ROBOTS
1 WHAT COULD THESE ROBOTS BE USED FOR?
Asimo
Nasa’s Mars Rover
Industrial robots
2 ANSWER THE QUESTIONS.
1. How many senses have you got?
2. What are they?
3. Why are they important?
3 FILL IN THE CHART
VERB
PART OF THE BODY
SENSE NOUN
eyes
sight
see
hear
smell
taste
touch
4 5 THINGS YOU REALLY HAVE TO KNOW ABOUT ROBOTS.
1. Robots have five basic components: a movable structure, a motor, a power source, a sensory system,
and a processor.
2. The motor provides the physical power to move the structure.
3. In the same way that humans depend on sight, hearing, taste, smell, and touch to make sense of the
world, robots require a sensory system in order to function.
4. Heat sensors may be important for robots working in extreme conditions.
5. The brain of a robot is the processor.
5 ROBOT BASICS. Read the text and supply it with key words.
piston
actuator
movable
reprogrammable
swivel
joints
circuit
slotted wheels
roboticists
valves
vrteti so
The vast majority of robots do have several qualities in common. First of all, almost all robots have a
_____________________ body. Some only have motorized wheels, and others have dozens of movable
segments, typically made of metal or plastic. Like the bones in your body, the individual segments are
connected together with ___________________.
Robots spin wheels and pivot jointed segments with some sort of ____________________. Some robots
use electric motors and solenoids as actuators; some use a hydraulic system; and some use a pneumatic
system (a system driven by compressed gases). Robots may use all these actuator types.
A robot needs a power source to drive these actuators. Most robots either have a battery or they plug into
the wall. Hydraulic robots also need a pump to pressurize the hydraulic fluid, and pneumatic robots need
an air compressor or compressed air tanks.
The actuators are all wired to an electrical _______________________. The circuit powers electrical
motors and solenoids directly, and it activates the hydraulic system by manipulating electrical valves. The
____________________determine the pressurized fluid's path through the machine. To move a hydraulic
leg, for example, the robot's controller would open the valve leading from the fluid pump to a piston
cylinder attached to that leg. The pressurized fluid would extend the ______________________, swivelling
the leg forward. Typically, in order to move their segments in two directions, robots use pistons that can
push both ways.
The robot's computer controls everything attached to the circuit. To move the robot, the computer
switches on all the necessary motors and valves. Most robots are ____________________ -- to change the
robot's behaviour, you simply write a new program to its computer.
Not all robots have sensory systems, and few have the ability to see, hear, smell or taste. The most
common robotic sense is the sense of movement -- the robot's ability to monitor its own motion. A
standard design uses ___________________________attached to the robot's joints. An LED on one side of
the wheel shines a beam of light through the slots to a light sensor on the other side of the wheel. When
the robot moves a particular joint, the slotted wheel turns. The slots break the light beam as the wheel
spins. The light sensor reads the pattern of the flashing light and transmits the data to the computer. The
computer can tell exactly how far the joint has swivelled based on this pattern. This is the same basic
system used in computer mice.
These are the basic nuts and bolts of robotics. ___________________ can combine these elements in an
infinite number of ways to create robots of unlimited complexity.
AN ABSTRACT:
Robots have a ____________________body. Their parts are
connected with ________________. They use
_____________________to move the jointed
__________________. They need a ____________source to
NASA's Urbie climbing stairs
Photo courtesy NASA JPL
______________________ the actuators. The power source can
be a ______________ or ________________ from a plug.
________________ robots need a pump to pressurize the
hydraulic fluid. ______________robots need an air compressor.
Actuators are wired to an ____________circuit.
6 FIND KEYWORDS AND TRANSLATE
industrijski robot
gibljivo telo
sklepi
deli
aktivator
poganjati aktivatorje
energetski vir
hidravlični roboti
črpalka
vzdrževati pritisk
hidravlična tekočina
električni krog
kompresor
stiskati
povezati z žicami
vijaki in matice
7.
ROBOTIC VACUUM CLEANER has a few sensors: DIMENSION SENSOR, OBJECT SENSOR, CLIFF
SENSOR, WALL SENSOR AND DIRT SENSORS. Can you describe how it functions?
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Dv_tjVYKGtQ 4,27 LG robot
8 DESIGN A ROBOT TO DO A DANGEROUS OR BORING JOB FOR YOU.
Draw a rough sketch and make notes about how it works ( For example: a robot for picking up the socks in your
bedroom… The sensors smell… the arm… The robot is powered by… The robot puts the socks… )
Verbs that might come in handy: allow to, enable to, make, stop, cause to, prevent, report, move, let etc
9. ROBOTS, SERVANTS OR MASTERS? (Write an essay in approximately 150 words )
KEY
1.WHAT COULD THESE ROBOTS BE USED FOR?
Asimo
Nasa’s Mars Rover
Industrial robots
2 ANSWER THE QUESTIONS.
4. How many senses have you got?
5. What are they?
6. Why are they important?
3 FILL IN THE CHART
VERB
PART OF THE BODY
SENSE NOUN
see
eyes
sight
hear
ears
hearing
smell
nose
smell
taste
mouth
taste
touch
fingers, toes, skin, soles
feeling
4 5 THINGS YOU REALLY HAVE TO KNOW ABOUT ROBOTS.

