bionics camp itinerary & facilitator guide · 2019-05-23 · bionics, or biomimicry, is the...

Bionics Camp Itinerary & Facilitator Guide Version 1.00 Date 03.22.19

Bionics Camp / Itinerary & Facilitator Guide

1 © Festo Didactic

Table of Contents Guide Icons ............................................................................................................................. 2 Facilitator Preparation ............................................................................................................ 3 Agenda .................................................................................................................................... 4 Day 1 ...................................................................................................................................... 5

Individual camp introductions ........................................................................................................................... 5 Introduction to bionics ...................................................................................................................................... 5 Introductory bionics quiz game ......................................................................................................................... 6 Bionic Elephant discussion ............................................................................................................................... 6 Assembly of the Bionic Elephant ....................................................................................................................... 7 Elephant trunk activity worksheet ..................................................................................................................... 7

Day 2 .................................................................................................................................... 11 Bionics career discussion ................................................................................................................................ 11 Bionic Fish discussion ..................................................................................................................................... 11 Assembly of the Bionic Fish ............................................................................................................................. 12 Fish types worksheet ....................................................................................................................................... 12 Fish propulsion worksheet and experiment .................................................................................................... 14

Day 3 .................................................................................................................................... 18 Bionic Chameleon discussion .......................................................................................................................... 18 Assembly of the Bionic Chameleon ................................................................................................................. 18 Chameleon tongue activity worksheet ............................................................................................................ 19 Biomimicry design process discussion ............................................................................................................ 21 Biomimicry design project: individual group work .......................................................................................... 23 Biomimicry design project: presentations ....................................................................................................... 27


2 © Festo Didactic

Guide Icons

Leading Icons

Throughout this document, you will notice the following icons. Each icon identifies components of the Bionics Camp for the Facilitator and Participant.

Icon Use

Facilitator Notes are shaded in grey and reflect a guideline or a tip needed to facilitate the course.

The Agenda icon is used on the Agenda Page for each day of the camp and reflects each lesson within the course and its allotted time.

The Activity icon highlights instructions for an activity that the campers will complete.

The Discovery Dialogue icon highlights questions that will be discussed openly in the camp session. The questions are designed to make Participants think about the concepts that were discussed to encourage brainstorming of ideas.

The Screen icon indicates a place where the facilitator will launch bionics video content to show to the campers.


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Facilitator Preparation

Materials To complete/run the Bionics Camp activities, please ensure you have the following: • Facilitator Guide • Participant Guides (with handouts printed for all campers) • Bionics Kits (1 Kit per every 4 campers) • Consumables required to assemble the robots (foam for elephant, balloon for chameleon, plastic

board to make fish tails/elephant arm discs, etc.) • Fish tank of a sizable length (36 x 18 x 17 inches) • Various small objects of different shapes (for demonstration of the grabbing/lifting capabilities of

the Bionic Elephant and Bionic Chameleon). • Ensure small weights or screws/nuts/bolts are available for fish balance • AA batteries (4) • Small Phillips head screwdriver • Access to the videos that are to be shown during the camp (either via access to the Internet or

downloaded video files)


4 © Festo Didactic

Agenda

The following is the timeline for the entirety of the 3-day Bionics Camp. This is the suggested outline for the camp as constructed for 4 hours of Camp content and activities per day. Modifications as required for adjusted available camp time or resources can be made to the agenda accordingly on a case-by-case basis.

