Models 8-10: Automated Guided Vehicle

Conversational

• Announce the topic
• Ask what the key features are for the control of driverless transport vehicles.
• Query scenarios where driverless transport vehicles occur.
• Discuss possible applications. 
• Determine requirements for the design of the models.

Help if needed

• Show sensors, actuators and components from the modular system, use presentation media if necessary.

Interview (with app)

• The procedure for building the model and the function to be achieved are developed together.
• The work steps of the app are specified or discussed.

Partner or individual work (with app)

•  The students familiarise themselves with the app and load the corresponding task.
• The students define meaningful functions for controlling an AGV using the TXT 4.0 controller.
• The students use the app to create the sensor list for the current use case.
• The students prepare the course. The road surface should be as smooth as possible. 

Please note that: The driving experiments should take place either on the ground or on a surface with borders to prevent the vehicle models from falling.

Optional partner or group work (without app)

• The students discuss the applicable sensors and sketch out possible structures. 
• The students discuss their experiences with automated or autonomous driving in the group. 

Partner or individual work (with app)

• The students use the app to build the obstacle detector. The app guides you through the program step by step.
• The students uses the interface test to check the wiring of the sensors.

Partner or group work (with app)

• The students  develop a program for simple straight-ahead driving as well as for targeted rotations with the AGV. 
• The students calculates the encoder pulses required for this and makes individual adjustments to the conversion factors “pulses per cm” and “pulses per degree” to the conditions of the AGV. 
• The students expand the AGV with simple obstacle detection and create a simple state transition diagram for the analysis of the programming task.
• The students develop a program for easy line tracking using a digital controller.
• The app guides you through the programming task in successive steps with open questions.
• Help is offered in the app.
• The program is transferred to the TXT 4.0 controller after each differentiation step.

Partner or group work (with app)

• The obstacle detector is commissioned. 
• Possible malfunctions in the function sequence must be found and eliminated.
• Possible troubleshooting is possible using suggestions in the app.
• Any hardware and programming optimisations, such as adjustments to the travel speed and adjustments to the speed difference of the motors during rotations, can be made. 

Optionally available: Presentation and assignment of differentiation (with app)

• Students  (or the entire group) that come into question for differentiation are addressed by the teacher if necessary. In the process, options for avoiding obstacles are discussed. 
• The integration of the USB camera using different colour spaces is presented. 
  
   

Partner or individual work (with app)

• The students use the app to build the digital tracker. The app guides you through the program step by step.
• The students uses the interface test to check the wiring of the sensors.

Partner or group work (with app)

• The students outline a state transition diagram for planning the programming task for avoiding obstacles using the digital tracker. 
• The students extend the line tracking program from AGV 1 to include the detection and avoidance of an obstacle. 
• The students plans to integrate the USB camera so that the AGV can react to coloured areas to the right or left of the lane. 
• The students configure the colour recognition in the HSV colour space.
• The students define the actions for each coloured area and integrate them into the program from AGV 1, so that the AGV now also reacts to the detected coloured areas when following lines.
• The app guides you through the programming task in successive steps with open questions.
• Help is offered in the app.
• The program is transferred to the TXT 4.0 controller after each differentiation step.

Partner or group work (with app)

• The digital tracker is put into operation. 
• The students test the AGV’s reactions to the coloured surfaces along the course. 
• Possible malfunctions in the function sequence must be found and eliminated.
• Possible troubleshooting is possible using suggestions in the app.

Optionally available: Presentation and assignment of differentiation (with app)

• Students (or the entire group) that come into question for differentiation are addressed by the teacher if necessary. The concept of the control loop in control technology is presented.

Partner or individual work (with app)

• The students use the app to build the analogue tracker. The app guides you through the program step by step.
  
   

Partner or group work (with app)

• The students plan the integration of the USB camera so that the AGV can follow a lane using the line detection using the camera in this case. 
• The students configure the line detection using the camera in the RGB colour space.
• The students plan and implement a P controller.
• The students extend the programming to a PD controller.
• The app guides you through the programming task in successive steps with open questions.
• Help is offered in the app.
• The program is transferred to the TXT 4.0 controller after each differentiation step.

Partner or group work (with app)

• The analogue tracker is put into operation. 
• Possible malfunctions in the function sequence must be found and eliminated.
• Possible troubleshooting is possible using suggestions in the app.
• The students tests different settings for the proportionality factor of the P controller. 
• The students compare the driving behaviour of the AGV when controlled with a P or PD controller. 

Optionally available: Presentation and allocation of differentiation

• Students  (or the entire group) that come into question for differentiation are addressed by the teacher if necessary. The concepts of neural networks and AI will be presented.

Partner or individual work (with app)

• The students use the app to build the digital tracker. The app guides you through the program step by step.
• The students uses the interface test to check the wiring of the sensors.
• If the digital track tracker has already been built in AGV 2, the design phase is omitted. 

Partner or group work (with app)

• The students become familiar with the construction of a simple neural network. 
• The students use the app to configure a neural network that calculates engine speeds from the sensor data of the lane sensor and specifies training data.
• If necessary, the students extend the programming from AGV 1 so that the speeds of the two motors are now determined by the neural network.
• The students train the neural network.
• The students supplement the program with the query of the distance sensor. 
• The students extend the neural network with an input neuron that receives the sensor data from the distance sensor. 
  
   

Partner or group work (with app)

• The obstacle detector is commissioned. 
• Possible malfunctions in the function sequence must be found and eliminated.
• Possible troubleshooting is possible using suggestions in the app.
• Any hardware and programming optimisations, such as adjustments to the travel speed and adjustments to the speed difference of the motors during rotations, can be made. 

Optionally available: Presentation and allocation of differentiation

• Students or groups working particularly efficiently can be given the additional task of developing their own use cases for the handling of the AGV and selecting the necessary sensors. 
• The students can combine the programming knowledge and control techniques acquired during the course of the learning units in order to develop an AGV with the most uniform driving behaviour and diverse response options possible. 
• Different groups can compete against each other: which AGV completes the course the fastest? Which AGV is most stable against malfunctions? Independent work without learning cards is planned here. 

Discussion in plenum

• Debriefing of the project in the classroom
• Clarification of future possible uses in everyday life