Invent Circuits in Scratch3 (Adv)- Lights-Cameras-Sensors! - Boolean Girl

Course Details

Invent Circuits in Scratch3 (Adv)- Lights-Cameras-Sensors!

Invent Circuits in Scratch3 (Adv)- Lights-Cameras-Sensors!

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Ready to start working with motion sensors, motors, and a camera?  This set of lessons uses a variety of new sensors to extend your skills as a Boolean Girl engineer.  Work with buzzers, light sensors, motion sensors and motors.  Learn how to connect these sensors to your Raspberry Pi computer and write the sensor controlling software in Python.  Working on these projects is a great way to learn Python.  Just writing a small amount of code creates something usable and fun.

The goal of this set of lessons is to understand how to connect and control each sensor individually.  For instance, you will learn how to use the camera to capture video.  Once you understand how to capture video you could add a motion sensor to create an alarm system, that captures a picture or video of the person tripping the alarm.

Note: This set of lessons requires electronic components not included in the Boolean Box.  They can be purchased separately or as a set on Amazon or direct from Boolean Girl Tech.

We recommend starting to learn about these sensors with these lessons in Scratch.  Then learn the Basics of Python.  Once you understand the basics of Python this course will be easier to understand .

Enjoy

Lessons

  • Python – Active Buzzer

    Length: 30 minutesComplexity: Easy

    Write a simple Scratch program that make an active buzzer buzz. A buzzer is another kind of output. The circuit and Scratch code will look familiar, they are similar to a light circuit, another kind of output.

  • Python – Use a Photoresistor to Detect Light

    Length: 30 minutesComplexity: Easy

    Learn how to create circuits that turn on and off as the light changes from light to dark. A photoresistor or light sensor is used to detect light.
    In bright light, the sensor acts like a button that has been pushed and allows electricity to flow. In the pitch dark the sensor is like a button at rest, no electricity flows. Unlike a button, resistance of a photoresistor decreases with increasing incident light intensity.

  • Python – Use a Tilt Switch to Tell When Something Turns Over

    Length: 30 minutesComplexity: Easy

    Ever wonder how a device like your phone knows when it is flipped over?  Learn how to create circuits that turn on and off if the thing that it is attached to flips over.

  • Python – Motion Sensing with a Passive Infra-Red Sensor (PRI)

    Length: 30 minutesComplexity: Standard

    Learn how to create circuits that turn on and off when something moves.  This sort of circuit is used in alarm systems and powers motion sensing lights.

  • Build a camera and take pictures in Python

    Length: 45 minutesComplexity: Standard

    Build your camera and start taking pictures using Scratch.  Each picture is saved as a costume.   Make a sprite with your face or your friends faces.

  • Build a camera and take a video in Python

    Length: 45 minutesComplexity: Standard

    Build your camera and start taking pictures using Scratch.  Each picture is saved as a costume.   Make a sprite with your face or your friends faces.

  • Python – What Conducts, Using Transistors

    Length: 30 minutesComplexity: Easy

    Write a simple Scratch program that you can use to see what things conduct electricity.

  • Control Motors Using Python

    Length: 30 minutesComplexity: Easy

    Write a simple Scratch program that allows you to control a motor with code. A key component of any robot is the motor. When you complete this project you will understand how robot motors work.

  • Python – Use a JoyStick

    Length: 30 minutesComplexity: Easy

    Write a simple Scratch program that allows you to control a motor with code. A key component of any robot is the motor. When you complete this project you will understand how robot motors work.