A Project-based Learning Design for teaching and

learning of Mechatronics Engineering

The Riderless Bicycle as an Application

Tsung-Hsuan Nieh Jui-Jen Chou

Department of Bio-Industrial Mechatronics Engineering Department of Bio-Industrial Mechatronics Engineering,
National Taiwan Universitź Department of Biomechatronics Engineering
Taipei, Taiwan National Taiwan University, National Ilan University
r04631024@ntu.edu.tw Taipei, Taiwan
jjchou@ntu.edu.tw

Abstract—This study aims to design a modified project-based that teachers teach at the blackboard, while the students
learning model and a series of courses in riderless bicycle passively absorb and memorize the teaching contents, namely
scenario to cultivate students’ professional knowledge, practical the so-called “Chalk and Talk” mode. Such a teaching method
skills and core competencies. The riderless bicycle scenario is not cannot cultivate the core competencies or motivate the students'
only familiar to students and rich in a large number of desire to learn. As a result, innovative teaching methods have
theoretical and practical research topics but also integrates increasingly gained attention in recent years, and many studies
mechatronics engineering subjects from the freshman year to the were devoted to the development of teaching methods that can
senior year. Through the series of courses, students are allowed effectively build these core competencies.
to have project-based learning in this scenario so as to cultivate
the necessary professional knowledge, practical skills and core Prince and Felder indicated that traditional engineering
competencies for entering the industry in the future. The series of education is deductive: teachers first derive formula from basic
courses include the introduction, in-depth, and transformation principles, then give a few examples, and ask the students to
courses. The introduction courses guide students about the practice similar problems before taking the examination.
scenario and establish their framework relation and basic However, this teaching method can neither arouse the students'
understanding about the various subjects of mechatronics motivation to learn nor make any connection with the actual
engineering. The in-depth courses allow the students to gradually engineering problems [1]. The teachers simply tell the students
design and actually fabricate the riderless bicycle. During the that this knowledge will be used in the future, which cannot
process, they can study and integrate the various subjects and
effectively enhance their learning motivation. Thus, Prince and
disciplines in depth as well as develop independent learning,
innovative thinking, problem-solving, teamwork, and
Felder compiled six more innovative teaching methods, namely
communication skills and other core competencies. The inquiry learning, problem-based learning, project-based
transformation courses help the students internalize their learning, case-based learning, discovery learning, and just-in-
knowledge and experience in the scenario, translating them into time teaching. These teaching methods are learner-centered and
other practical applications and connecting with the industry. motivate the students with real world problems, cases, and
This study designed a learning workshop for actual observations, thereby triggering the students' desire to learn
implementation and conducted a survey afterward on to make a knowledge.
preliminary assessment of the feasibility and basic functions of
Project-based learning has till date been widely used in the
the riderless bicycle as a project-based learning and teaching
scenario and to collect feedback from students to serve as the
engineering curriculum, whether it be the cornerstone courses
reference for the design and improvement of follow-up to enhance learning motivation or the capstone courses to
curriculum series. enable students to apply what they have learned in practice.
Both course learning processes are considered to effectively
Keywords—Project-based learning; Riderless bicycle; provide students with design and implementation experience
Mechatronics engineering; Robotics project [2]. Some schools even use project-based learning in almost all
curricula, including the universities of Aalborg and Roskilde in
I. INTRODUCTION Denmark; Bremen, TU Berlin, Dortmund, and Oldenburg in
Faced with the fast-growing industry, students who learn in Germany; Delft and Wageningen in the Netherlands [3]; and
a traditional or more rigid and memorized manner without Monash University and Central Queensland University in
cultivating their own ability to independently learn will find it Australia [4].
difficult to adapt to the industry. Besides, students entering the It is noteworthy that robotic projects have increasingly
industry must have, in addition to the expertise in their own gained popularity in recent years for project-based learning
field, the ability to solve practical problems, work as a team, scenario selection of engineering education. Robots are used in
and communicate. However, the traditional teaching method is teaching to enhance five core competencies of the students,

