Fence Fishing

To create a fun and interactive robotics playground game designed for 6-7-year-olds to explore computational thinking. Through hands-on play, kids learn key concepts like loops, block coding, and robotic execution as they control a boat using blocks of "code.”

Project Goal

Children place blocks on a board/fence, which the OpenMV camera captures and interprets as instructions. These instructions are then sent to a Raspberry Pi Pico via Bluetooth to steer the boat and "fish". As the boat carries out the commands, kids witness their "coding" journey come to life on the water!

Fence Fishing is about creating boundaries that encourage creativity. The 'fence' represents a structured framework, like placing blocks or programming loops, that helps kids explore computational thinking in a playful, hands-on way. And the 'fishing'? Well, that’s the fun part: guiding a boat to retrieve magnetic fish, blending robotics and game mechanics to make learning engaging and memorable.

How it Works & Why it Works

System Overview & Components

OpenMV Camera:
- Reads April Tags to interpret block instructions.
Raspberry Pi Pico:
- Processes instructions and controls the boat.
Servo Motors:
- Drives the boat’s motion.
Hall Sensors:
- Detect magnetic fish for the game objective.
Push Button:
- Initiates the image capture and execution process.
4-Cell 25V Battery:
- Provides reliable power for motor and system performance.
Bluetooth Module:
- Enables communication between the OpenMV camera and Raspberry Pi Pico.