LockwoodSTEMStudent Engineering Hub
ADM Activity 2.1.5

Conveyor Systems & Feedback Control

Program material movement through the Entry, Transport, and Exit Conveyors and replace timing assumptions with Object Sensor feedback.

Back to Unit 2Student WorkflowWhat You Submit

Your lesson guide

Objective

Work toward the lesson goal: Conveyor Systems & Feedback Control. Use the directions and success criteria in the activity below.

Materials

For the online work: a browser and your engineering notebook. Follow the activity’s materials list for any physical build, and get teacher approval before using equipment.

Plan your time

Suggested work block: 45–60 minutes. Physical builds and projects may span several classes; follow your teacher’s schedule.

Enable JavaScript to use this investigation. The lesson directions and report fields remain available below.

Learning Targets

By the end of this lesson

  • Program conveyor direction, speed, and sequencing.
  • Use the Object Sensor to detect product presence.
  • Compare open-loop and closed-loop material handling.
  • Calibrate a reliable sensor threshold for conveyor stopping.
Equipment & Systems

What you will use

  • VEX CTE Workcell
  • Entry Conveyor
  • Transport Conveyor
  • Exit Conveyor
  • Object Sensor
Student Workflow

What You Will Do

  1. Run a simple time-based conveyor sequence and document where timing can create inconsistent stopping.
  2. Read Object Sensor data for product-present and product-absent conditions.
  3. Choose and test a useful detection threshold.
  4. Replace the time-based stop with sensor-controlled logic.
  5. Run repeated trials and compare the reliability of the open-loop and closed-loop versions.
Programming Focus

How coding supports the lesson

Use a while loop or equivalent sensor condition so movement continues until the required physical state is detected. The lesson is about feedback control, not loop syntax practice.

What You Will Submit

What You Submit

  • Open-loop vs. closed-loop comparison
  • Object Sensor calibration data
  • Final commented conveyor-control program
  • Repeatability test results
Back to Unit 2

Build your lesson report

Checkpoint: is your evidence ready?
  • Check calculations, units, labels, and measurements against the activity requirements.
  • Record what actually happened, including unexpected results.
  • Explain what you changed and why; attach required drawings, photos, CAD, or code in your classroom assignment.

Open-loop vs. closed-loop comparison Object Sensor calibration data Final commented conveyor-control program

A PDF download is not a submission. Review it, then upload it and any required attachments through your classroom assignment system.