electronics

Article
Open-Source Drone Programming Course for
Distance Engineering Education
José M. Cañas 1, * , Diego Martín-Martín 2 , Pedro Arias 3 , Julio Vega 1 ,
David Roldán-Álvarez 1 , Lía García-Pérez 4 and Jesús Fernández-Conde 1
1 Department of Telematic Systems and Computation, Rey Juan Carlos University, 28942 Madrid, Spain;
[email protected] (J.V.); [email protected] (D.R.-Á.); [email protected] (J.F.-C.)
2 Electronic Technology Area, Rey Juan Carlos University, 28933 Madrid, Spain; [email protected]
3 JdeRobot Organization, Alcorcón, 28922 Madrid, Spain; [email protected]
4 Industrial Engineering Department, Francisco de Vitoria University, Pozuelo de Alarcón,
28223 Madrid, Spain; [email protected]
* Correspondence: [email protected]; Tel.: +34-914-888-755




Received: 12 November 2020; Accepted: 14 December 2020; Published: 17 December 2020


Abstract: This article presents a full course for autonomous aerial robotics inside the RoboticsAcademy
framework. This “drone programming” course is open-access and ready-to-use for any teacher/student
to teach/learn drone programming with it for free. The students may program diverse drones on their
computers without a physical presence in this course. Unmanned aerial vehicles (UAV) applications
are essentially practical, as their intelligence resides in the software part. Therefore, the proposed
course emphasizes drone programming through practical learning. It comprises a collection of
exercises resembling drone applications in real life, such as following a road, visual landing,
and people search and rescue, including their corresponding background theory. The course has
been successfully taught for five years to students from several university engineering degrees.
Some exercises from the course have also been validated in three aerial robotics competitions,
including an international one. RoboticsAcademy is also briefly presented in the paper. It is an
open framework for distance robotics learning in engineering degrees. It has been designed as
a practical complement to the typical online videos of massive open online courses (MOOCs).
Its educational contents are built upon robot operating system (ROS) middleware (de facto standard in
robot programming), the powerful 3D Gazebo simulator, and the widely used Python programming
language. Additionally, RoboticsAcademy is a suitable tool for gamified learning and online robotics
competitions, as it includes several competitive exercises and automatic assessment tools.

Keywords: distance learning; open educational platform; drone programming; gamification; Python;
ROS middleware

1. Introduction
The impact of unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) in daily life has primarily grown in the last decade.
Beyond its classic employment in aerial photography or geographic mapping, an increasing number
of drone-based solutions hit the general market and make human life more comfortable every year.
Drones are increasingly being used for video recordings, wildlife monitoring, precision agriculture,
disaster management, entertainment, industrial inspections, etc.
UAV technology’s growth has created the need to train professionals in the sector, taking the
current limits further and producing new drone applications to serve the general public. UAV design
is a cross-disciplinary field involving many technologies: electronics, mechanics, computer science,
telecommunications, etc. Drones are composed of hardware (sensors, actuators, processors) and

Electronics 2020, 9, 2163; doi:10.3390/electronics9122163 www.mdpi.com/journal/electronics

Electronics 2020, 9, 2163 2 of 18

software. Drone programming allows more autonomous applications and widens the span of tasks
that can be solved with them. A significant part of drone intelligence and value resides in its software.
Therefore, drone programming abilities are increasingly demanded in the job market and increasingly
taught in higher education.
Drone programming is rapidly becoming a key market for graduates in computer science and
diverse university engineering degrees. Beyond classroom learning at universities, many private
companies (such as Udacity, Udemy, TheConstruct, etc.) and universities themselves provide online
courses to learn how to program a drone. Massive online open courses (MOOC) explore new
possibilities for distance learning, taking advantage of the Internet. They typically include video
classes, slides, and educational documents.
MOOCs provide useful videos explaining theory contents and drone programming foundations
in distance learning, but they typically undershoot the practical side. This aspect is critical in this
area, where the “learn by doing” paradigm is the most effective approach and provides the best
learning results.
This article presents an open-source drone programming course based on RoboticsAcademy,
an open-access educational platform for robotics distance learning. The course’s primary goal
is to provide an open-access tool that facilitates drones’ programming in different scenarios,
applying concepts related to computer vision, artificial intelligence, automation, autonomous
navigation, or control algorithms. The course is ready to be used for drone programming distance
learning in higher education in engineering. It provides a set of exercises covering different real-world
drone applications (e.g., search and rescue, following a road or visual landing) and focusing on the
practical side. Additionally, RoboticsAcademy is a suitable platform for online drone programming
competitions and gamified learning, as it includes several online competitive exercises.
Typical drone systems for commercial applications are composed of a flying vehicle and a ground
station. In some classic applications, drones are teleoperated by a human operator using a remote with
a radio link. In contrast, they follow preplanned missions in others, sent from a ground station and
composed of a sequence of waypoints. Once the task is set, the onboard autopilot can command the
drone movements to automatically follow the required track using a GPS sensor, inertial measurement
unit (IMU) sensors, and a fast control loop. Two well-known autopilot firmware platforms are PX4
and ArduPilot, which communicate to the ground station using the standard MAVLink protocol.
In the last few years, drone applications have been increasing their scope, and more onboard
intelligence and sensors, such as cameras, are required. Industrial inspection or autonomous indoor
mapping are two illustrative examples. UAVs are progressively seen as aerial robots, and therefore the
most popular robot software frameworks have started to support them. For instance, the robot operating
system (ROS), the de facto standard in robotics, includes the MAVLink extendable communication node
for ROS package (MAVROS), which allows the command of missions and obtaining feedback from
MAVLink drones. This trend democratizes access to drone programming by introducing a standard
layer of abstraction and many reusable components. ROS provides a general framework to program
the autonomous drone logic and facilitates integrating already developed software pieces (drivers,
libraries, stacks, nodes, etc.). It undoubtedly reduces the entry barrier, also helping to migrate software
from one drone to another.
Since ROS was not conceived as an educative platform, it lacks specific educative contents to be
followed in the classroom or assessment tools for student’s code. Another problem of using ROS as
a learning tool is the wide variety of possibilities provided and its ecosystem’s overwhelming size:
packages, libraries, tools, drivers, etc., causing a big “learning shock” and generating frustration. It is
probably the best choice for drone programming, but it is not enough on its own as an educative
platform. RoboticsAcademy aims to provide such educative content using ROS as drone middleware.
The remainder of this paper is organized as follows: the next section provides a summarized
review of related work. In Section 3, we discuss the main features and internal architecture of
the RoboticsAcademy platform in detail. The fourth section presents the distance-learning drone
Electronics 2020, 9, 2163 3 of 18

programming course based on RoboticsAcademy. This platform’s usage as a tool for online drone
programming competitions and gamified learning is described in Section 5. Finally, Section 6 draws
the main conclusions and points out future lines of research.