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namely critical thinking, problem-solving, communication and body dynamics, nonholonomic systems, Lagrangian mechanics,
discussion, cooperation, and innovation abilities. There are and intelligent control.
many studies that review robotics development platforms [5-7]
or use these reconfigurable, flexible, cost-effective In addition to covering a wide range of knowledge theories,
development platforms in project-based and design-based it is of absolute importance that through interdisciplinary
courses. In the same vein, the goal is to improve students' core integration, the students are truly exposed to the integration
competencies mentioned above. issues that matter in practical industry work. For example, in
addition to designing a balancer unit and mechanism with
This study hopes to apply project-based learning, through a engineering drawing based on dynamic calculation,
robotic scenario with contents of breadth and depth, to the considerations must also be given to the questions like the
integration of the freshman year courses, the sophomore year following: can the unit be machined or manufactured? Is it easy
courses, the junior year courses and the senior year courses. to assemble? Are the material properties suitable for the actual
The scenario acts like a huge system, with each course being a vibration situation?
module of the system. Through one and the same scenario, a
student is provided with a final goal in the beginning so that the These features, rich content, and practical multidisciplinary
student can gradually complete the modules in each course and integration have made the riderless bicycle a scenario with both
breadth and depth.
finally form a system to achieve their goal. A scenario with
contents of both breadth and depth can not only enhance
students' understanding of the entire framework of mechanical
and electrical engineering disciplines and their understanding
of the deeper knowledge but also expands the application and
integration of different disciplines and not just the integration
of a subject into a single discipline.
The riderless bicycle developed by Chi and Chou
encompasses not only subjects in the field of automatic control
in mechatronics engineering but also touches upon the students’
lives [8, 9]. The research and development process has a wealth
of valuable theories and research topics on the mechanism of a
bicycle, system simulation, control algorithm, dynamic balance,
principle of a balancer, and other mechatronics engineering Fig. 1. Riderless bicycle
techniques.
First, this article introduces the features of the riderless The series of courses on riderless bicycle include
bicycle scenario, its rich content, and a curriculum-planning introduction courses, in-depth courses, and transformation
series. Second, this article integrates the scenario into our coursesĭġas shown in Fig. 2.
tailor-made project-based learning model as an application
context. Next, we introduce the design and implementation of a
riderless bicycle teaching and learning workshop to assess the
feasibility and basic functions of the scenario as applied to the
project-based learning model and to collect feedback from
students on the teaching and learning methods. Finally, the
student survey questionnaire was compiled for assessing the
basic functions and discussing the same.
II. METHODOLODY
A. Riderless Bicycle Scenario
Bicycles are popular in many countries around the world.
Not only is it a common mode of transportation but also a
program for recreation, competition, and fitness for all ages.
This makes bicycles a useful topic that is familiar with students.
As shown in Fig. 1, a riderless bicycle is a bicycle robot
that provides lots of research problems, including mechatronics Fig. 2. Riderless bicycle series of courses
engineering subjects, such as mechanics, electronic circuits,
dynamics, automatic control systems, microprocessor systems, Through the introduction courses, students are led into the
and programming. Among these subjects, research topics riderless bicycle scenario based on their experience and
covered by riderless bicycles extend from simple basic physics observation. In the problem-based learning mode, the students
to important professional applications such as principles and will actually realize the following questions: why it is
applications of sensors, mechanism design, all the way to necessary to learn programming? Why learn dynamics? Why
deeper knowledge theories such as three-dimensional rigid learn the principle of sensors? Various subjects and disciplines

