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An Open Robotics Environment Motivates Students to Learn the Key Concepts of Artificial Neural Networks and Reinforcement Learning

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Robotics in Education (RiE 2017)

Part of the book series: Advances in Intelligent Systems and Computing ((AISC,volume 630))

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Abstract

Educational robotics is a widely recognized tool to motivate students and concretize abstract and complex topics, such as artificial intelligence in computing education curricula. Lego Mindstorms series is one of the most popular robotics platform due to its flexibility and relatively cheap price. We used Lego Mindstorms EV3 robots with a novel Open Learning Environment for Artificial Intelligence (OLE-AI) to teach concepts of reinforcement learning and artificial neural networks (ANNs) to computer science students. OLE-AI uses a white box approach to expose internal structures of an ANN to students. Results from the pilot study with OLE-AI indicate that the participating students were able to deepend their knowledge about AI topics through a practical and open exercise that involved them in controlling EV3 robots by manipulating the ANN and Q-Learning algorithm.

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Notes

  1. 1.

    https://www.arduino.cc.

  2. 2.

    https://www.lego.com/en-us/mindstorms/about-ev3.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. University of Eastern Finland, Joensuu, Finland

    Tapani Toivonen, Ilkka Jormanainen & Markku Tukiainen

Authors
  1. Tapani Toivonen
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  2. Ilkka Jormanainen
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  3. Markku Tukiainen
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Corresponding author

Correspondence to Tapani Toivonen .

Editor information

Editors and Affiliations

  1. Practical Robotics Institute Austria (PRIA), Vienna, Austria

    Wilfried Lepuschitz

  2. Practical Robotics Institute Austria (PRIA), Vienna, Austria

    Munir Merdan

  3. Practical Robotics Institute Austria (PRIA), Vienna, Austria

    Gottfried Koppensteiner

  4. Slovak University of Technology (STU), Bratislava, Slovakia

    Richard Balogh

  5. Charles University, Prague, Czech Republic

    David Obdržálek

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Toivonen, T., Jormanainen, I., Tukiainen, M. (2018). An Open Robotics Environment Motivates Students to Learn the Key Concepts of Artificial Neural Networks and Reinforcement Learning. In: Lepuschitz, W., Merdan, M., Koppensteiner, G., Balogh, R., Obdržálek, D. (eds) Robotics in Education. RiE 2017. Advances in Intelligent Systems and Computing, vol 630. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-62875-2_29

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-62875-2_29

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  • Publisher Name: Springer, Cham

  • Print ISBN: 978-3-319-62874-5

  • Online ISBN: 978-3-319-62875-2

  • eBook Packages: EngineeringEngineering (R0)

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