Content Time Day 1

Individual camp introductions 10 minutes

Introduction to bionics 30 minutes

Introductory bionics quiz game 30 minutes

Bionic Elephant discussion 30 minutes

Assembly of the Bionic Elephant 80 minutes

Elephant trunk activity worksheet 60 minutes

Day 2

Bionic careers discussion 45 minutes

Bionic Fish discussion 30 minutes

Assembly of the Bionic Fish 80 minutes

Fish types worksheet 15 minutes

Fish propulsion worksheet and experiment 70 minutes

Day 3

Bionic Chameleon discussion 30 minutes

Assembly of the Bionic Chameleon 45 minutes

Chameleon tongue activity worksheet 30 minutes

Biomimicry design process: discussion 30 minutes

Biomimicry design project: individual group work 60 minutes

Biomimicry design project: presentations 45 minutes


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Day 1

Bionic Elephant Trunk

Day 1 Overview Time Estimate Individual camp introductions 10 minutes

Introduction to bionics 30 minutes

Introductory bionics quiz game 30 minutes

Bionic Elephant discussion 30 minutes

Assembly of the Bionic Elephant Trunk 80 minutes

Elephant trunk activity worksheet 60 minutes

Individual camp introductions

Ask if anyone can explain what integrative STEM education is? Instruct participants to add his/her notes in the space provided in the Participant Guide Discuss: When students are exposed to opportunities to learn math and science with th technology and engineering in an interactive environment, communication and collabo well as interest and competence, are attained – which may make higher education mor contributes to a prepared society.

Say: Welcome to the Bionics Camp! Nature makes the best classroom. By the time you have completed the activities planned for the next three days, you will appreciate how complex are some things made with the upmost ease by species in nature. You will mimic the trunk of an elephant, able to pick up objects and move them from here to there. You will also make a robotic fish, able to propel itself in water. Finally, you will imitate the tongue of a chameleon able to grab any odd-shaped object and control it completely. But before we start, let us introduce ourselves. I am ….

Introduction to bionics


Say: Bionics is the study of electro-mechanical systems that function like living organisms or parts of living organisms. Nature provides us with countless examples. While you may have already seen many practical robots, like the Roomba vacuuming your house, imagine the millions of species around us that still outperform many of our machines, using significantly less energy. It happens frequently that engineers draw inspiration from nature when faced with engineering problems. Organisms have evolved over billions of years and, through survival of the fittest, have developed very efficient ways of handling all they need to do in order to preserve their species.


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There are many examples from ancient times of our ancestors' attempts to mimic biological models. One of the early instances is the many attempts to mimic birds to enable human flight. While Leonardo da Vinci (~1500s) never succeeded in creating a flying machine, he studied and documented in great detail the anatomy and flight of birds, making numerous sketches and notes in his famous mirror-image notebooks. Additionally, it is alleged that observations made by Orville and Wilbur Wright (early 1900s) of doves and buzzards helped them with the successful design of the airplane wings used for their first flight. There is an ever-increasing interest in bionics because manufacturing methods are becoming more sophisticated and able to handle miniaturized devices. In addition, we know much more about how the wide variety of animals and plants work. Biological studies at the cellular and subcellular level have demonstrated how big and small species move, hunt, fly, stay airborne, etc. The models you will build today are only a small sample of the many industrial devices that mimic animal behavior. Feel free to show videos from the carousel matched to the daily activity.

Introductory bionics quiz game


Say: We will now play a "jeopardy-like" game where I will describe a common daily-life application and you must identify the plant or animal that could serve as the bionic model.

Application Bionic Model 1 Want a wall paint that changes color stimulated by

sound and temperature Chameleon

2 Want a device that can hold several piece parts during an assembly

Octopus

3 Pick up odd-shaped objects to store in shelves Chameleon's tongue 4 Tighten bolts in difficult to reach places Elephant trunk 5 Plyers that are easy to open but won't let go the

workpiece until it is released Crocodile jaws

6 A light and flat surface that can move in water by stiffening and straightening

Sturgeon fish

7 Produce light that does not generate any heat Fireflies 8 Create walls that absorb sunlight during the day and

emit it at night Plant's photosynthesis

9 Use organic materials to produce electricity Electric eels 10 Produce very thin, yet strong synthetic fibers Spiders 11 Fast submarines with low friction Whales 12 Artificial intelligence computers Human brain 13 Algorithms for efficient distance internet routing Bee flight 14 Improve the efficiency of wind turbine blades Insect wings


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Bionic Elephant discussion


Say: Of the many useful features of the elephant, the part most often mimicked is the trunk. The trunk serves as the nose, multijointed arm and hand for the elephant. They can smell and breath through it, grab food and inhale water which it brings into its mouth when feeding. The elephant also uses the trunk for defense and protection. Grabbing and moving objects are the most common industrial applications of a bionic elephant trunk.

