INTRODUCTION

A robot, in simple words, is any machine designed to carry out a task. This would make you say, “So, a calculator, a PC, a vacuum cleaner – all these are also robots?” Not exactly. Robots are machines that use programming to make decisions and carry out tasks. For e.g. a screwdriver is a machine because it carries out the task of fastening a screw, and reduces human effort. But it is not a robot. If we combine it with a robotic arm, then the entire thing can be called a robot.

ADVANTAGES OF ROBOTS

1. Robots never tire. They can work at the same speed with the same consistency without any breaks or holidays.
2. They are useful when you need to perform a particular task over and over again without getting bored. This enables us to utilize our full potential in tasks that can only be done by humans.
3. Robots are quick. They can do a lot of work in a short duration of time. This, in turn, helps save time.

4. Since robots can do a greater amount of work in a shorter duration, the overall output increases.
5. Robots can be used to perform tasks that would be dangerous for a normal human being. They can also work in hazardous environments without the fear of any damage.
6. Robots can perform tasks with greater accuracy and quality than humans.

APPLICATIONS

We can find robots in a multitude of fields – right from cleaning your home to celebrating birthdays on Mars. Jokes apart, in the modern world, robots have found a place in almost every field. Some of their endless applications are given below:

Industry: For handling and moving materials from one place to another, and for other purposes such as painting, manufacturing, welding, etc.	Space: For exploring outer space. E.g., the Curiosity Rover
Hospitals: Surgical robots, rehabilitation robots, pharmacy robots, etc.	Transportation: Self-driving cars, transportation of goods and services, etc.
Agriculture: For tasks such as vegetable and fruit picking.	Military: Bomb discarding robots, drone explorations, etc.
Households: For cooking, cleaning, and washing purposes.	Entertainment: Humanoids, robot dogs, mobile phones, computers, etc. E.g., Aibo the robot dog.

ACTIVITY: MAKING QUARKY MOVE

Make your robot move forward, left, right, and back.

CODING STEPS

Follow the steps below:

1. Create a New file in PictoBlox App.
2. Connect Quarky to PictoBlox.
3. Forward Movement: Let’s make the script for the robot to run the robot forward for 1 second and then stop. If both the wheels of the robot rotate in the forward direction, then it will move forward. Makes sense, right?

• • First, go to the Robot palette and add the run () motor () with () speed Select the left motor, the forward direction of motion, and 100% speed are set as the default values.
  • Now, copy the run () motor () with () speed block from Robot palette and add it below the first one. Select the right motor from the dropdown.
  • Next, add a wait () seconds block from the Control palette and set the waiting time as 1
• Drag and drop the when flag clicked block into the scripting area from the Events
• Next, add a stop () motor block from the Robot palette below wait () seconds block and select left as the option.
• Next, add another stop () motor block from the Robot palette and select right as the option.
• Now, run the script by clicking the green flag.

4. Backward Movement: If both the wheels rotate in the backward direction, the robot will move backward. Let’s convert the above script to make the robot run backward for 1 second and then stop.
   • Change the direction in the first run () motor () with () speed block to backward. This will make the left motor go backward.
   • Change the direction in the second run () motor () with () speed block to backward. This will make the right motor go backward.

5. Left Movement: Making the robot turn left and right is the tricky part. To make Quarky turn left, its right wheel should rotate in the forward direction but its left wheel should rotate in the backward direction. Let’s convert the above script to make the robot run to the left for 1 second and then stop.
   • Change the direction in the first run () motor () with () speed block to backward. This will make the left motor go backward.
   • Change the direction in the second run () motor () with () speed block to forward. This will make the right motor go forward.

6. Right Movement: On the other hand, to make Quarky turn right, its left wheel should rotate in the forward direction and the right wheel should rotate in the backward direction. Let’s convert the above script to make the robot run to the left for 1 second and then stop.
   • Change the direction in the first run () motor () with () speed block to forward. This will make the left motor go forward.
   • Change the direction in the second run () motor () with () speed block to backward. This will make the right motor go backward.

Save the file as Robot Movement