As far as I'm concerned, it could be useful if it's a website with purpose, if it's a database I or someone else has use for (something for the future enterprise I'm planning?), if it has real research value, if it produces something useful or can be used to make money or help.charity...

Stuff like that, not sorting candy..

Not knowing if this is something the sites wants, but how about programming the Colonial Diplomacy map? I've seen it sold IRL, but I do not know how good it is compared to other versions.

Do you also complain that nobody cares when the train from Town A leaving at 3:16 pm and traveling at 45 mph will pass the train from Town B leaving at 3:42 pm and traveling at 48 mph?

The value of school is in learning the process, not the end product. If you feel underutilized, then discover a cure for cancer as a side science fair project.

I agree learning the process is most important, but if the end product can be useful that's only a plus, right? It should also help.motivating 10 people.

First, I'm sorry that you have to work with 9 other people. That is easily 2x too many to work effectively for a project like this. You have my condolences.

Second, stick with this project. It can actually be quite interesting and it's a fairly complicated problem (to do right at least). Image processing is very hard and very useful. In fact, I'd wager to say it's one of the most important parts to get truly independent robots, self-driving cars, etc.

I think that will be quite a minor part, actually. The teacher made it quite 'sterile' with easy shapes of candy and stuff and I recall we have sensors at school that recognize a couple of colours. I wouldn't be surprised if the candy happens to have those colours.

I might be mistaken but I think the project will be more about the logistics and timing and mechanics and stuff of the 'assembly line' itself. And programming it of course.

I guess I could bring up the possibility of two groups as well, although I'm not sure that's the problem per se. I guess the project needs to be less broad if half the people work on it though..

+1 THM

Nice.

Good laugh during worktime.

The teacher is very open to ideas by the way. It's not like I'm trying to force a change through.

Also, no to the map implementation. Definitely not broad enough and the wrong kind of challenge.

That is not to say I hate it, but I know it would be shot down.

So, ideas? Ever thought you needed something that 10 novice techies could create? Even business offers I might be able to suggest, I just need ideas :-)

Your teacher sounds like a tool. Write a program to replace him.

Also, definitely push for teams of five, or even 3/3/4.10 is awful.

Buy a webcam and then you could image process anything you want. Or scrap the legos all together and buy an arduino. Then maybe you'd have a project that would take 10 people. More like 6, but better than the 2 this current project would take.

In one of my high school CS classes, we got a few arduinos, a KinnectKennett, and a RepRap 3 printer and split off into small groups to do cool shit with them.

(nb I went to an underfunded American public school. People are surprisingly willing to donate things if you ask.)

OK, I know what you can make. I was a judge at a hackathon at my alma mater and some of the projects were really good. A lot focused around biosensors: hemoglobin, heart rate, temperature, etc. Make a device that does some sort of medical diagnostics and updates it to some website. There's a 10 person project.

Kinect* my phone is dumb.

To be fair as far as 10 persons goes: you guys might overestimate the amount of time we get. I think it will be more of an in-class thing for a few hours a week, several months.

In that light, medical diagnostics might be a bit much? I estimate the teacher would say that.

The difficulty is okay I suppose (or I won't be able to change much about that), just more useful..

I know I'm not making it particularly easy. I'm definitely considering things suggested and I'll make sure my teacher does too.

If you still think medical diagnostics would make sense knowing this, let me know as well.

I think the idea is to have a project that can be somewhat divided into sub-projects..

how about giving the students some autonomy over what they want to make. keep it simple, and avoid the bane of epic-itis, but get them to give you an idea, and then show them the tools they need to create it.

be they database access/installation, web client/server interactions, input/output, sound/video, networking stuff, whatever... take their idea, and break it into a colection of components to teach them.

medical diagnostics actually doesn't seem too hard. It just requires useful sensors as input. What kind of budget do you have?

Presumably less is better. No clue what the budget is.

Build a maze runner, to get outside it has to find blue doors and test those routes, avoiding the red doors. So the thing has to move, turn, sense colour, and build a picture of the tested routes. Starts in the centre, exits at the outside, green walls. This would involve other departments as well, so team work essential (physics - sense colours/differentiate, engineering/physics for the machine, comp guys for programming test and store routine).

The comp guys could build a and test in a virtual maze, which would simulate the inputs and commands for the physical machine/maze. It'd be fun and actually is as much robotics. Just an idea

Not a useful end product, but I like that idea nonetheless.

couple of years back I've made with 2 others a sumo robot with lego for school. It has several sensors, like ultrasonic to detect the other, a color sensor to detect the underground color to see if you're still in the circle, a sound sensor, so when you clap the match begins.
It's a great project to learn to program and use different sensors.
Arduino is also a good start point to look for projects.

The project you're doing now is quite easy. I don't know why your teacher does this in groups of 10. Each write 5 lines of code and the project is finished. The software is straightforward, and with the right legos the hardware aswell.

What niveau is your class? In what languages do you program?

abgemacht his proposition is also a good project.

or you can go the direction of Internet of Things? the new hot topic
https://www.mbed.com/en/

It's high school/mid-school, don't know which English school level corresponds.

i meant what is the niveau of your programming skills. You've stated your ages in the opening post :p. I assume you're programming in c++?

Just think of a fun project, it doesn't have to be usefull. It's more about the learning process than the end product

Don't know, really. I think we're pretty much starting from scrap? I guess HTML, CSS and MYSQL won't be particularly useful? :-)
It has been more on the theoretical side so far.

mysql is usefull for a project with databases. if you want a internetpage for the project you can use html and css. But for sorting your candy and driving your lego servomotor (?), i recommend c++.
for image processing you'll need python, but i recommend not going into that as it will be difficult with no programming knowledge.

I would ask my teacher for some arduinos and breadboards. start with blinking some leds to learn the basic programming and using inputs and outputs of the board. Later you can add you color sensor and servomotor to the board or other stuff if you choose another project.

http://i.imgur.com/r400cU7.jpg

Lolz

Code an efficient gunboat playing AI. If that's too easy add in a world map one.