2. Related Work
There are two trends in teaching robotics contents at university: subjects focused on industrial
robots [1–7] and subjects based on mobile robots [8–13]. In the first case, manipulation control
techniques, inverse kinematics, or trajectory calculations are usually addressed. In the second case,
the techniques generally explained are local and global navigation, position control (avoiding obstacles),
perception, self-location, etc. This dichotomy of contents is also reflected in the robotic platforms that
are used in the exercises.
Both types of robotic subjects have a notably practical bias. Student interaction with robots
facilitates the learning and assimilation of the theoretical concepts, algorithms, and techniques [14].
Exercises promote the paradigm of learning through doing, that is, active learning. They usually occur
within a specific robotic framework, using a teaching tool or a teaching suite where robot behavior is
programmed using a particular language. A great diversity of hardware platforms is used to support
the experimental component of robotics courses.
Beyond being a widespread platform in robotics education for pre-university students,
LEGO MINDSTORMS robots such as NXT or EV3 have also been used in many university courses [15–17].
As recent examples, LEGO robots are used to teach motion planning [18], physical manipulation [19],
and control systems [20] in real robots. These works combine LEGO robots and MATLAB.
According to Esposito [21], MATLAB and C language remain the dominant choices in programming
environments. A minority uses free, open-source packages such as the robot operating system (ROS)
or OpenCV.

2.1. Distance Learning in Robotics

Digitalization is changing how knowledge is created, consumed, and taught; exploring new
educational possibilities such as e-learning where universities increasingly offer massive online open
courses (MOOC). Universities such as Stanford, MIT, Harvard have been leading initiatives in this
direction since 2011. E-learning allows reaching a mass audience, gaining visibility, and capturing
talent. This movement has also influenced the robotics field. There is an increasing number of robotic
courses of this style [22], such as Artificial Intelligence for Robotics [23] from Stanford University
(Udacity, Sebastian Thrun) or Autonomous Mobile Robots [24] from ETH Zurich. Another example is
the MOOC on the Art of Grasping and Manipulation in Robotics [25] from the University of Siena.
Virtual [6,8,14] and remote laboratories are frequent in literature. For instance, the SyRoTek
teaching platform [26] provides web access to 13 small real mobile robots operating in an enclosed
space—the arena. This remote laboratory was used by more than 80 students from the Czech Republic
and Argentina in exercises about robot exploration, navigation, and map building. It uses the
Player/Stage framework and ROS interfaces. Another interesting example of a remote laboratory is [27],
where several physical robots such as CoroBot, VEX, and Pioneer, and two robotics arms such as Nao’s
arm and RTX Scara, were programmed or commanded from a distance. It was successfully used in an
undergraduate course on cyber-physical systems.
Another distance framework for robotic arms is RobUALab [6,14], programmed in Java and web
technologies, which allow the teleoperation, experimentation, and programming of a manipulator.
It provides a remote laboratory with a web 3D viewer connected to a real Scorbot ER-IX arm located at
Alicante University. It also includes a virtual laboratory with an industrial cell built using augmented
reality, including an equivalent simulated robotic arm and as many obstacles as desired. Using this,
students can test different configurations, evaluate pairs, both Cartesian and articulation trajectories,
and program the arm with command lists.
Electronics 2020, 9, 2163 4 of 18

This trend in web-based and practical educational frameworks also appears in other related
fields. For instance, Google Colaboratory (https://colab.research.google.com) provides a simple-to-use
infrastructure where the students can learn deep learning using Jupyter notebooks from their web
browser, which are run on the Google servers. No installation by the students is required.
In robotics, this is complemented by using robotic simulators through a web interface. For example,
one crucial online teaching initiative is Robot Ignite Academy from TheConstruct [28]. It is based on
ROS, the Gazebo simulator, and Jupyter, providing several short courses. Another is RobotBenchmark
(https://robotbenchmark.net) from Cyberbotics. Based on the Webots simulator, it is open and provides
twelve Python exercises with several robots such as Thymio II and Nao humanoid.
Another important ROS-based initiative is Robot Programming Network [29–31]. This action
extends existing remote robot laboratories with the flexibility and power to write ROS code in a web
browser and run it in the robot on the server-side with a single click. It uses Moodle, VirtualBox,
HTML, and Robot Web Tools as its underlying infrastructure.
Recent Internet technologies open new possibilities for distance learning in robotics. For instance,
in ROSLab [32], ROS has been combined with JupyterLab technology to integrate documentation and
robotics software, and Docker container technology. JupyterLab is very useful for teaching purposes,
as lessons or exercises may be delivered as Jupyter notebooks. These notebooks are programmed and
run locally by students, without any dependency problems, and in any operating system, just inside
a container. Another relevant example is cloud computing. For instance, Amazon RoboMaker
(https://aws.amazon.com/robomaker/) [33] allows cloud robotics, simulating, and deploying robotic
applications at a cloud-scale, which may then be available for distance students. It provides an
integrated development environment, simulation service, and fleet management capabilities.

2.2. Drone Programming Education

Beyond the courses based on industrial robots and mobile robots, there is an increasing number
of drone/aerial robotics courses in higher education. Additionally, they also appear in the MOOC
platforms. For instance, EdX offers the “Autonomous Navigation for Flying Robots” course [34],
provided by the Technische Universität München. It is mainly focused on the camera-based navigation
of a quadcopter [35,36], explaining all the underlying theoretical concepts such as linear algebra,
2D and 3D geometry, motor controllers, probabilistic state estimation, and visual odometry. It uses
ROS as middleware and Python exercises. Outside the technical scope, EdX also offers the “Drones
and Autonomous Systems” course [37], mainly focused on fundamentals and applications.
Coursera offers the “Aerial Robotics” course [38], provided by the University of Pennsylvania.
It introduces 2D and 3D geometry, mechanics of flight in micro aerial vehicles and teaches how to
develop dynamic models, derive controllers, and synthesize planners for operating in three-dimensional
environments. It uses MATLAB as programming middleware.
Udacity, a spin-out of Stanford university focused on online education, offers the “Flying Car
and Autonomous Flight Engineering” nano degree [39]. It puts emphasis on 3D motion planning,
control algorithms, and required estimation techniques such as extended Kalman filters. For instance,
it teaches how to fly a drone around a complex urban environment, load a real city map, plan a
collision-free path between buildings, and watch the drone fly above city streets. It uses C++ as the
programming language.
The Udemy platform offers the “Drone Programming Primer for Software Development”
course [40]. It teaches the open-source flight stack based in ArduPilot flight controller, MAVLink,
and DroneKit middleware. This course uses the ArduPilot software in the loop (SITL) simulator,
which simulates an ArduPilot-based autopilot and communicates with it using MAVLink over the local
IP network. The drone is modeled as an object in a Python script, allowing the student to command
a real or simulated drone using Python. DroneKit has been used in many drone-based research
papers [41,42]. This open-source flight stack transcends its hobbyist roots and is branching out into
business applications at a high rate.
Electronics 2020, 9, 2163 5 of 18

Additionally, some drone-based tutorials have begun to appear in some outstanding conferences.
For instance, the “Drone Vision and Deep Learning” tutorial [43] by Ioannis Pitas, from the IEEE/CVF
Conference on Computer Vision and Pattern Recognition CVPR2020, focuses on advanced computer
Electronics 2020, 9, x FOR PEER REVIEW 5 of 18
vision techniques to be run onboard UAVs. They deal with semantic world mapping, detection of
target/obstacle/crowd/point of interest, and 2D/3Dof
mapping, detection of target/obstacle/crowd/point target tracking.
interest, Moreover,
and 2D/3D they facilitate
target tracking. drone
Moreover,
autonomy as drone
they facilitate vision
drone plays aaspivotal
autonomy drone role in drone
vision plays aperception/control, coping
pivotal role in drone with the limited
perception/control,
computing resources available onboard.
coping with the limited computing resources available onboard.