Feel free to show Day 1 Elephant: Explanatory and/or Bionic Elephant: Quick Assembly videos.

Assembly of the Bionic Elephant


Say: We will now assemble the bionic elephant trunk. Each team of 4 students will work with one kit, following the assembly instructions provided.

Bionic Elephant Trunk: Assembly Instructions https://www.bionics4education.com/usa/lang/en/bionicscamp/pdf/InstructionsELEPHANTEnglish.pdf

Elephant trunk activity worksheet


Say: Read the following material and answer the questions listed. When you have finished, take turns handling the elephant trunk to pick up and manipulate as many small objects as you want. Fill out the table provided with your results and observations.

https://www.bionics4education.com/usa/lang/en/bionicscamp/pdf/InstructionsELEPHANTEnglish.pdf

https://www.bionics4education.com/usa/lang/en/bionicscamp/pdf/InstructionsELEPHANTEnglish.pdf


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Note: This activity requires a fully assembled Bionic Elephant trunk and objects of various shapes, sizes, weights, and materials. The trunk of an elephant is fascinating for many reasons. The trunk is unique, especially the way an elephant can move it. It is sensitive but also strong. An elephant can bend and stretch it to reach things above its head, so high that it can even reach things the elephant can't see. The trunk allows elephants to access food that is out of the reach of many other animals that share their habitats.

Not only is it amazing how far elephants are able to reach with their trunks, the way the elephant is able to pick items up is also very impressive. The tip of the trunk functions much like a "hand". The trunk tip is very sensitive (it contains a lot of nerves) and it is very dexterous (this means that the trunk tip is very skillful and can pick up objects very delicately). Different types of elephants have slightly different trunk tip shapes. For example, the Asian elephant has one "finger" at the upper half of the tip of its trunk. If an Asian elephant wants to pick something up, it usually "grasps" the object by curling the object under and around the tip. The African elephant has two "fingers" on the tip of its trunk; think of it like a thumb and index finger on a human hand. This allows the African elephant to "pinch" objects they want to pick up, holding the object between the two "fingers".

Asian elephant trunk African elephant trunk


9 © Festo Didactic

Look at the characteristics of the Bionic Elephant trunk and use the trunk to try to pick up an object. Does the design of the Bionic Elephant's trunk tip most closely resemble an Asian elephant's trunk tip or an African elephant's trunk tip? What method does the Bionic Elephant trunk use to pick up objects? Students should identify that the Bionic Elephant trunk resembles the African elephant trunk more closely, because the Bionic Elephant has two "fingers". Therefore, the students should also identify that the Bionic Elephant uses the "pinch" method to pick up objects.

Picking up objects

Scientists have studied how real elephants are able to pick up and carry objects of different shapes, sizes, and weights. Elephants are able to bend their trunks in a way that allows them to support the weight of an object while pointing the tip of their trunk downwards to better grip it and pick it up. Elephants can adjust the amount of downward pressure they apply in order to pick up more delicate objects. Your Bionic Elephant gripper is designed to mimic the functionality of a real elephant trunk, where you can pick up objects of different shapes and sizes, and even items that are delicate (without breaking them). Experiment with the gripper by trying to pick up a variety of objects. You can use the table below to keep track of the type of objects you try to pick up, the characteristics of the objects, and a section to take notes on whether you were successful at picking up that object.

