Sensing moisture
In this activity, students construct a simple, effective moisture sensor that is then used to give warning of dry, damp or wet conditions.
Robot sensors
Robots need to interact with their environment. Professor Dale Carnegie of Victoria University explains some of the vast array of sensors and how these enable robots to operate. These can include sensors that can detect the distance of objects, sound, motion, heat and levels of carbon dioxide. Information from the sensors needs to be combined to provide a correct interpretation of the environment
Point of interest
Why is a washing machine considered to be a robot?
By the end of this activity, students should be able to:
construct a simple moisture sensor
conduct a series of experiments to investigate how various moisture sensors work.
Download the Word file (see below) for:
introduction/background notes
what you need and what to do
student worksheets.
Related content
Read about the research in Satellite sensing – using remote sensing to make measurements ranging from storm damage to pasture growth. Sensing the Earth explores other techniques – like infrared, radar and sonar – used to map and monitor the Earth’s structures, including New Zealand’s seismic activity.
Sensing robots tells the story of MARVIN – a Mobile Autonomous Vehicle for Indoor Navigation. Mechatronics explains the combination of electronics, computer programming and mechanics that make robots like MARVIN function.
Activity ideas
Controlling resistance explores the concept of variable resistance by using a simple electrical circuit.
You can also use micro:bit sensors to measure soil moisture.