3. RoboticsAcademy
3. RoboticsAcademyLearning
LearningEnvironment
Environment
RoboticsAcademy
RoboticsAcademy(http://jderobot.github.io/RoboticsAcademy/)
(http://jderobot.github.io/RoboticsAcademy/) isisan anopen-access
open-accessplatform
platform
containing a collection of self-contained exercises to learn robotics and computer vision practically,
containing a collection of self-contained exercises to learn robotics and computer vision practically,
oriented to engineering
oriented to education. The proposed
engineering activities (http://jderobot.github.io/RoboticsAcademy/
education. The proposed activities
exercises/) cover a wide range of topics, including autonomous
(http://jderobot.github.io/RoboticsAcademy/exercises/) cover cars, mobile
a wide robots,
range industrial
of topics, robotics,
including
andautonomous
drones. As an evolution
cars, from itsindustrial
mobile robots, initial design [44], RoboticsAcademy
robotics, and drones. As anisevolution
periodically
fromupdated with
its initial
newdesign [44], and
exercises RoboticsAcademy
functionalities.isSome
periodically updated provided
of the exercises with newby exercises and functionalities.
the RoboticsAcademy Some
educational
of the exercises
platform provided
are depicted by the
in Figure 1.RoboticsAcademy educational platform are depicted in Figure 1.

Figure 1. Some of the exercises available in RoboticsAcademy.

Figure 1. Some of the exercises available in RoboticsAcademy.

In each exercise, the student is challenged with a specific problem, which is expected to be solved
In each exercise, the student is challenged with a specific problem, which is expected to be solved
by programming standard robotics algorithms (e.g., perception, planning, and control) to provide
by programming standard robotics algorithms (e.g., perception, planning, and control) to provide
the robot with the necessary intelligence to complete the assigned task. Students shall program their
the robot with the necessary intelligence to complete the assigned task. Students shall program their
solutions
solutionsusing the
using thePython
Pythonprogramming
programming language, selecteddue
language, selected duetotoits
itsgradual
graduallearning
learning curve
curve andand
growing
growing popularity
popularityininrobotics
robotics[45]
[45]and
andother
otherfields.
fields.
The The platform provides a simple application programming
platform provides a simple application interface(API)
programming interface (API)totogrant
granthigh-level
high-level
access
access to robot sensors and actuators for each exercise. This simplicity allows students to focus onon
to robot sensors and actuators for each exercise. This simplicity allows students to focus thethe
algorithms’
algorithms’coding rather
coding than
rather battling
than with
battling withtime-consuming
time-consuminghardware
hardwaremanagement
managementdetails.
details.From
Froman
architectural pointpoint
an architectural of view, eacheach
of view, exercise is divided
exercise intointo
is divided three different
three layers
different (see
layers Figure
(see Figure2):2):
1. Hardware layer: represents the robot itself, being a real robot or a simulated one.
2. Middleware layer: includes the software drivers required to read information from robot sensors
and control robot actuators.
 Electronics 2020, 9, 2163 6 of 18

1. Hardware layer: represents the robot itself, being a real robot or a simulated one.
2. Middleware layer: includes the software drivers required to read information from robot sensors
Electronics
and2020, 9, x FOR
control PEERactuators.
robot REVIEW 6 of 18

3. Application layer: contains the student’s code (algorithms implemented by the student to solve
3. Application
the problem layer: containsand
proposed) the astudent’s
templatecode (algorithms
(internal implemented
platform by the
functions that student
provide to solve
two simple
the problem proposed) and a template (internal platform functions that provide two simple
APIs to access robot hardware and take care of graphical issues for students’ code debugging APIs
topurposes).
access robot hardware and take care of graphical issues for students’ code debugging
purposes).

Figure
Figure 2. 2. Design
Design of of exercises
exercises inin RoboticsAcademy.
RoboticsAcademy.
3.1. Hardware Layer
3.1. Hardware Layer
As opposed to other robotics teaching platforms [11], the exercises proposed in RoboticsAcademy
As opposed to other robotics teaching platforms [11], the exercises proposed in
include a wide variety of robots (drones, mobile robots with wheels, cars, humanoids, industrial manipulators)
RoboticsAcademy include a wide variety of robots (drones, mobile robots with wheels, cars,
in real or simulated arrangements. Likewise, practical activities with popular sensors such as lasers, GPS and
humanoids, industrial manipulators) in real or simulated arrangements. Likewise, practical activities
RGB-D cameras (Kinect, Xtion) can be performed.
with popular sensors such as lasers, GPS and RGB-D cameras (Kinect, Xtion) can be performed.
The internal design of RoboticsAcademy allows the same student’s code to be run in a physical
The internal design of RoboticsAcademy allows the same student’s code to be run in a physical
robot (when available) or its simulated counterpart, with only minor configuration changes. For the
robot (when available) or its simulated counterpart, with only minor configuration changes. For the
3D simulation of the different robots and environments, the open-source Gazebo simulator [46] has
3D simulation of the different robots and environments, the open-source Gazebo simulator [46] has
been used. The Gazebo simulator is widely recognized among the international robotics community.
been used. The Gazebo simulator is widely recognized among the international robotics community.
Two different flight controllers are conventional when using drones: ArduPilot and PX4.
Two different flight controllers are conventional when using drones: ArduPilot and PX4. They
They implement the low-level control and stabilization of the flying robot, leading to flight
implement the low-level control and stabilization of the flying robot, leading to flight missions’
missions’ execution as sequences of waypoints. They run onboard the drones themselves,
execution as sequences of waypoints. They run onboard the drones themselves, allowing
allowing communication with ground control stations or controlling applications. Regarding the
communication with ground control stations or controlling applications. Regarding the presented
presented course hardware, PX4 is the flight controller supported in RoboticsAcademy, both on real
course hardware, PX4 is the flight controller supported in RoboticsAcademy, both on real drones and
drones and in the Gazebo simulator.
in the Gazebo simulator.
3.2. Middleware Layer
3.2. Middleware Layer
ROS [47] is the adopted middleware in RoboticsAcademy. ROS is the de facto standard middleware,
withROS
the [47] is community
largest the adoptedofmiddleware in RoboticsAcademy.
users in the robotics ROS
field. It provides is the de factocollection
a comprehensive standardof
middleware, with the largest community of users in the robotics field. It provides a comprehensive
drivers for a wide variety of robots, helping to shorten the programming development time and increase
collection of drivers
the robustness for aapplications
of final wide varietydue
of robots,
to codehelping
reuse. to shorten the
It supports manyprogramming
programming development
languages,
time and increase the robustness of final applications due to code
including Python. The current version used in RoboticsAcademy is ROS-Melodic. reuse. It supports many
programming languages,
Concerning including
the middleware Python.
needed Thepresented
in the current version
course,used in RoboticsAcademy
the MAVLink protocol [48]isconnects
ROS-
Melodic.
the student’s application with the drone flight controller. ROS supports MAVLink through its
Concerning the middleware needed in the presented course, the MAVLink protocol [48]
connects the student’s application with the drone flight controller. ROS supports MAVLink through
its MAVROS package. For onboard drone cameras’ support, regular ROS image drivers are used. In
RoboticsAcademy, MAVROS has been extended to support speed regulation of the flying control. In
this way, the drone programming interface in RoboticsAcademy provides both the high-level classic
Electronics 2020, 9, 2163 7 of 18