Object Object characteristics Notes


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Observations and analysis

Once you have picked up several objects, analyze your results. Are there similarities between the objects that the gripper was successful in picking up? What about any similarities you can find between objects that the gripper could not pick up? Answers will vary depending on what objects are used. Students should be able to find common characteristics between certain objects and identify them here. They should also identify common characteristics between objects that the Bionic Elephant could not pick up. What kind of objects do you think the design of the gripper allows you to pick up that other gripper design may not be able to? Answers can vary here depending on what objects were used and whether the students have seen the industrial version of this gripper being used in the videos on the website, etc. Possible answers can include fragile objects since the design allows it to more gently grip objects, round objects, spherical objects, etc.



Day 2

Bionic Fish

Day 2 Overview Time Estimate Bionics careers discussion 45 minutes

Bionic Fish discussion 30 minutes

Assembly of the Bionic Fish 80 minutes

Fish types worksheet 15 minutes

Fish propulsion worksheet and experiment 70 minutes

Bionics career discussion


Say: We will access the Bionics4Education website, and each student can take turns exploring the career possibilities described there: Industrial Designer, Biologist, Robotics Specialist, and Related Professions. You also have the option of showing videos related to a few of the career options.

Feel free to show Day 2 Robotics Specialist, Computer Scientist, and Biologist videos.

Bionic Fish discussion


Say: There is a wide variety of fish (more than 32,000 different types), and while many of their characteristics are similar, there are enough variations that make most fish unique. They are a common source of mimicry for water-based applications, such as boats, submarines and underwater power generators.



Feel free to show Day 2 FinRay: Explanatory and/or Bionic Fish: Quick Assembly videos.

Assembly of the Bionic Fish


Say: We will now assemble the bionic fish. Each team of 4 students will work with one kit, following the assembly instructions provided.

Bionic Fish: Assembly Instructions https://www.bionics4education.com/usa/lang/en/bionicscamp/pdf/InstructionsFISHEnglish.pdf

Fish types worksheet


Say: Read the material that follows and answer the questions listed. When you have finished, take turns handling the bionic fish and have it swim from different angles in the fish tank provided.

https://www.bionics4education.com/usa/lang/en/bionicscamp/pdf/InstructionsFISHEnglish.pdf

https://www.bionics4education.com/usa/lang/en/bionicscamp/pdf/InstructionsFISHEnglish.pdf



Note: This activity requires a fully assembled Bionic Fish. It is also suggested to have a tank filled with enough water to buoy the Fish. Different types of fish move in different ways, and there are three general categories in which fish motion can be classified. Keep in mind that all three of the different types of motion are effective in moving a fish through the water.

Anguilliform motion First, there is anguilliform motion, where a fish moves all its body, from the head down to the tail. An example of a fish that uses anguilliform motion would be an eel. The flexibility of an eel's body allows it to move this way.

Thunniform motion A second type of motion is call thunniform swimming. This type of motion is named after the genus thunnus that tuna belong to. Unlike anguilliform motion, fish that use thunniform motion (such as a tuna) propel themselves primarily through the movement of just their tail.

Carangiform motion The third category is carangiform motion. This motion involves the head moving slightly, but most of the motion is generated by the tail; think of it as a type of movement that is in between that of the anguilliform and thunniform motions. This is the motion that is used by most fish; an example would be a mackerel.



Movement of the Bionic Fish

The Bionic Fish mimics the construction and movement of a real fish. While observing how the Bionic Fish moves through water and how it is shaped and put together, can you identify what type of the three real-life fish motions it uses? What type of fish would you say the Bionic Fish most-closely resembles? Explain your answer. Students should identify that the construction of the Bionic Fish most-closely resembles the thunniform movement of a tuna. The Bionic Fish is propelled only by its tail, and its head is not involved in the motion of the Fish.

Fish propulsion worksheet and experiment


Say: Read carefully the following material, and take turns in conducting the experiments suggested. As you do that make sure to document your observations and conclusions on the table and space provided.

Note: This activity requires a fully assembled Bionic Fish and a tank of a sizeable length filled with enough water to buoy the Fish. A more detailed look at the shape and structure of a fish tail makes clear just how the design of the tail allows a fish to propel itself forward and move through water. These illustrations show a fish tail's movement in water. Just like a propeller on a boat generates a jet of water behind it to move it forward, a fish tail's movement also generates a jet that achieves forward motion. The illustrations below represent the movements of a fish tail that propels it forward. Step 1: Tail moves inward in one direction.



