LEGO Robots Battle It Out at APL

By Susan Kim, STAFF WRITER

At the annual Johns Hopkins University (JHU) LEGO robots competition, computer science students talked about their robots, and sometimes, they even translated what they said.
"We brought down the integral and derivative constants," said Brad Safranski, as he tried (unsuccessfully) to balance his wobbly robot for longer than a nanosecond.
What it really means: "We did a lot of thrashing and hacking," said his competitor Mike Daniel, who rolled his eyes as his two-wheeled wonder immediately whipped itself off the edge of the table, too.
The object: to coax, with some sophisticated programming and quite a bit of luck, an 8-inch-tall robot to balance and stay stationary on two wheels.
"It may be a quick competition," said instructor Jeff Gustin just before the judging, during which participants were given five tries to balance their robots on a piece of white posterboard.
The winners: James Ahn, Kevin Fitch, Jared Milburn and Alex Watson, whose LEGO robot suspended itself on a piece of white poster-board for 26 seconds.

Real-World Problems
The students, as part of a master's level computer science course, competed at the JHU Applied Physics Laboratory in North Laurel. Each team built its own robot using the Java programming language to control the machine.
Beginning with the same reference design, the student teams made custom improvements to their creations using educational kits with the latest LEGO NXT technology. Each team had three hours to work on its creation. Most of the students are already working in the computer science field, said Gustin.
In the course, entitled "Software Development for Real-Time Systems," the competing students examined hardware and software technologies behind real-time, embedded computer systems. Embedded computers are used in many modern devices, from kitchen appliances to sophisticated flight control systems.
"These students are already software and electrical engineers," he said. "This competition helps them reinforce concepts and basic principles. I picked the LEGO Mindstorms because you can do some sophisticated programming for them."
LEGO Mindstorms are widely used by educators from the middle school level to graduate school. For Gustin's graduate students, the spirit of the competition itself hones skills that will be valuable in the workplace, he said, since students must solve real-world problems and use teamwork under pressure.
The competition has become an annual tradition, and the challenge changes from year-to-year, he said. "One year, we had the robots trace the edges of a circle and find the center."

Engineering for Pros
The competitors are part of a growing array of enrollees in JHU's Engineering Programs for Professionals (EEP). Classes are held weekday evenings and Saturdays and are located at campuses across the region. Many classes are available online.
Fourteen graduate programs are offered with options for certificates and post-graduate study. More than 2,000 students are currently enrolled in EEP.
The programs are developed in collaboration with area employers, including Lockheed Martin, Northrop Grumman Corp., SAIC and many others.
Kevin Fitch, a member of the winning LEGO robot team, said he enrolled in the program to further his career. "My goal is to get a master's degree," he said.
Fitch, a software engineer for Intellisys, said the robot competition helped hone his skills at working with his peers. "This required more teamwork than your average day at work," he said.