MAVROS package. For onboard drone cameras’ support, regular ROS image drivers are used.
In RoboticsAcademy, MAVROS has been extended to support speed regulation of the flying control.
Electronics
In this way,2020,
the9, xdrone
FOR PEER REVIEW
programming 7 of 18
interface in RoboticsAcademy provides both the high-level classic
waypoint missions and the mid-level speed commands to rule drone movements. Speed commands
allow more
allow more fine-grained
fine-grained control
control of
of the
the drone,
drone, such
such as
as the
the one
one required
required in
in the
the flying
flying robots’
robots’ visual
visual
control applications.
control applications.

3.3. Application
3.3. Application Layer
Layer
The application
The application layer
layer comprises
comprises the
the student’s
student’s code
code and
and the
the exercise
exercise template,
template, which
which acts
acts as
as aa
container of the student’s code and provides the following services:
container of the student’s code and provides the following services:

• Hardware abstraction
Hardware abstraction layer
layer (HAL)
(HAL) API:API: simple
simple API
API to
to obtain
obtain processed
processed data
data from
from robot
robot sensors
sensors
and command
and command robot
robot actuators
actuators at
at aa high
high level
level
 Graphical user interface (GUI) API: used for student’s code checking and debugging, shows
• Graphical user interface (GUI) API: used for student’s code checking and debugging, shows sensory
sensory data or partial processing in a visual way (for example, the images from the robot
data or partial processing in a visual way (for example, the images from the robot camera or the
camera or the results of applying color filtering)
results of applying color filtering)
 Timing skeleton for implementing the reactive robot behavior: a continuous loop of iterations,
• Timing skeleton for implementing the reactive robot behavior: a continuous loop of iterations,
executed several times per second. Each iteration performs four steps: collecting sensory data,
executed several times per second. Each iteration performs four steps: collecting sensory data,
processing them, deciding actions, and sending orders to the actuators
processing them, deciding actions, and sending orders to the actuators
The application layer is implemented as a ROS node. The template provided in each node
The application layer is implemented as a ROS node. The template provided in each node supports
supports access to the robot’s sensors and actuators using the appropriate ROS methods and
access to the robot’s sensors and actuators using the appropriate ROS methods and communication
communication mechanisms (topics, subscriptions, publishing...). The hardware complexity and
mechanisms (topics, subscriptions, publishing . . . ). The hardware complexity and details are hidden
details are hidden to grant a simple local API in Python for the student (HAL API), employing ROSpy
to grant a simple local API in Python for the student (HAL API), employing ROSpy (a pure Python
(a pure Python client library for ROS). Figure 3 shows a typical execution of an exercise using a
client library for ROS). Figure 3 shows a typical execution of an exercise using a simulated robot.
simulated robot.

Figure
Figure 3.
3. Typical
Typical execution
execution of
of an exercise of
an exercise of RoboticsAcademy
RoboticsAcademy using
using Gazebo
Gazebo viewer.
viewer.

The drone HAL API used in all the exercises of the presented course includes these methods for
measurements, images,
getting sensor measurements, images, and
and drone
drone state:
state:

• drone. get_position
drone. get_position ():
(): returns
returns the
the actual
actual position
position of
of the
the drone
drone as
as aa 11 ×
× 33 NumPy
NumPy array
array [x,
[x, y,
y, z],
z],
in meters.
in meters.
• drone. get_velocity
drone. get_velocity ():
(): returns
returns the
the actual
actual velocities
velocities of
of the
the drone
drone as
as aa 11 ×
× 33 NumPy
NumPy array
array [vx,
[vx, vy,
vy,
vz], in
vz], in m/s.
m/s.
 drone. get_yaw_rate (): returns the actual yaw rate of the drone, in rad/s.
 drone. get_orientation (): returns the actual roll, pitch, and yaw of the drone as a 1 × 3 NumPy
array [roll, pitch, yaw], in rad.
 drone. get frontal_image (): returns the latest images from the frontal camera as an OpenCV
image (cv2_image).
Electronics 2020, 9, 2163 8 of 18

• drone. get_yaw_rate (): returns the actual yaw rate of the drone, in rad/s.
• drone. get_orientation (): returns the actual roll, pitch, and yaw of the drone as a 1 × 3 NumPy
array [roll, pitch, yaw], in rad.
• drone. get frontal_image (): returns the latest images from the frontal camera as an OpenCV
image (cv2_image).
• drone. get_ventral_image (): returns the latest images from the ventral camera as an OpenCV
image (cv2_image).
• drone. get_landed_state (): returns one if the drone is on the ground (landed), two if it is in the air,
and four if landing.

Additionally, the HAL API provides these methods for drone control:

• drone.set_cmd_vel (vx, vy, vz, yaw_rate): commands the linear velocity of the drone in the x, y,
and z directions (in m/s) and the yaw rate (rad/s) in its body-fixed frame.
• drone.set_cmd_mix (vx, vy, z, yaw_rate): commands the linear velocity of the drone in the x,
y directions (in m/s), the height (z) related to the takeoff point, and the yaw rate (in rad/s).
• drone.takeoff (height): takes off from the current location to the given elevation (in meters).
• drone. land (): lands at the current location.

RoboticsAcademy native release is an open-source platform, free and simple to use. All of its
underlying infrastructure (Python, Gazebo, ROS) is provided as regular and standard official Debian
packages, and so they can be installed easily on Ubuntu Linux computers. Additionally, the required
underlying resources, which are not contained in traditional Gazebo or ROS packages, are created and
stored in several Debian packages from the JdeRobot organization.
The native release runs on Ubuntu Linux machines. Docker images have been created and are
maintained for Windows and macOS users so that they can use the platform through a virtual machine
(Docker container) in their computers.

4. Drone Programming Course

An open-access drone programming distance course is proposed in this article, based on the
RoboticsAcademy platform. This course is freely available, ready to use by anyone from anyplace with
Internet access. It includes both theoretical and practical contents (focusing on the “learning by doing”
concept). Although it is recommended to have some previous programming experience to facilitate
the realization of practical exercises, it has no relevant prerequisites. These exercises help students to
consolidate theoretical concepts, focusing on programming skills for UAVs.

