NXT Explorer

Fun Projects for your LEGO^® MINDSTORMS^® NXT!

Explorer

Building:
Program:

Building Instructions

1-13

Start by building the Bumper Car. Click the picture for building instructions.

Connect the wire from the "neck" motor to port A on the NXT.

Use the longest wire to connect the ultrasonic sensor to port 4 on the NXT. Route the wire under the robot, and make sure that that it stays out of the way of the bumper and that there is enough slack so that the head can pivot all the way to the left and right.

Explorer Programming

Use the program Explorer for the Explorer. This program makes the robot repeat the following steps:

Go straight until either the ultrasonic sensor sees something close or the bumper is hit.
If the bumper was hit, make a sound and back up a little.
Turn the head to look right and then left, and use the ultrasonic sensor to determine which direction appears to have more space, then turn in that direction.

Using the Explorer

Make sure the "eyes" of the ultrasonic sensor are pointed straight ahead before running the Explorer program, so that robot is not confused about which way is which.

Challenges

Set your Explorer loose and see if you can predict which way it will turn each time it approaches an obstacle, and try to guess where it will end up. Will it get stuck anywhere?
For an advanced programming challenge, try modifying the Explorer program to change what happens when the Explorer "sees" an obstacle or bumps into something. Can you come up with a better navigation strategy that is more interesting or less likely to get stuck?

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