Coding robot board game makes learning programming fun and easy
Offered as the world’s first tangible coding (as opposed to screen-based coding) robot and board game, Mojobot is specifically designed to make it easy and fun for both kids and adults to pick up and learn the core principles of coding and robotics. With Mojobot, users will learn coding through playing and challenging each other in the turn-based Mojobot Missions board game.
Equipped with many features such as lights, sounds, sensors, motion, and actions, Mojobot can even pick up tokens, carry them around and deliver them to different locations.
“Here we have created a comprehensive computer coding language that is screen-free, extendable, and allows the use of parameters, numbers, loops, decision making, sensory inputs and sub-routines,” says the company. “Just put the coding tags you want into the console and press GO, then watch as Mojobot executes the commands!”
Tangible coding using physical coding pieces, says the company, makes learning about software programming a fun, easy, natural and social process. A group can sit together around the table and figure out solutions as a team. Everyone can easily see the coding tags and add or remove them as they wish.
Mojobot comprises the following main components: Robot (Mojobot), main console, extension console, Mojotown map, coding tags, and game tokens. The console, says the company, is like the command center for Mojobot. To command Mojobot, users put coding tags into the Console and press ‘GO’. The job of the console is to read the coding tag data, process it, and send it over to the robot.
Coding tags are used to command Mojobot to do different tasks and show different behaviors. The tangible coding platform allows the use of loops, if statements, wait command, and parameters such as numbers and sensor inputs. Mojobot has six main types of coding tags:
- Movement
- Actions
- Control Logic
- Sensor Inputs
- Sub-Routine
- Numbers
Communicating with the console via Bluetoorth, the robot uses differential drive and has two wheels and motors for navigation. It has a microphone that can record sounds and also act as a sound level sensor, while the recorded sounds can be played back using its speakers.
Mojobot eyes are LEDs that can show different expressions. The tail light can be commanded and changed to different colors. In front of Mojobot there are infrared sensors that can detect distance and presence of objects, ensuring that Mojobot will always move correctly to each location in the map.
Along with the platform the company is offering curriculum and activities designed to teach kids coding and robotics in a fun way. These include a Mojobot Adventures Stories book and a Mission Cards Game to assist learning. Tutorial videos are also available.
The Mojobot Basic Kit contains all the basic functionalities of Mojobot, including a Mojobot robot and a main console. Also in the set are all of the action coding tags. An extension kit includes additional resources designed to teach how to use loops, if statements, sub-routines, and sensor inputs.
The Mojobot Basic Set is $130, while the complete set is $190. The project will only be funded if it reaches its goal of $80,300 by May 8 2019 12:24 PM EDT.
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