4.1. Course Syllabus

Drone autonomous applications, as ground robot applications, may be seen as the onboard
combination of perception and control. The course presents the most common drone sensors
and actuators. It also describes position-based and vision-based control techniques, which are
the main objectives of the course. Additionally, it introduces map-based global navigation in
conjunction with relevant self-localization algorithms, allowing drone 3D navigation even in indoor
and GPS-denied environments.
The theoretical content of the course is divided into six different units, as follows:

• Unit 1. Introduction to aerial robotics: types of UAVs, real drone applications such as military,
logistics, visual inspection.
• Unit 2. Drone sensors and perception: inertial measurement units (IMUs), compass, GPS, LIDAR,
cameras, elementary image processing.
• Unit 3. Flight physics and basic control: 3D geometry, quadrotor physics, basic movements,
hovering, forward motion, rotation, stabilization.
Electronics 2020, 9, 2163 9 of 18

• Unit 4. Drone control: reactive systems, proportional–integral–derivative (PID) controllers, fuzzy

control, finite state machines, position-based control, vision-based control.
• Unit 5. Drone global navigation: 2D and 3D path planning.
• Unit 6. Visual self-localization: ORBSlam, semi-direct visual odometry (SVO) algorithms.

4.2. Course Practical Exercises

The practical content of the course is divided into several exercises, enumerated in Table 1 below.
Two drones are mainly used: the ArDrone (with a frontal camera) and the 3DRobotics Iris (with two
cameras, frontal, and ventral). They run on simulation, but the real drones may also be programmed
using RoboticsAcademy if they are available for the students.

Table 1. List of exercises available for the course.

Drones
DR1 Navigation by position
DR2 Following an object on the ground
DR3 Following a road with visual control
DR4 Cat and mouse
DR5 Escape from a maze following visual clues
DR6 Searching for people to rescue within a perimeter
DR7 Escape from a hangar with moving obstacles
DR8 Land on a beacon
Computer Vision
CV1 Color filter for object detection
CV2 Visual odometry for self-localization

Some of the most representative exercises are detailed below:

• Navigation by position (http://jderobot.github.io/RoboticsAcademy/exercises/Drones/position_

control). This exercise aims to implement an autopilot by using the GPS sensor, the IMU, and a
position-based PID controller. For this exercise, a simulated 3D world has been designed that
contains the quadrotor and five beacons arranged in a cross. The objective is to program the
drone to follow a predetermined route visiting the five waypoints in a given sequence, as shown
in Figure 4. It illustrates the algorithms typically included in commercial autopilots such as
ArduPilot or PX4.
• Following an object on the ground (http://jderobot.github.io/RoboticsAcademy/exercises/Drones/
follow_turtlebot). In this exercise, the objective is to implement the logic that allows a quadrotor to
follow a moving object on the ground (an autonomous robot named Turtlebot with a green-colored
top, see Figure 5), using a primary color filter in the images and a vision-based PID controller.
The drone keeps its altitude and moves only in a 2D plane.
• Landing on a moving car (http://jderobot.github.io/RoboticsAcademy/exercises/Drones/visual_
lander). In this exercise, the student needs to combine pattern recognition and vision-based
control to land on a predefined beacon, a four-square chess pattern on the roof of a moving
car (see Figure 6). The required image processing is slightly more complicated than a simple
color filter, as the beacon may be partially seen, and its center is the relevant feature. Likewise,
the controller needs to command the vertical movement of the drone.
• Escape from a maze using visual clues (http://jderobot.github.io/RoboticsAcademy/exercises/
Drones/labyrinth_escape). In this exercise, the student needs to combine local navigation and
computer vision algorithms to escape from a labyrinth with the aid of visual clues. The clues
are green arrows placed on the ground, indicating the direction to be followed (see Figure 7).
Pattern recognition in real-time is the focus here, as fast detection is essential for the drone.
 illustrates the algorithms typically included in commercial autopilots such as ArduPilot or PX4.
 Following an object on the ground
(http://jderobot.github.io/RoboticsAcademy/exercises/Drones/follow_turtlebot). In this exercise,
the objective is to implement the logic that allows a quadrotor to follow a moving object on the
Electronics 9, 2163
2020, (an
ground autonomous robot named Turtlebot with a green-colored top, see Figure 5), using 10 of 18
a
primary color filter in the images and a vision-based PID controller. The drone keeps its altitude
• and movesfor
Searching only in a 2D
people plane. within a perimeter (http://jderobot.github.io/RoboticsAcademy/
to rescue
 Landing
exercises/Drones/rescue_people). on The objectivea of this exercise ismoving
to implement the logic of cara
(http://jderobot.github.io/RoboticsAcademy/exercises/Drones/visual_lander). In
global navigation algorithm to sweep a specific area systematically and efficiently (foraging this exercise,
the student inneeds
algorithm), to combine
conjunction with pattern recognition andtechniques,
visual face-recognition vision-based controlthe
to report to location
land on of a
predefined beacon, a four-square chess pattern on the roof of a moving car
people for subsequent rescue (Figure 8). The drone behavior is typically implemented as a (see Figure 6). The
required
finite stateimage processing
machine, is slightly
with several statesmore
suchcomplicated than a simple
as go-to-the-perimeter, color filter, as the beacon
explore-inside-the-perimeter,
may be partially
or go-back-home. seen, and its center is the relevant feature. Likewise, the controller needs to
command the vertical movement of the drone.

Figure 4. “Navigation by position” exercise.

Electronics 2020, 9, x FOR PEER REVIEW 10 of 18
Electronics 2020, 9, x FOR PEER REVIEW 10 of 18

Figure 5.
Figure 5. “Following an object on the ground” exercise.
exercise.
“Following an object on the ground”

Figure 6. “Landing on a moving car” exercise.

Figure 6.
Figure 6. “Landing
“Landing on
on aa moving
moving car” exercise.
car” exercise.
 Escape from a maze using visual clues
 Escape from a maze using visual clues
(http://jderobot.github.io/RoboticsAcademy/exercises/Drones/labyrinth_escape). In this
(http://jderobot.github.io/RoboticsAcademy/exercises/Drones/labyrinth_escape). In this
exercise, the student needs to combine local navigation and computer vision algorithms to
exercise, the student needs to combine local navigation and computer vision algorithms to
escape from a labyrinth with the aid of visual clues. The clues are green arrows placed on the
escape from a labyrinth with the aid of visual clues. The clues are green arrows placed on the
ground, indicating the direction to be followed (see Figure 7). Pattern recognition in real-time is
ground, indicating the direction to be followed (see Figure 7). Pattern recognition in real-time is
the focus here, as fast detection is essential for the drone.
the focus here, as fast detection is essential for the drone.
 Escape from a maze using visual clues
(http://jderobot.github.io/RoboticsAcademy/exercises/Drones/labyrinth_escape). In this
exercise, the student needs to combine local navigation and computer vision algorithms to
escape from a labyrinth with the aid of visual clues. The clues are green arrows placed on the
ground,
Electronics indicating
2020, 9, 2163 the direction to be followed (see Figure 7). Pattern recognition in real-time is
11 of 18
the focus here, as fast detection is essential for the drone.

