Geometry: New Tools for New Technologies: Hour 1: Unit 1: A Hero’s Journey Moton Planning for Robots

How is geometry used to program a robot's movement? How do zoo planners use geometry to make habitats that are enjoyable and safe? Why do people who plan garbage pickups and snowplow routes need geometry? Geometry: New Tools for New Technologies I and II explores the exciting world of Geometry in the 20th century.

Unit 1: A Hero’s Journey Motion Planning for Robots (12:15)

Summary of the Video

This video indicates some of the mathematics that is needed to get a robot to use a coin to get a soda from a vending machine. Computer scientist Angela Wu of American University first shows that the robot must move from one place to another without bumping into obstacles along the way. This can be analyzed using a geometric diagram consisting of dots and lines, called a graph, to locate an efficient path. Second, once the robot is in front of the soda machine, it must rotate its wrist and its arm to put the coin in the slot. Using the surface of a donut (a one-holed torus) makes studying this question more transparent.

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