‘We hope to teach RB to carry forgotten lunches back and forth and deliver messages.’ : Robots Take a Cue From Students at Vista View

‘AH1. EH3.13.Y.A.E.1. EH3.M,” the robot said to himself. Then the rotund plastic and chrome creature named RB5X, now a full-time employee at Vista View Elementary School, translated: “I am.”

Then, the one-armed robot continued, as he prepared to glide around the room and show off his abilities: “I am the RB5X, and I will demonstrate what I can do.”

RB is one of two robots that reside and work at Vista View in Fountain Valley. Seventh- and eighth-graders participating in robotics write computer programs that direct RB and his colleague to perform a variety of tasks, from picking up a chocolate bar from the floor to taking a calculator across the room to a friend.

The school’s unusual robotics program, the first in Orange County public schools, is the brainchild of Mike Goodrich, a Vista View science teacher with a background in computers. Although the three-foot-tall critters have been rolling around the school for four or five months now, the novelty has not worn off.

Goodrich’s class of third-period robotophiles, mostly boys, watched attentively as Leonardo “The Brain” Dimont 13, demonstrated the first robot program that was supposed to make RB walk and move his arm by remote control.

Leonardo furrowed his brow and brushed back his brown wavy hair as RB took a few hesitant steps forward, then stopped.

“It’s not sophisticated enough yet,” explained Greg Kaminski, 14. “But it is a lot more sophisticated than a remote control toy.”

The district bought its first robot for $3,000. A local firm donated the other.

Both robots now are undergoing basic training at the school.

“RB5X has six arm motions, can move forward and backward, and right and left,” Goodrich said. “The problem is that the technology is not as good as in ‘Star Wars.’ Over long distances, RB veers off a few inches and bumps into the wall.”

Goodrich is planning a robotics curriculum for the entire school district and hopes to finish by May.

“We’re at the stage where we’re just learning how to use the equipment,” Goodrich said. “What I want to do is have the robot used in problem-solving exercises. If the kids could have the robot pick up a screw and drop it into a little tray . . . something that will save a human being from having to do this kind of drudgery, then it will be worthwhile.”

Gayle Wayne, who helped develop the robotics program for the district, said, “Eventually, we hope to teach RB to carry forgotten lunches back and forth and deliver messages.”

Asked to assess his own personality, RB described himself as a well-rounded individual. “I am the RB5X intelligent robot,” RB said. “I can be fun for work or play. I love children, mice or pets. I love to make sounds.”

Both robots understand programmed commands such as “move forward,” “spin,” and “speak the phrase.” The children are able to write programs in a simple computer language called “Savvy.” Those programs go on a computer chip that snaps into the robots. The district also has set up an “anatomical” robot lab where all the parts of RB5X are laid out carefully, so students can understand how the components are put together.

The “best thing about RB5X is that he’s adaptable to all the new technology,” Goodrich said. “So he won’t become obsolete too quickly. The next thing is to get him an infrared detector, so he can see all around himself and not bump into things so much.”