Electronics 2020, 9, x FOR PEER REVIEW 11 of 18

is typically implemented as a finite state machine, with several states such as go-to-the-
Figure
Figure 7.
7. “Escape
“Escape from
from aa or
perimeter, explore-inside-the-perimeter, maze using
using visual
visual clues”
go-back-home.
maze clues” exercise.
exercise.

 Searching for people to rescue within a perimeter

(http://jderobot.github.io/RoboticsAcademy/exercises/Drones/rescue_people). The objective of
this exercise is to implement the logic of a global navigation algorithm to sweep a specific area
systematically and efficiently (foraging algorithm), in conjunction with visual face-recognition
techniques, to report the location of people for subsequent rescue (Figure 8). The drone behavior

Figure 8.
Figure 8. “Searching
“Searching for
for people
people to
to rescue
rescue within
within aa perimeter”
perimeter” exercise.
exercise.

4.3. Lessons Learned

4.3.
The course
The courseproposed
proposedhas has already
already beenbeen
taughttaught successfully
successfully withwith students
students from
from the Reythe ReyCarlos
Juan Juan
Carlos University,
University, specificallyspecifically
from several fromengineering
several engineering degrees,
degrees, testing the testing the correct
correct platform platform
functioning
functioning
and validatingandthe
validating
exercises’ the exercises’
content overcontent over fiveyears.
five academic academic
The years.
courseThe coursecovers
syllabus syllabusthecovers
usual
the usual
agendas agendas of degrees,
of engineering engineering degrees,
also fitting intoalso fitting into
the European the educational
higher European higher
framework.educational
framework.
The course’s objective is to introduce students to state of the art drone programming: the essential
The course’s
components objective
of drones (sensorsis toandintroduce
actuators), students to state of problems
the fundamental the art drone programming:
of drone programming the
essential components
(navigation, of localization,
flight control, drones (sensors etc.), and
and theactuators), the fundamental
most successful techniquesproblems of drone
and algorithms for
programming
addressing them.(navigation,
The drones’ flight control,and
mechanical localization,
electronicetc.), andhave
aspects the been
most considered,
successful techniques and
with particular
algorithms
emphasis for addressing
placed them. The drones’
on their programming mechanical
algorithms; in thisand electronic
aspect resides aspects have been(for
their intelligence considered,
example,
with particular
architectures emphasis
of reactive placed
control on theirautonomous
to generate programming algorithms;
behavior). Factors inrelated
this aspect residesvision
to computer their
intelligence
in (for example,
drones (based architectures
on artificial intelligence),of reactive
a growing control
trendtoingenerate autonomousare
drone applications, behavior). Factors
also included.
related
Ourtoimpression
computer vision
about the in drones (based
utilization on artificial intelligence),
of RoboticsAcademy on this acourse
growing trend
is that in drone
it was very
applications,
motivating forare
thealso included.
students, taking as reference the same subject taught during the 2017/2018 edition
whenOur impression about
RoboticsAcademy the yet
was not utilization
used. Most of RoboticsAcademy
comments extractedon fromthisstudent
coursesurveys
is that indicate
it was very
that
motivating
the studentsfor the students,
remarkably taking as
welcomed reference
utilizing the samethat
a platform subject taughtdistance
facilitates during the 2017/2018
drone edition
programming.
when
For RoboticsAcademy
instance, Figure 9 shows wastheir
not yet used. Most
evaluation of the comments extracted from
practice environment student
in the surveys
2018/2019 indicate
course in a
that the
survey withstudents remarkably
21 students, yielding welcomed
that 57.1% of utilizing
the studentsa platform that facilitates
had an excellent opinion distance drone
of it, and 42.9%
programming.
of them were more For than
instance, Figure 9 shows their evaluation of the practice environment in the
satisfied.
2018/2019 course in a survey with 21 students, yielding that 57.1% of the students had an excellent
opinion of it, and 42.9% of them were more than satisfied.
when RoboticsAcademy was not yet used. Most comments extracted from student surveys indicate
that the students remarkably welcomed utilizing a platform that facilitates distance drone
programming. For instance, Figure 9 shows their evaluation of the practice environment in the
2018/2019 course in a survey with 21 students, yielding that 57.1% of the students had an excellent
Electronicsof
opinion it, 9,
2020, and2163
42.9% of them were more than satisfied. 12 of 18

Figure 9. Results of the survey for the 2018/2019 course.

Figure 9. Results of the survey for the 2018/2019 course.
As a result of the lessons learned during the first editions of the course, both the platform and the
courseAsitself mostly
a result evolved,
of the lessonscurrently integrating
learned during the following
the first editions ofbenefits:
the course, both the platform and
the course itself mostly evolved, currently integrating the following benefits:
• Easy and time-efficient installation, allowing the students to start programming drones earlier:
installation previously consumed at least two weeks to prepare the programming environment,
as it was based on Linux packages and virtual machines. With the current framework release,
installation recipes use binary Debian packages (for students with Linux operating system) and
Docker containers (for students with Windows or macOS). These Docker containers have the
Electronics 2020, 9, x FOR PEER REVIEW 12 of 18
environment already pre-installed, being installed themselves in a fast way. In the 2018/2019
 course,
Easy and85.7% of students
time-efficient used RoboticsAcademy
installation, in native
allowing the students to Linux, while 14.3% used
start programming dronesMicrosoft
earlier:
Windows with Docker containers (Figure 10). As reported in the surveys, the
installation previously consumed at least two weeks to prepare the programming environment, user experience was
pleasant
as it was on bothonsystems.
based Linux packages and virtual machines. With the current framework release,
• installation
The same platform is used
recipes use for Debian
binary programming
packagessimulated and real
(for students drones:
with Linuxpreviously, studentsand
operating system) had
to learncontainers
Docker different tools
(fortostudents
programwith
different dronesor(both
Windows simulated
macOS). Theseand real), containers
Docker resulting inhave
less time
the
to learn programming and algorithms.
environment already pre-installed, being installed themselves in a fast way. In the 2018/2019
• course,
Distance learning:
85.7% the course
of students usedwas designed to be taught
RoboticsAcademy remotely;
in native therefore,
Linux, while 14.3%any student
used could
Microsoft
learn and with
Windows practice fromcontainers
Docker home, anytime.
(Figure 10). As reported in the surveys, the user experience
• was The pleasant
forum proved
on both to systems.
be a precious tool for intercommunication and doubt resolution.

Figure 10. Results of the survey for the 2018/2019 course.