Step 2: Tail starts to move in the opposite direction.

Step 3: As the tail continues to move in that direction, a vortex starts to form behind it.

Step 4: Tail again moves in the opposite direction, forming more vortices and starts to propel the fish forward.

Step 5: Tail movement continues, with orderly vortices forming behind the fish to achieve propulsion through the water.



In order to propel itself forward in the water, a fish must overcome the drag on its body. To do so, it needs to push water in the opposite direction of its body. The movement of the fish demonstrated in the steps above show that vortices (plural of "vortex") are shed from the tail, and the formation of these vortices are what allow the required amount of water to be pushed away from the fish. A vortex can be defined as a mass of swirling flow. The vortices that a fish generates and sheds behind it are actually very orderly and consistent. And because they are so consistent, a jet of water forms behind the fish from these vortices. This jet works much like a jet of water that the propeller from a boat would produce.

Tail swing and speed experiment

The way a fish tail moves allows a fish to move quickly and efficiently through water. The tail propels the fish as it moves back and forth. With the Bionic Fish, you have the ability to control both the speed of the tail and the size of the tail's swing. Experiment with 5 different speed settings and 5 different swing sizes and determine if this has any visible effect on how fast the Bionic Fish moves through the water. Use the table below to keep track of your results and notes.

Swing size 1 (small)

Swing size 2

Swing size 3

Swing size 4 Swing size 5 (big)

Tail speed 1 (slow)

Tail speed 2

Tail speed 3

Tail speed 4

Tail speed 5 (fast)



Analysis and conclusions

Based on your results, what can you conclude in terms of the effects of the tail speed and the tail swing size on how fast the fish is able to move through the water? Students should draw their conclusions based on how fast the perceived speed of the fish was under the differing conditions. They optimally should explain the conditions under which the fish moved slowest and fastest (e.g., fastest tail speed and biggest swing size), and touch upon how the tail speed and swing size ultimately affected how fast the fish was moving.



Day 3

Chameleon Tongue

Day 3 Overview Time Estimate Bionic Chameleon discussion 30 minutes

Assembly of the Bionic Chameleon 45 minutes

Chameleon tongue activity worksheet 30 minutes

Biomimicry design process discussion 30 minutes

Biomimicry design project: individual group work 60 minutes

Biomimicry design project: presentations 45 minutes

Bionic Chameleon discussion


Say: Any application that requires an arm to extend quickly to greater its length and grab securely an odd-shaped object should consider the chameleon's tongue as the object to mimic. This tongue extends to double its size in less than 20 milliseconds, and molds itself to the object, typically an insect, enclosing it completely.

Feel free to show Day 3 Chameleon: Explanatory and/or Bionic Chameleon: Quick Assembly videos.

Assembly of the Bionic Chameleon


Say: We will now assemble the chameleon tongue. Each team of 4 students will work with one kit, following the assembly instructions provided.



Bionic Chameleon: Assembly Instructions https://www.bionics4education.com/usa/lang/en/bionicscamp/pdf/InstructionsCHAMELEONEnglish.pdf

Chameleon tongue activity worksheet


Say: Read the material that follows and answer the questions listed. When you have finished, take turns handling the chameleon tongue to pick up and manipulate as many small objects as you want. Fill out the table provided with your results and observations.

