms - Autonomous operation, Robotics in education, Sensors, Vex Robotics Competition.