Project Name: Jousting Robot
Controlled by: Programming or Remote Control
Programming Difficulty: Medium
Construction Difficulty: Medium
General Comment. This is a great introduction to basic construction and basic programming

Rules FOR STUDENTS

​You must use:
-1 NXT or EV brick
-3 motors
​-1 colour sensor

You must:
Build a robot that can start with the sword pointing upwards, then travel straight at speed while the jousting stick is lowered, becoming parallel to the ground. 
Everyone must use the same measurements for a Jousting stick. 
Jousting sticks must stay parallel to the robot's direction
They can reach over the wall, but must be parallel to the wall and jouster. 
​

Tips For students

Tip: Cars with four wheels will go straighter. Especially if both motors turn one axel.
Tip: Cars that use gears will go faster. A big gear on the motor and a small gear on the wheel will make the wheel turn faster. To use gears, the wheel's axel can't go through the motor's hole.

SAMPLE PROGRAMMING

The program is designed to drop the vertical jousting stick, to make it horizontal, then follow the line.

TEACHER INFO

You really need to find a couple of characters that could at least sit on the "horse". If you can dig up some lego Knights or Bionicles they are best. Although only 2 are needed per Joust, it's better if each group has their own "Jouster" to connect to their robot. Alternatively use mini-figures, like the video below.
​
One student could manufacture all the jousting sticks for the whole class. It's best if they are identical.
​
The best way to ensure a fair battle is to make sure you have a long wall that divides the two jousters. It only needs to be a couple of cm high. The jousting 'arm' can go over the wall, but should always be parallel to the wall, otherwise teams will 'coat-hanger' their opposition with a diagonal jousting stick.

Although this is an old school video, you could see the advantage of having a line to follow. What I don't like about this clip is the jousting stick are all different dimensions. It seems the best 'coat-hanger' wins!!

Classroom Tips

Score Sheets

Project Ideas