Robots have five basic components: a movable structure, a motor, a power source, a sensory system,
and a processor.

The motor provides the physical power to move the structure.

In the same way that humans depend on sight, hearing, taste, smell, and touch to make sense of the
world, robots require a sensory system in order to function.

Heat sensors may be important for robots working in extreme conditions.

The brain of a robot is the processor.
5 ROBOT BASICS. Read the text and supply it with key words.
piston
actuator
movable
reprogrammable
swivel
joints
circuit
slotted wheels
roboticists
valves
vrteti so
The vast majority of robots do have several qualities in common. First of all, almost all robots have a
movable body. Some only have motorized wheels, and others have dozens of movable segments, typically
made of metal or plastic. Like the bones in your body, the individual segments are connected together
with joints.
Robots spin wheels and pivot jointed segments with some sort of actuator. Some robots use electric
motors and solenoids as actuators; some use a hydraulic system; and some use a pneumatic system (a
system driven by compressed gases). Robots may use all these actuator types.
A robot needs a power source to drive these actuators. Most robots either have a battery or they plug into
the wall. Hydraulic robots also need a pump to pressurize the hydraulic fluid, and pneumatic robots need
an air compressor or compressed air tanks.
The actuators are all wired to an electrical circuit. The circuit powers electrical motors and solenoids
directly, and it activates the hydraulic system by manipulating electrical valves. The valves determine the
pressurized fluid's path through the machine. To move a hydraulic leg, for example, the robot's controller
would open the valve leading from the fluid pump to a piston cylinder attached to that leg. The pressurized
fluid would extend the piston, swivelling the leg forward. Typically, in order to move their segments in two
directions, robots use pistons that can push both ways.
The robot's computer controls everything attached to the circuit. To move the robot, the computer
switches on all the necessary motors and valves. Most robots are reprogrammable -- to change the robot's
behaviour, you simply write a new program to its computer.
Not all robots have sensory systems, and few have the ability to see, hear, smell or taste. The most
common robotic sense is the sense of movement -- the robot's ability to monitor its own motion. A
standard design uses slotted wheels attached to the robot's joints. An LED on one side of the wheel shines
a beam of light through the slots to a light sensor on the other side of the wheel. When the robot moves a
particular joint, the slotted wheel turns. The slots break the light beam as the wheel spins. The light sensor
reads the pattern of the flashing light and transmits the data to the computer. The computer can tell
exactly how far the joint has swivelled based on this pattern. This is the same basic system used in
computer mice.
These are the basic nuts and bolts of robotics. Roboticists can combine these elements in an infinite
number of ways to create robots of unlimited complexity.
AN ABSTRACT:
Robots have a MOVABLE body. Their parts are connected with
JOINTS. They use ACTUATORS to move the jointed SEGMENTS .
They need a POWER source to POWER/DRIVE the actuators. The
power source can be a BATTERY or ELECTRICITY from a plug.
NASA's Urbie climbing stairs
Photo courtesy NASA JPL
HYDRAULIC robots need a pump to pressurize the hydraulic fluid.
PNEUMATIC robots need an air compressor. Actuators are wired
to an ELECTRIC circuit.
6 FIND KEYWORDS AND TRANSLATE
industrial robot
industrijski robot
movable body
gibljivo telo
joints
sklepi
segments
deli, segmenti
actuator
aktuator
drive activators
poganjati aktivatorje
power source
energetski vir
hydraulic robots
hidravlični roboti
pump
črpalka
pressurize
vzdrževati pritisk
hydraulic fluid
hidravlična tekočina
electric circuit
električni krog
compressor
kompresor
compress
stiskati
to wire
povezati z žicami
nuts and bolts
vijaki in matice
7.
ROBOTIC VACUUM CLEANER has a few sensors: DIMENSION SENSOR, OBJECT SENSOR, CLIFF
SENSOR, WALL SENSOR AND DIRT SENSORS. Can you describe how it functions?
8 DESIGN A ROBOT TO DO A DANGEROUS OR BORING JOB FOR YOU.
Draw a rough sketch and make notes about how it works ( For example: a robot for picking up the socks in your
bedroom… The sensors smell… the arm… The robot is powered by… The robot puts the socks… )
SOME TEATCHER’S EXTRAS
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7coUcEHxnYA 2,14 how industrial robots work
http://www.gogeometry.com/robotics/abb_robotics_irb_140_motion_control_video.html 2,34 superior
motion control ABB
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8zP7yP8hdLE 40,07 BBC documentary How robots will change the world
Learn more at: http://www.learnaboutrobots.com/industrial.htm