This introduction holds all the intro to LUMA content.

Introduction: Start Here

In this activity, students will work with Losaline Tuiaki, a game designer.  Students will learn and practice uploading, running and saving code on LUMA. For the first three tasks, there is no actual programming on the learner’s part. All programs are provided to them via the Activity Panel in the LUMA app. Students will be able to see LUMA in action with its sensors, movement and lights.  In the final task of this activity, students will have an opportunity to create basic code as well as modify it.

Activity 1: Hello LUMA

In Activity 2, students will join restaurant owner and chef Raul Bustamante in his new pizza restaurant, Take a Slice.  Students will learn how to navigate the robot around the restaurant by programming it to go forward and backward as well as make various types of turns. Activity 2 will culminate in a challenge with students using LUMA to navigate a course while avoiding obstacles.

Activity 2: Getting Around

Your challenge is to program LUMA to complete a maze. LUMA must begin at the starting line of the maze and find its way to the finish line.

Challenge: A Maze Zing Drive Challenge

Students will work with Peggy Samuelson, an event specialist, in Activity 3 as they learn to set the color and brightness of the controller’s RGB LEDs. Through a variety of tasks in association with planning a large event, they will learn to flash the LEDs in different patterns as well as using lights and movement together.  The challenge for this activity will be to create their own flashing light show.

Activity 3: Light It Up

This exploration is an open-ended opportunity for students to explore LUMA and its programming capabilities.  Students should be encouraged to select a specific task to complete and some samp

Exploration: Light Work

In this activity, students work with sound engineer Arif Noori to learn a few basics around LUMA’s sound capabilities.  Students will learn how to program the robot to produce sounds for a variety of situations such as a truck backing up, creating a catchy tune, and alerting a user that their food is finished cooking. Some sounds will be built-in and chosen from a drop down or imported function from the library. Students will also learn how to play individual notes or tones. For their final challenge, students will take the knowledge they’ve learned in the activity to create a new jingle for an ice cream truck in order to attract customers. While the jingle is played, the LED lights will also be incorporated to increase customer interest. 

Activity 4: Sounding Off

This exploration is an open-ended opportunity for students to explore LUMA and its programming capabilities.  The questions posed to students is: What can LUMA do to help our environment? Students should be encouraged to select a specific task to complete and some sample ideas are given.  

Exploration: Environmentally Sound

Activity 5 introduces students to Keisha Hill, an architect with Build it Up! architecture firm. In this activity, students will combine what they’ve done so far and program LUMA to drive in a specific pattern. Students will learn to use LUMA to draw specific shapes such as triangles and squares.  These shapes will be used as the basics to draw a picture, which will simulate creating blueprints for the architecture firm. Students will also incorporate LEDs and sound as the robot draws. Students will use functions to create different robot features and then call those functions from the main program to complete a driving course. Students will also use loops to repeat navigational algorithms in order to shorten code and to make it more efficient. In the final challenge, students will add on to the blueprints with additional details.

Activity 5: Drawing Lines

In this challenge, students program LUMA to draw their first and last initials on a piece of paper. They will use LUMA’s LEDs to indicate the type of movement the robot is making. 

Challenge: Robotic Artist

After students have completed all the activities for LUMA, they’re ready to decide which industry will be the best fit for LUMA.  

Wrap up

Activity 8: Seeing Is Believing

Activity 6: Toeing the Line

Exploration: Sensing Fun

Activity 7: Pressing My Buttons

Exploration: Pressing On

Students will program LUMA to line follow a designated path until it reaches an obstacle blocking the line. LUMA will detect the obstacle, sound a warning, and then navigate around the obstacle. The final task concludes by trying to program LUMA to navigate around any obstacle no matter its size. LUMA continues to scan the obstacle as it navigates around it.

Activity 9: Obstacle Detection

Students will program LUMA to play sounds similar to a musical instrument called a Theremin. Using the value read from the ultrasonic sensor, LUMA will play different frequencies of sound. Students will also use program LUMA’s pixel LEDs to change based on the distance from the sensor. Finally, students will create a settings menu that is accessed by a button press. The settings menu allows the user to make changes such as the pixel color before resuming the regular Theremin program.