Lego Mindstorms EV3 for teaching the basics of trajectory control problems

This Research to Practice Paper aims to illustrate how real-life projects can be used to teach students engaged in an academic course in robotic science the basics skills in control theory and computer vision. To design of modern control systems, engineers must be familiar with a range of technical fields. The range of theoretical knowledge and skills provided to the students include trajectory control, adaptive control, computer vision, as well as the capacity to build of complex mechatronic systems, all of which form part of an integrated curriculum. The paper describes how, using a LEGO educational set, the students are assigned a real-time project consisting in the development of a control system for a mobile car-typed robot. The stated objective is for the assembled robot to be able to move from a starting point to a goal pose while bypassing potential obstacles. At the end of the course, students must present their results, with a demonstration of the robot completing a given task together with a report. The project entails monitoring on the students progression and technical mastery as well as how the work process helps increase students interest in their studies and translate their theoretical knowledge into practice.