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are linked together in the riderless bicycle scenario and the the process of people balancing on a bicycle, the students can
applications are presented. In one complete scenario, students analyze its physical principles, practicing innovative thinking,
begin to understand the role of each discipline and the and brainstorming and consider whether they can apply
framework relation between them. This motivates students to mechanical and electrical components to achieve the physical
take the in-depth courses and establish a fundamental principles of the balance. To put their ideas into practice, the
understanding of the subjects. students have needs for knowledge and can acquire knowledge
by reading textbooks, online materials, research literature, and
In the in-depth courses, students gradually learn the taking courses. In the process, the students cooperate with the
riderless bicycle design and its implementation. To reach the team to design, manufacture, and verify the balancer function
final goal of building a riderless bicycle, students make in- and principle. Similarly, the other modules of the riderless
depth studies on the various parts of the riderless bicycle in the bicycle are also built following this model. In addition to
professional courses, including analysis of balance motion of a addressing the main problem of balance, different applications
bicycle, design of the balancer, balancer control, balance of lead to other main problems like autopilot and transportation.
bicycle, and sensor signal processing. In these courses, the Various main problems will also extend out into a variety of
students not only learn professional knowledge and practical branch problems.
skills but also cultivate various core competencies which are
necessary in industry. Under the project-based method, the
students will eventually complete the components, modules
and system integration of the riderless bicycle. In addition to
the application and practice of professional skills, more
attention will be paid to teamwork, communication, expression,
and other core competencies.
The final transformation courses cultivate students’
employment and entrepreneurial abilities. Throughout the
introduction and in-depth courses of the riderless bicycle
project, students are led from problem generation, innovative
thinking, problem solving, and design concept to
implementation and validation. Students are led through the
entirety of the project-based learning mode. In the riderless
bicycle learning process, students assess the deficiencies in
their core competency by evaluating their learning outcomes
and then choose the transformation courses such as
presentation skills courses, design thinking courses, and Fig. 3. Modified Project-based Learning Method
teamwork skills courses to enhance their future employability.
With this experience and professional knowledge training and C. Design of Riderless Bicycle Workshop
the guidance in the scenario, students will be able to transfer
this learning mode to other scenarios in order to participate in By implementing the riderless bicycle workshops, this
entrepreneurship competitions, to undertake and publish study made a preliminary assessment of the feasibility and
research, and to internalize the learning and practical basic functions of riderless bicycle scenario as applied to
applicationį project-based learning and collected feedback from students on
the learning methods.
B. Modified Project-based Learning Method
Fig. 4 shows the process of the riderless bicycle workshop.
In this paper, the project-based learning model is organized This workshop allows students to explore two topics, namely
and focused on the application of the designed riderless bicycle “How does a person balance a bike” and “What is gyroscopic
scenario through the series of introduction, in-depth, and effect and gyroscopic balancer,” both are parts of the
transformation courses. introduction courses.
As can be seen in Fig. 3, students explore some instructive
projects in the scenarios, determining the needs or demands of
the scenarios and defining them to structure them. Then, to
solve the problems and design prototypes, students have to
look through literature and academic courses as well as learn
how to use professional platforms, for example, MATLAB,
AutoCAD, and Arduino. Finally, they create prototypes to
implement their ideas in practice. In the learning process,
students foster core competencies such as empathy,
brainstorming, and demonstration along with presentation
skills.
Take the riderless bicycle scenario as an example, students
will first face a main problem–balance the robot. By observing