Note: This activity requires a fully assembled Bionic Chameleon and objects of various shapes and sizes that the Chameleon gripper could feasibly pick up. The elasticity of a chameleon's tongue allows it to form to the shape and size of the object it is trying to grab. As the tongue is about to reach, for example, an insect the chameleon is trying to eat, the tip of the tongue retracts (or moves inward). While the middle moves inward, the areas on the outside of the tongue move outward. This lets the chameleon's tongue surround the target and adjust to the target's shape in order to grab hold of it.

https://www.bionics4education.com/usa/lang/en/bionicscamp/pdf/InstructionsCHAMELEONEnglish.pdf

https://www.bionics4education.com/usa/lang/en/bionicscamp/pdf/InstructionsCHAMELEONEnglish.pdf



The Bionic Chameleon gripper uses a similar principle, where the center of the tip moves inward when grabbing an object, while the outside of the tip outwardly surrounds the object. One of the notable characteristics of the Bionic Chameleon gripper is the material on its surface. It helps to maintain friction with the objects it picks up.

Picking up objects

Your Bionic Chameleon gripper is designed to pick up objects that other types of mechanical grippers would not be able to. Experiment with the gripper by trying to pick up a variety of objects. You can use the table below to keep track of the type of objects you try to pick up, to track the characteristics of the objects, and to take notes on whether you were successful in picking up that object.

Object Object characteristics Successful pickup? (yes/no)



Observations and analysis

What objects was the chameleon gripper able to pick up? Did these objects have anything in common in terms of what type of objects they were, their shape, or the material they were made of? Answers will vary depending on what objects are used. Students should be able to find certain common characteristics with certain objects and identify them here. Were there any objects that the chameleon gripper failed to pick up? What do you think prevented the gripper from successfully picking up these objects? Answers will vary depending on what objects are used. Students should be able to find certain characteristics that prevented these items from being picked up, which possibly contrast with the characteristics of the items that were successfully picked up. What types and shapes of objects was the chameleon gripper able to pick up that other more rigid and less malleable types of grippers would not be able to? Answers will vary depending on what objects are used. The answers to this question can build off the answers to the first question regarding the characteristics of the successfully picked-up objects. Did you attempt to pick up anything that was fragile? How did the chameleon gripper's design allow for a gentler grip on objects? Answers will vary depending on what objects are used. The students could explain how the gripper surrounds the objects rather that squeezing or pinching them, and that allows for the gripper to pick up objects that are fragile.

Biomimicry design process discussion


Say: Read carefully the material presented here. It will prepare you for the design project that will be described later.



There is so much valuable information that humans can gain from studying nature and how different species of animals have evolved and adapted to their environments. So many different species of animals, over the course of millions of years, have developed characteristics and physical designs to help them thrive in their environments. These natural designs can be fascinating, and they can also be studied by humans to see if there is anything we can learn from them and use ourselves. Bionics, or biomimicry, is the branch of science that studies biological systems or functions, and their application to mechanical systems or to solve engineering problems. There's a vast number of these functions present in living things that can be used artificially and beneficially. There are two different approaches one could take to explore potential bionics solutions: the top-down method, and the bottom-up method. The two approaches differ regarding their starting point.

Top-down method In the top-down method, "engineers look to biology". In this approach, an existing problem is first defined or identified, and then engineers look to see if there is anything existing in nature that addresses or overcomes this type of problem. A step-by-step explanation of the top-down process is shown in this diagram: To use an example that relates to the robots used in the Bionics Kit, say that engineers decided they needed a type of mechanical gripper that was capable of picking up oddly shaped or spherical objects. They would then look to living organisms in nature that, say, are able to grasp or pick up those types of objects. The engineers would identify those as their natural models, select what they decide is the best

Feel free to show Day 3 Bionic Thinking video.

Step 1: Define problem Step 2: Look to nature to see how other organisms solved this problem Step 3: Select most promising biological model and identify principles Step 4: Abstraction: detachment from biological model Step 5: Test technical implementation, prototype, analyze, feedback Step 6: Design solution

top-

dow

n



model to use (in this example, a chameleon's tongue), then attempt to make a similar mechanical representation of this natural model. By analyzing, building prototypes, testing, and retesting, the engineers can arrive at their final design solution, which in this case would be the Bionic Chameleon gripper.