Figure 10. Results of the survey for the 2018/2019 course.
All the details of MAVROS, MAVLink, and PX4 have been hidden from students that use the
simple
Thedrone
sameHALplatform is used for
API described programming
in Section simulated
3.3 for drone and real In
programming. drones: previously,
this way, students
students may focus
had to learn different tools to program different drones (both simulated and real), resulting
on navigation and control algorithms, which are the course’s core objective. Therefore, this practice in
less time to learn programming and algorithms.
environment is not suitable for learning the tools mentioned above, which can also be useful for
drone
Distance learning: the course was designed to be taught remotely; therefore, any student could
engineering.
learn and practice from home, anytime.
5. Drone
The forum proved toCompetitions
Programming be a precious tool for intercommunication and doubt resolution.
All the detailsisof
Gamification MAVROS,
the MAVLink,
term commonly and
used to PX4
refer tohave been hidden
game-based from
learning students
systems. that systems,
In these use the
simple
specificdrone HAL
aspects foundAPIindescribed in Section
games, such 3.3 for
as making drone programming.
competitions, establishingInrankings
this way, students
and may
scoreboards,
focus on navigation and control algorithms, which are the course’s core objective. Therefore, this
practice environment is not suitable for learning the tools mentioned above, which can also be useful
for drone engineering.

5. Drone Programming Competitions

Gamification is the term commonly used to refer to game-based learning systems. In these
Electronics 2020, 9, 2163 13 of 18

and giving rewards or badges, are implemented in the classroom to make the learning process more
attractive to the student [49].
It is already known that gamified learning in higher education (and in engineering degrees
in particular) enhances students’ engagement and motivation and improves their attendance ratios
and grades [50,51]. Positive reinforcement in both on-site and distance classrooms is promoted
when managing the student load using challenges of progressive difficulty and gamified step-by-step
tasks [52]. Additionally, gamification provides instant student feedback and grading, proven to help
formative self-assessment and auto evaluation [53].
Through stepwise updates, RoboticsAcademy has been redesigned to support gamified learning
in computer vision and robotics, including:
• Competitive exercises. Several exercises in our present collection are based on completing a task
in a given time while competing against the fastest or more complete solution, increasing the
student’s engagement.
• Social interactions between students, teachers, and developers promoted utilizing a dedicated
RoboticsAcademy (https://developers.unibotics.org/) web forum and several accounts across
prime
Electronicssocial
2020, 9,media platforms
x FOR PEER REVIEW since 2015, such as a video channel on YouTube (https://www.
13 of 18

youtube.com/channel/UCgmUgpircYAv_QhLQziHJOQ) with more than 300 videos and 40,000

prime social media platforms since 2015, such as a video channel on YouTube
single visits and a Twitter account with more than 200 tweets (https://twitter.com/jderobot).
(https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCgmUgpircYAv_QhLQziHJOQ) with more than 300
Beyond being
videos andused in university
40,000 single visitscourses,
and asa explained in Section
Twitter account with4.3, RoboticsAcademy
more than 200 tweets and its
(https://twitter.com/jderobot).
drone exercises have also been used as a convenient tool for organizing both on-site and distance
competitions
Beyondin Robotics,
being usedparticularly
in universitywithin
courses,our
as Program-A-Robot
explained in Sectionevent series. This championship
4.3, RoboticsAcademy and its
was born
dronein 2016 ashave
exercises a competition
also been used to foster robotics tool
as a convenient andforcomputer vision,
organizing proposing
both on-site challenging
and distance
problems to the participants
competitions and offering
in Robotics, particularly theour
within possibility to measure
Program-A-Robot eventand automatically
series. rank your
This championship
was born in 2016 as a competition
solution with other fellow competitors. to foster robotics and computer vision, proposing challenging
problems
The targetsto in
thethe
participants
first editionand offering
were the possibility
undergrad to measure
engineering andatautomatically
students rankUniversity
Rey Juan Carlos your
solution with other fellow competitors.
(https://jderobot.github.io/activities/competitions/2016). The second edition was organized as a
The targets in the first edition were undergrad engineering students at Rey Juan Carlos
national event inside the Spanish Jornadas Nacionales de Robotica (https://jderobot.github.io/activities/
University (https://jderobot.github.io/activities/competitions/2016). The second edition was
competitions/2017) in 2017. The third event was a distance international competition aimed at
organized as a national event inside the Spanish Jornadas Nacionales de Robotica
undergraduate, graduate, or Ph.D. engineering students worldwide.
(https://jderobot.github.io/activities/competitions/2017) in 2017. TheItsthird
finalevent
roundwaswasaheld as part of
distance
the International
international Conference
competition on Intelligent
aimed Robots andgraduate,
at undergraduate, Systems IROS 2018engineering
or Ph.D. (https://jderobot.github.
students
io/activities/competitions/2018),
worldwide. Its final round waswhich held astook place
part of in Madrid inConference
the International October 2018, and wasRobots
on Intelligent live-streamed
and
on YouTube.
Systems IROS 2018 (https://jderobot.github.io/activities/competitions/2018), which took place in
Madrid in October 2018, and was live-streamed on YouTube.
Two different challenges related to programming the autonomous intelligence of vision-assisted
Two robots
mobile aerial different challenges
were related
proposed, to programming
focusing the competition.
on this last autonomous intelligence of vision-assisted
mobile aerial robots were proposed, focusing on this last competition.
In the first exercise, the cat-and-mouse challenge, a quadcopter aerial robot called “cat drone”
In the first exercise, the cat-and-mouse challenge, a quadcopter aerial robot called “cat drone”
had to be programmed to search, chase, and stay at a given distance to another aerial quadcopter,
had to be programmed to search, chase, and stay at a given distance to another aerial quadcopter, the
the “mouse drone” (see Figure 11).
“mouse drone” (see Figure 11).

Figure 11. “Cat and mouse” exercise.

Figure 11. “Cat and mouse” exercise.
The organizing committee programmed several different autonomous mice drones to allow for
three qualifying sessions, starting from more straightforward movement behaviors, and transitioning
to more complex behaviors to track mice. Some of them were released for training. An automatic
assessment tool (referee) was also developed to score each 2 min round systematically. The referee
measured the instantaneous distance from each cat drone to the mouse, showing its evolution (along
Electronics 2020, 9, 2163 14 of 18

The organizing committee programmed several different autonomous mice drones to allow for
three qualifying sessions, starting from more straightforward movement behaviors, and transitioning
to more complex behaviors to track mice. Some of them were released for training. An automatic
assessment tool (referee) was also developed to score each 2 min round systematically. The referee
measured the instantaneous distance from each cat drone to the mouse, showing its evolution (along
with the whole game) on the screen. When it was below a certain threshold (close-threshold), both the
progress line and the background were painted green, and when it was above in red. As long as the cat
drone was near the mouse, the score increased. It was forbidden to touch the mouse, with each contact
penalized in the final round score.
In the second challenge, named escape from the hangar, a single mobile aerial robot had to
take off inside the hangar and find its way out in less than 1 min and avoiding the collision with six
inner walls, which were moving in a random pattern to increase the difficulty (see Figure 12). Again,
an automatic referee was built to measure how many seconds each aerial robot takes to leave the
Electronics 2020, 9, x FOR PEER REVIEW 14 of 18
hangar. The initial score started from 60 points and decreased during the time each robot was inside the
hangar. It was forbidden to touch the walls, and each contact further reduced the score. Additionally,
hangar. It was forbidden to touch the walls, and each contact further reduced the score. Additionally,
the drone’s starting point was changed during the competition, so a pure position-based control was
the drone’s starting point was changed during the competition, so a pure position-based control was
not a proper strategy.
not a proper strategy.