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 Fig. 4. The process of the riderless bicycle workshop the students to a certain thought direction in the problem-based
mode. Three to four students in a group then conduct the group
In the study of the two main topic courses, the following discussion and the results are organized with a concept map.
three basic functions are expected: Alternately, each student may be asked to respond on the spot
with the aid of a class interaction tool, namely the mobile app
x Enhance students' desire for knowledge through Zuvio. This is to understand each student's knowledge so that
practical problems. the instructor can continue to lead. After discussing the two
main topics, the group is asked to discuss conceptual prototype
x Make it easy for students to observe and experience. design. As a prototype of the introductory course, we hope that
x Have students learn by doing and reinforce their the students would not need to use professional and
understanding of the abstract knowledge and theories. complicated tools or computer software. Rather, they should
use a variety of common objects and tools in daily life to
First, the first basic function is the same as the goal of most quickly create a prototype that clearly conveys the concepts.
project-based learning. We expect that the riderless bicycle The students’ understanding of the two main topics is
scenario will provide a wealth of practical and enriching evaluated on the basis of verbal presentations and the prototype
questions to enable the students to think and solve problems. In built by the group.
the process, the students' need for knowledge is enhanced.
Second, one of the features of riderless bicycles is that it is In addition to providing many video viewing and guiding
close to the student's life. We expect that students will have a questions, this learning workshop helps students to get into the
better feeling and comprehension about abstract theories. Third, situation and stimulate their thinking. After discussing Topics 1
the students are expected to learn by doing and the project can and 2, we provide the riderless bicycle teaching aids and allow
help the students better understand the more abstract and the students to manipulate the balancer to experience and verify
difficult contents of the course, e.g., rotational motion of two its principle, as shown in Fig. 5 and Fig. 6 shows the riderless
rigid bodies in three-dimensional space. bicycle teaching aid, where two buttons on the controller
controls the servomotor to turn the high-speed spinning gyro
In addition to achieving the three basic functions of the and generates the gyroscopic effect, causing the entire bicycle
design scenario, the two main topic courses of this study are to lean to the left or to the right. In addition to allowing the
intended to train the following four core competencies of the students to observe the working principle of the balancer, the
students: students are asked to think about the following question: If a
x Proactive learning; computer is used to control the balance, how to make the
computer “feel” the leaning of the bicycle? And how does one
x Thinking, analyzing, logical reasoning, and organizing calculate the control output?
complex problems;
x Brainstorming, communication, and cooperative
learning in the team;
x Ability and experience to express and present.
The students not only learn the professional knowledge in
the scenario of riderless bicycle but more importantly, also
develop the above-mentioned core competencies. The
knowledge that the students will be used in their future work
may not be taught in school curricula; often, the industry
develops faster than the pace of instructional updates.
Fig. 5. Students’ hands-on experience of teaching aids
Furthermore, the students may enter a new field or an
interdisciplinary industry after graduation. Therefore, no matter In the learning workshop for the introduction courses, we
what type of industry they enter or how the industry changes in hope that students can produce a prototype in the simplest,
the future, the students should be encouraged to think, learn, quickest, and cheapest way with their existing knowledge and
and deal with complex problems independently. They should skills. Having established the basic knowledge, the students are
be able to learn and solve problems effectively with this mode guided to the in-depth courses.
of learning for any new knowledge or problems. In addition to
professional knowledge, the ability to cooperate, express, and
communicate in the workplace is even more important. These
are essential core competencies in any field and are the major
expected benefits of the modified project-based learning model.
D. Implementation of Riderless Bicycle Workshop
The process of exploring the two main topics is not direct
lectures; instead, the students will first observe some of the
phenomena using the videos provided by an Ūnstructor. The
students are then provided with guiding questions that guide

