Abstract:

Modern technologies of nowadays permanently ask for continual modification of teaching methods especially in the field of computer science. If teacher and students would like to follow the latest trends in this fast-growing and quick-changing area, teaching methods should be permanently developed. Technologies as Internet of Things (IoT), Web Design, Machine Learning or other current machineries constantly suffer from the lack of talented and skilled developers to independently manage and execute such projects. The situation reflects, on the one hand, to the deficiency of students willing to study these areas, on the other hand, to the ability of teachers to successfully adapt new trends from these areas into the education process. Based on our experience, it is possible to claim, that students can be easily motivated to work at all kind of applications if a way of their engagement is entertaining and pleasurable. Small and cheap mobile robotic platforms can serve this purpose. When the students can play with something what provides real feedback to them - blinking LED diode, lighting-up display, turning motors - they are motivated to work on it and consequently to learn something. It is called teaching by experience. With regards to mentioned, our team developed and introduced the mobile robotic platform applicable for showing the students basic principles of IoT application development. Upon the simple tasks, students first learn how to, through an introduced application programming interface (API), operate all the robot hardware. Afterwards they are headed for setting up their first application when they need to set up the server application and graphical user interface (GUI), implement the communication protocol and program the robot logic. The paper describes the platform in detail as well as the first experiences with its putting into practice.

Keywords:

IoT, Internet of Things, ESP12, ATmega328, open hardware, teaching, education.