Bottom-up method The other approach, the bottom-up method, involves a reverse starting point compared to the top-down method. Here, "biology looks to engineers". So instead of starting by identifying an existing problem and then looking to nature to solve it, the bottom-up method starts by looking to nature and then trying to figure out what we can learn from nature's design. After identifying and analyzing an aspect of natural design that works well, we then look to see how we can use it and implement it using technology. Remember the chameleon tongue example used for the top-down method? If that bionics solution was instead developed using the bottom-up method, we would first look at the chameleon and see if there was something distinct about what it does and how it does it. Does it do anything that is particularly effective or efficient? Its tongue is unique in terms of what it can grab and how it grabs objects. After identifying this, engineers can then study the principles of how the tongue works and develop a design solution based on a mechanical or technical application of the tongue. Using this method, the engineers could also arrive at the Bionic Chameleon tongue as their bionics solution.

Biomimicry design project: individual group work


Say: As a team, pool together what you have learned from the three bionic examples you have assembled and experimented with, and develop a proposal for some new practical application that could use properties of some living species.

Step 5: Design solution Step 4: Technical implementation Step 3: Abstraction: detachmChameleon tongue activitynciples found in the biological model Step 2: Analyze biomechanics and functional morphology of the Fish tail movementgical system Step 1: Biological research

bottom-up



For this activity, you are tasked with taking the role of a bionics engineer and are to develop a bionics solution using either the top-down or the bottom-up method. Your solution should be based on a natural design (something that already exists in nature) and should solve some sort of problem humans have or should make something humans do easier or more effective. Once your bionics solution is developed, you or your team will present your proposal to the rest of the group. Be sure to emphasize and explain what your solution is based on, how you adapted it, and what your solution ultimately achieves for human use. Instructor note: You should define the expectations of the presentation aspects of the projects to each project team at this point. This should include the expectations of the presentation, to what extent you expect the bionics solution to be developed and explained, and how you expect the project to be delivered. The delivery can include just oral presentations, or you can task the groups to make illustrations of their ideas or even put together PowerPoint slideshows. This should be done with consideration of how much time the students will have to work on these projects and what resources they will have at their disposal for the presentations.

Project Management

Instructor note: The following section describes project teams, the potential roles of the project team members, and how they should work together to achieve their project goals. As the instructor, you should help with this aspect of the process, such as deciding the number of members per project team and/or the team member roles that should be assigned. You can either assign the roles to individuals within the teams yourself, or let the students decide this as part of the project management process.

Working in teams can help people collaborate in order to better achieve specific goals and to achieve these goals more efficiently. Especially in the case of bionics and biomimicry, more people working together can help to navigate the vast amount of possibilities and ideas involved with designing, adapting, and developing solutions derived from nature. Therefore, it is suggested that you work in teams to develop your bionics solution. Multiple minds working together to come up with ideas is likely to be much more effective than individuals working alone. There are different approaches you can take in terms of assigning roles to different people within the project team. At the very least, you'll want to assign a project manager, with the rest of the team being contributing project members. Depending on how extensive you're planning on making your biomimicry project, you can also assign specific roles to each project member. Descriptions of the specific roles are provided below. Project leader: You will want to assign a project leader that can lead the team and help make decisions when necessary (such as deciding which natural solution to develop if a team comes up with multiple ideas). The project leader should keep the team focused on the goals and individual steps of the project as it goes along. Project member: Everyone besides the project manager will be considered members of the project team. Depending on how extensive you plan on making the scope of your project (whether you will be conducting extensive research, whether you will be formally presenting your bionics solution, etc.), more specific roles can also be assigned to these team members. Some options for these roles are listed below. As a group, decide whether it will be beneficial to assign any of these specific roles to your project team members, or whether it would be better for everyone to work together to achieve each aspect of the project goals:



Analyzer: An analyzer can be assigned to further develop and investigate a concept or idea that the project team comes up with. For example, if the team identifies an animal to model their bionics solution after, the analyzer's role would be to look closely at the animal to analyze how its biological system functions. Or if the team starts by identifying an existing problem, the analyzer would be focused on looking to a biological model that solves this problem and looking closely at how it solves it. The analyzer would be focused on steps 2 and 3 of either the top-down or bottom-up method.