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 Fig. 6. Riderless bicycle teaching aid The process of implementing the prototype can help you
Q7
practice expressing, communicating with team members.
After understanding the principle of the riderless bicycle's Implementing the prototype can help you demonstrate and
gyro balancer, we asked each group of students to design Q8
present abstract concept.
different types of balancers according to the principle of gyro
effect. Since the gyroscopic balancer can maintain the balance TABLE II. SHORT ANSWER QUESTION
of a bicycle through precession only in specific directions, any
Question
misunderstanding of the gyroscopic effect would lead to the Number
Question
failure to balance the bicycle. Each group of students will Please describe your opinion on the course content of Topic
1
discuss the design results and immediately demonstrate their 1 “How do people balance on a bicycle?”
ideas using commonly available materials in daily life. As 2
Please describe your opinion on the course content of Topic
shown in Fig. 7, each group made a conceptual prototype and 2 “Understanding gyroscopic effect and balancer”
used this prototype to explain the principle of balance and the What is your opinion if future lectures are guided by such
3
“Instructor” and student discussion?
working steps of the balancer. The students are evaluated on
the basis of their learning and understanding.
The first learning outcome in this study is to enhance
students' need for knowledge with real world problems. The
teaching process of the workshop is for the instructor to pose
guiding questions in the design of riderless bicycles based on
the actual phenomenon observation to the students for group
discussions. This not only prompts the students to think,
discuss, and try to use their knowledge in basic physics and
dynamics analysis and explanation but also enables them to
take the initiative to use network resources to find answers.
The second learning outcome of this study is to make it
easy for the students to observe and actually experience the
findings corresponding to the survey results of Q1 and Q2. The
third item is to enable the students to learn by doing and to
Fig. 7. Prototype implementation and presentation by students reinforce their understanding of abstract knowledge and
theories, corresponding to the survey results of Q3. As shown
III. STUDENT SURVEY AND RESULT in Fig. 8, the findings of the three questions are distributed
To evaluate the basic functions of the workshop in similarly, most students agree that the issues discussed are easy
implementing this teaching method, this study designed a to be observed and experienced and that a prototype can
student opinion survey to collect feedback. The opinions and enhance their understanding of the gyroscopic effect.
feedback from 48 participating students, including As to the teaching and learning scenario, the students
undergraduate and graduate students, were collected. Based on replied in the short answer questions that the problems related
the student opinion survey, the three basic functions and the to bicycle balance are close to their everyday life, and they had
four core competencies were assessed. Eight of the questions in thought about those before. Interestingly, when many students
the student opinion survey are stand-alone choice questions, as ride bicycles after class, they naturally think of the problems
shown in Table I. The answer options include strongly agree, mentioned in the class and want to experience the effects
agree, neutral, disagree, and strongly disagree. In addition, themselves. In addition, some students said that guiding
there are three short answer questions for collecting students' questions and concept maps all helped them to clarify their
feedback on Topic 1, Topic 2 and the guidance mode of the concepts structurally.
lecturing “Instructor” respectively, as shown in Table II.

TABLE I. MULTIPLE-CHOICE QUESTION

Question
Question
Number
The problems discussed in the circumstance are prone to be
Q1
observed.
The problems discussed in the circumstance are prone to be
Q2
experienced.
Implementing the prototype can help you understand
Q3
abstract theories.
The process of learning two topics can guide you to think
Q4
and learn actively.
The process of learning two topics can help you practice
Q5
analyzing, complex problems.
The process of learning two topics can help you deduce Fig. 8. Results of Q1, Q2, Q3
Q6
problems and organize results.

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 However, for implementing the prototype, some students principle, they became more sure about whether their
replied to the short answer questions that the skills needed to understanding and those of the group members were correct.
implement this prototype is too simple. Nonetheless, we
believe that this was a misunderstanding, caused by the fact The workshop was judged to be positive overall by most of
that it was not made clear to the students that this workshop the students. It should be noted that some students are very
class is an introduction course in the entire series of classes, fond of this scenario and learning methods, but there are indeed
rather than an in-depth class requiring professional skills. a few students who do not like it. In such a situation, we think
that teaching and learning should be conducted in accordance
The first item of the core competencies to be cultivated in with their respective aptitudes. Future scenario courses will
this study is active thinking and independent learning, allow students the freedom to choose whether to participate
corresponding to the Q4 survey results. The second item of the and to enlist students who are interested in and enthusiastic
core competencies to be cultivated is thinking, analysis, logical about riderless bicycles.
reasoning, and organizing complex problems, corresponding to
Q5 and Q6 survey results. The third item of the core IV. CONCLUSION
competencies is brainstorming, communication, and This study designs a project-based learning scenario that
cooperative learning in a team, corresponding to the Q7 survey combines both breadth and depth of a riderless bicycle. Done
results. The fourth item of the core competencies is the ability in a workshop format, this study conducted introductory
and experience in expression and presentation, corresponding courses on two main topics and collected feedback from
to the Q8 survey results. As shown in Fig. 9, the distribution of students to preliminarily verify the feasibility and basic
the results of the five questions is also very similar. Students functions of such scenario. In the future, we will improve and
generally agree that the courses applying this teaching and complete other introduction, in-depth, and transformation
learning method can help develop these core competencies. courses to cultivate students’ professional knowledge, practical
skills and core competencies. Besides, we will conduct more
rigorous assessment to evaluate the learning outcomes. It is
also expected that in the future, other teaching and learning
scenarios will be developed with both breadth and depth.
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