Figure 12. “Escape from hangar” exercise.

Figure 12. “Escape from hangar” exercise.

The video
The video of
of the
the final
final round
round in in the
the IROS2018-Program-A-Robot
IROS2018-Program-A-Robot competition competition is is available
available online
online
(https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_0ZkciOHnmU). It shows the performance
(https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_0ZkciOHnmU). It shows the performance of the uploaded of the uploaded
solutions for
solutions for the
thebest
bestthree
threeparticipants
participantsinineach
eachchallenge,
challenge, together
together with
with their
their automatic
automatic evaluations
evaluations for
for each 2 min rounds. In summary, it was an excellent acid test for
each 2 min rounds. In summary, it was an excellent acid test for the capability of RoboticsAcademy as the capability of
RoboticsAcademy as an online platform for holding, among others, distance competitions
an online platform for holding, among others, distance competitions in robotics and computer vision. in robotics
and computer
More thanvision.
40 students participated in the competitions (Figure 13). The feedback from them was
More than
very positive 40 students
in the participated
three editions, in the competitions
which encouraged (Figure
us to scale up in13).
scopeThe feedback
from a localfrom them was
competition to
very positive in the three editions, which encouraged us to scale up in scope from
a national one, and finally to an international one. For instance, “Thank you for organizing this dronea local competition
to a national one,
programming and finally
competition; totype
this an international
of enterpriseone. For instance,
is really cool” from “Thank you for organizing
one participant this
from the 2017
drone programming competition; this type of enterprise is really cool” from one
edition is an illustrative example. Another participant of IROS2018 edition even kept engaged with participant from the
2017 edition is an illustrative
RoboticsAcademy example. Another
after the competition participant
and developed a newof IROS2018
exercise for edition
it, theeven
“Visualkept engaged
Odometry
with RoboticsAcademy after the competition and developed a new exercise
with RGBD Camera” exercise (https://jderobot.github.io/RoboticsAcademy/exercises/ComputerVision/ for it, the “Visual
Odometry with RGBD
visual_odometry) as an open-source contribution to the project. Camera” exercise
(https://jderobot.github.io/RoboticsAcademy/exercises/ComputerVision/visual_odometry) as an
open-source contribution to the project.
drone programming competition; this type of enterprise is really cool” from one participant from the
2017 edition is an illustrative example. Another participant of IROS2018 edition even kept engaged
with RoboticsAcademy after the competition and developed a new exercise for it, the “Visual
Odometry with RGBD Camera” exercise
(https://jderobot.github.io/RoboticsAcademy/exercises/ComputerVision/visual_odometry)
Electronics 2020, 9, 2163 as15 ofan
18
open-source contribution to the project.

Figure 13. Participants

Participants in
in 2016
2016 and
and 2017
2017 editions of Program-A-Robot competition.

6. Summary and Conclusions

The course presented in this article is a free educational tool for teaching drone programming
in higher education in engineering, particularly suitable for distance learning. It comprises several
independent exercises that mimic drones’ real-life practical applications, including visual landing,
search-and-rescue missions, and road following in real or simulated arrangements. These exercises focus
on perception, planning-and-control algorithms, emphasizing state-of-the-art topics as computational
vision or artificial intelligence. All activities are proposed to the students with a practical “learning by
doing” approach.
Regarding the RoboticsAcademy platform, its main features are, in summary:

• Each exercise is divided into three layers: hardware, middleware, and application. This internal
design makes it easier to run the same student’s code in physical and simulated robots with
only minor configuration changes. The open-source Gazebo simulator, widely recognized in the
robotics community, has been used for 3D simulations of all robots, sensors, and environments.
• The middleware layer is ROS-based, the de facto standard in service robotics that supports many
programming languages, including Python. Previously, RoboticsAcademy was separated from
this widely used middleware, needing frequent maintenance, and having little scalability and a
short number of users (only those who already had a thorough background with the tool).
• The application layer contains the student’s code. It includes a hardware abstraction layer (HAL)
API to grant students high-level access to the robot sensors and actuators, and a graphical user
interface (GUI) API to show sensor data, process images, or debug code.
• RoboticsAcademy runs natively on Linux Ubuntu machines and can be installed using official
Debian packages. Docker containers are used to allow easy installation in Windows and macOS
based computers, making RoboticsAcademy particularly suited to the distance learning approach.

An open-access distance full course covering diverse drone programming aspects has been
proposed, aimed at engineering students. Its syllabus comprises six academic units, comprising
from sensors and actuators to navigation and computer vision. The course includes practical content,
all covered with RoboticsAcademy exercises. It was successfully tested and validated with students of
several engineering degrees at the Rey Juan Carlos University over five academic years. In this course,
any student could learn and practice from home, anytime. End-of-course surveys showed that using
the platform was helpful, productive, and motivating for them.
RoboticsAcademy also includes additional functionalities as automatic assessment tools and
competitive goals, making it a perfectly adapted tool for gamified learning strategies. It has been proven
as a convenient platform for organizing online robotics competitions as well. The Program-A-Robot
annual championship was born in 2016. It has already celebrated its third edition using
RoboticsAcademy, proposing competitive challenges about programming the autonomous intelligence
of different vision-assisted mobile robots.
Electronics 2020, 9, 2163 16 of 18

Future work lines for enhancing RoboticsAcademy include developing more exercises,
expanding the present full course, and proposing different specific learning paths to reach a broader
range of educational stages. Furthermore, an in-depth experimental analysis is planned to provide
quantitative evidence about user experience, creating a complete questionnaire, and collecting
information from other students. It will provide a more solid methodological basis.

Author Contributions: Conceptualization, J.M.C. and D.M.-M.; formal analysis, J.M.C.; funding acquisition,
J.M.C.; investigation, P.A. and D.R.-Á.; methodology, P.A.; project administration, J.M.C. and J.V.; resources, J.V.;
software, D.M.-M., P.A., D.R.-Á. and J.F.-C.; supervision, J.M.C.; validation, D.M.-M. and L.G.-P.; visualization,
L.G.-P.; writing—original draft, J.V., L.G.-P. and J.F.-C.; writing—review and editing, J.M.C. and J.F.-C. All authors
have read and agreed to the published version of the manuscript.
Funding: This research was partially funded by the Community of Madrid in the framework of two research
projects: (1) Multiannual agreement with Rey Juan Carlos University in line of action 1, “Encouragement of Young
Ph.D. Students Investigation” project ref. F664, acronym UNIBOTICS2.0. (2) RoboCity2030-DIH-CM (2019-2022):
RoboCity2030—Madrid Robotics Digital Innovation Hub, Programa de Actividades de I+D entre Grupos de
investigación de la Comunidad de Madrid en Tecnologías 2018. Project ref. S2018/NMT-4331.
Acknowledgments: The authors thank Google for funding the JdeRobot non-profit organization in its calls for
Google Summer of Code 2015, 2017, 2018, 2019, and 2020.
Conflicts of Interest: The authors declare no conflict of interest.

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