A few people have asked what we are building. That is still open for debate depending heavily on what the participants (you) want to do.
We're designing a modular exhibit. Each piece is something that an individual or small team can produce.
It might be an nxt robot that transports an object a few feet. But the micro controller could be anything, arduino, vex, cRIO, etc. The rest of the module could be LEGO, or wood, or VEX metal, or anything safe to the operators and visitors of the exhibit. We have one team building a blimp.
And the task a device performs could be anything. The device in a module might be stationary or it might move around, though space will be tight. Going vertical might be fun. But we're thinking the exhibit will chain the modules together to perhaps transport a ball or marbles from one side of the exhibit to the other. Kinda like a
LEGO Great Ball Contraptions.
Kids who come to the exhibit will be able to interact with various modules, e.g. via joysticks, push buttons, or sensors. Use your imagination.
Three more important features of the overall exhibit...
1. We will webcast the exhibit, and we're seeking people who want to host satellite events and build modules for them. Obviously, everyone can't come to DC. Some of you will be in St. Louis.
Or if you did come to DC, we might not have room to host your module. But we can easily hook you into the webcast. We actually want to make it interactive; e.g. when a special sensor in the exhibit is triggered, actual control of the event could switch to a remote site for a few minutes.
2. This is not a one time event. We can set it up in a classroom or a basement and continue development, especially of the remote sites, before and after the USA Science and Engineering Festival.
3. We have non-technical projects too. For example, one of our mentors is creating a story line for the overall theme (alien cow abductions, if you haven't seen
our website yet). We will be seeking authors to contribute chapters to the story, and we'll even look to publish it as a kids book.
Let me know if you have any more questions!
George