We wanted to create a swarm of artistic robots, ones that could create a funky pattern without external control over their artistic potential. We did this by creating a code which impacted the robots motor abilities when presented with different colours. By randomly placing coloured paper over a white sheet of paper, the robots will move in different patterns creating a very beautifully drawn masterpiece, rivalled only by the works of Picasso.

We were mainly inspired by mother nature herself. The dung beetle, one of nature’s most curious animals, was our initial inspiration. We wanted to replicated the mechanic in which the dung beetle pushes a load much heavier than itself, however we realised this was inapplicable to a group of swarm robots. So we looked at other animals, including ants and pandas, both of which leave pheromone trails which act as indicators for other members of the swarm about various things, such as a viable food source, danger and rival clans. We realised that if we used coloured pens, our robots could follow these pseudo-pheromone trails, mimicking the real life animals.

All together now! In this studio, students will be exploring the intricacies of swarm behavior through the design and fabrication of small robots that work together to achieve a common goal.  Swarm robotics is a field of study that uses the various phenomena of swarm behavior in nature to inform the programming of groups of robots.  Biologically, some species are programmed to exist as solo operators, but others, such as types of insects, birds, and fish, operate collectively as swarms.  Think about the way ants work together to build a colony or how bees band together to protect their queen— these are examples of swarm behavior.

Robot swarms have the potential to be used in a vast number of ways in the future, especially in circumstances where it’s difficult or inefficient for humans to complete a task.  Applications could include autonomous building construction, construction in remote places (like building a seawall to prevent flooding), disaster assessment under dangerous conditions, and many others in manufacturing, science, and art.  

This summer, students will learn about swarm robotics by building simple robots that will work together.  This studio will teach basic robotics, electronics, programming, and 3D design.  Students will have the opportunity to work with Arduino, motors, sensors and 3D modeling and fabrication tools to create performative, robotically developed artwork.

Focus Skills/Subjects/Technologies:

   Design

   Physics (Electricity, Magnetism)

   Engineering

   Programming

   Electronics

   Robotics (Arduino)

   Sensors & Actuators

   Digital Fabrication (Laser-cutting, 3d Printing)

   3d Modeling

Prerequisites:

• Enrolling students must be between the ages of 11 to 18