Researcher: No one working with the biomimicry design method is expected to work with information purely from memory. Therefore, a certain amount of research is expected during the process. The researcher would oversee conducting this research as the team needs it. Research could be needed as early on as the brainstorming step, during the middle steps of the process where biological models and principles are being examined, up to the design of the solution.

Presenter: Depending on what your instructor asks for and how much time you are given for the project, you may be tasked with presenting the team's solution once it is completed. The presenter would be responsible for the presentation of the team's solution to the rest of the class/group. Again, depending on what you are tasked with by your instructor, the presentation given can involve a spoken presentation, discussion with the rest of the class, visual presentations of the solution, or even demonstrating the solution if your team managed to make some sort of prototype.

Illustrator: If your team decides that it would be beneficial to have sketches or illustrations to help portray or visually explain your biomimicry concept, you can assign an illustrator role to a team member to draw or produce those pictures.

If you are assigned a specific role and find yourself waiting for something to do at certain parts of the process, try to help other members in your group. It is important for everyone to cooperate and communicate with each other throughout the project.

Brainstorming

Brainstorming can be very helpful as a starting point when attempting to come up with an idea or concept. There are different methods for brainstorming, and different methods can work better for different people. The main goal for brainstorming is trying to come up with as many viable ideas as possible, then afterwards you can narrow them down or select the ideas that may work best. Some questions to ask yourself or work through with your project team are listed below; answering these questions could help to develop ideas for your bionics solution. Brainstorming questions: Approach 1: Start thinking about animals that have characteristics that you think are interesting or effective. What do these characteristics let the animal do or achieve? Once you identify what the animal does with these characteristics, try to look at it from the perspective of natural design. Try answering questions like: How does the animal do or achieve these things? Is there anything notable about the design or structure about these characteristics? If these characteristics are able to be mimicked by something mechanical, are there any existing problems for humans that this could help solve? Approach 2: Or you can take the opposite approach: first try to think of a problem that humans have or something that humans have trouble doing. Are there examples in nature where natural design has addressed or solved this problem?



How can these natural design examples serve as models of how humans can solve the problems you identified? Notes and organization: You can use the table on this page to help organize your ideas and take notes. Once your group is finished brainstorming ideas, decide as a group which of the ideas you want to use and move forward with.

Animal Natural design Human use



Research

To develop a successful bionics solution, conducting research can help you gain valuable insight and knowledge regarding your ideas. Outside information can also help to reinforce ideas you have and help improve their credibility. There any many resources available on the Internet, and you likely could find information related to your bionics solution and its natural model. Types of reliable sources may be books, scientific journals, magazine articles, encyclopedias, or government articles. It is important that you evaluate where your information is coming from; there are plenty of reliable sources out there, but also a lot of unreliable information out on the "open-Internet". If you have access to a school library website with scientific resources, that would be a good place to start to find trusted, reliable sources. Remember that through researching, you are looking for information to support or reinforce your ideas, not to take ideas from other people. Your bionics solution should ultimately be based on ideas that you or your group comes up with on your own. If you plan on using information from an outside source in your discussion or presentation of your bionic solution, make sure you save the web link to the source or a copy of it with the publication information, so you can give the original source proper credit.

Biomimicry design project: presentations


Say: Decide how you want the students to present their proposals. They could be as PowerPoint presentations, hand drawn flip charts, or leave it open.

Once you have conceptualized, researched, and developed your bionics solution, the final step is to present your team's work to your instructor and/or the rest of the group. Decide which members of the team will speak during the presentation, what presentation materials you will be using (if any), and what information the presentation will cover. As emphasized in the original project requirements, make sure your presentation includes an explanation of what your solution is based on, how you adapted it, and what your solution ultimately achieves for human use.

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bionics camp itinerary & facilitator guide · 2019-05-23 · bionics, or biomimicry, is the...

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