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W02. Movement 02

We talked about sensation last time. Let's talk about the other half of the interactive loop, actuation.

Actuation is key to everything we think of as "alive." It is also tightly bound up with sensation. We'll see how they connect very soon, however, this lecture introduces the basics of actuation for robotics and humans, comparing the simplest electronic actuators, DC motors, to the simplest human actuator, muscles.

Pre-readings and Videos​

The reading and videos for this week are centered on basic mechanics for bo and electric movement. They are only a selection of the videos that

Gears are Spinning Levers​

This video explains the fundamentals behind gears by building up intuition from the simplest machines (levers) to the more complex gears we are used to seeing.

Mechanical Computers​

It's important to remember that "computing" does not need to be done with our modern understanding of digital computers. Before there were digital computers, people could still compute, but they did it using other means. This video demonstrates a computer that works entirely with gears and other mechanisms.

DC Motors​

DC motors are the basis of robotic movement (although exciting new actuators are being built all the time). By combining DC motors with other machines, we can produce complex and useful motion in robots.

Robots: Digital and Analog​

This website is a good introduction to the logical systems of robots. Focus particularly on the water analogy.

Movement and Agency​

The Stem was a robot that was essentially just a stick. It was used in a study on movement. Heider and Simmel established the propensity for motion alone to indicate agency. However, there are limitations to the kind of motion that is perceived as agentic—can you imagine what they are?

Summary of the Day​

  • Lesson. Simple machines and biology.
  • Lesson. Photocell
  • Lesson. DC Motors and Gearboxes.
  • Activity. Build a Popsicle Stick Industrial Robot.

Learning Goals​

  1. Be able to analyze a mechanical design in terms of simple machines.
  2. Compare robotic mechanics to biomechanics.
  3. Produce a papercraft model of an industrial system given requirements.