Lesson video

Hello and welcome to Computing.

My name is Mrs. Antrobus.

I'm so glad you could join the lesson today.

Today we're going to be learning about how to use a digital device to collect data.

Today's lesson is called Using a Digital Device to Collect Data.

And by the end of this lesson, you'll be able to use a digital device to collect data.

During this lesson, we'll be using these keywords.

Let's have a look at them together.

Input device.

Input device, a piece of hardware used to control or send data to a computer.

Sensor.

Sensor, an input device that allows a computer to collect data from the physical environment.

Data logger.

Data logger, a device that records data from the physical environment.

Today's lesson will be broken down into two sections.

The first part will look at explaining what data can be collected using sensors.

The second part will use data from a sensor to answer a question.

Let's get started.

What are our five senses? I want you to think about what senses we have as humans.

Pause the video and see if you can name all five.

Okay, how did you get on? Well, you should have identified that we have sight.

We use our eyes to see.

We have smell.

We use our nose to smell.

We have hearing, where we use our ears.

We have taste, using our mouth.

And we have touch, using our hands or other parts of our body.

Our senses help us to collect information from the physical environment around us.

So just think about some of those things.

We have taste, and we can tell if something is sweet or sour, if we like it or not.

We have smell.

So maybe we could smell danger sometimes if we could smell burning.

We have sight to allow us to see things around us and allow us to move around the world that we live in.

We use our senses all of the time.

A sensor is an input device that allows a computer to collect data from the physical environment.

Can you think how a computer might sense sound? Pause the video and give that some thought.

Okay, how did you get on? Well, a microphone can work as a sensor when it's connected to a computer.

It could be used to send speech, music, or background noise.

All of these computers can have a microphone.

Sometimes it can't be seen easily, like in a mobile phone.

So if you can see on the picture on the right, the microphone is very small on the bottom of the mobile phone.

It's highlighted there in the square and in the circle.

The microphone could be used as a sensor that logs data.

You can buy specific devices that log data.

This is a data logger.

It has sensors, it can record data, and it can be connected to a computer.

You probably have them in your classroom.

This data logger has the following sensors, temperature, light, and sound.

When using a data logger, it's important that we understand units of measurement.

Temperature is measured in degrees Celsius and is also representing using the degree C sign here.

Light is measured in lux.

And sound is measured in decibels, which is representing with dB or dBA.

Okay, let's have a look at the different parts of a data logger.

Here we can see the readings.

For example, the temperature reading in degrees Celsius is shown on the screen.

Also, we can see the sound reading in decibels, the light reading in lux.

And there is a light sensor here.

Here there are temperature sensors and sound sensors.

And these are the different sockets to connect to external sensors.

Okay, let's stop for a moment and check your understanding.

Which of the following statements are correct.

A, data loggers can be connected to a computer, b, data loggers have sensors, c, a sensor is an output device, or d, data loggers can record data.

Pause the video and think about that question.

Okay, how did you get on? Well, if you said a, b and d, you would be correct, because data loggers can be connected to a computer, they have sensors, and they can record data.

However, c is incorrect because a sensor is an input device.

It's not an output device.

Well done for having a go.

Okay, now I want to just check your understanding about the units of measurement and the correct sensors.

So pause the video and match the units of measurement to the correct sensor.

Okay, how did you get on? Well, you should have matched temperature to degrees Celsius, light to lux, and sound to decibels.

Did you get them all right? Well done if you did.

Now you understand a little bit more about data loggers and sensors, let's think about how sensors can be used in the real world.

So can you think of any uses for sensors in the real world? Pause the video and give that some thought, and we will come back in a moment with some examples.

Okay, how did you get on? There are lots of sensors in all walks of life, and we use them every single day.

So let's see how you got on.

Well, windscreen wipers, they're an example of sensors.

Some cars have sensors that detect rain.

This causes the windscreen wipers to switch on.

Automatic doors.

Automatic doors open when a motion sensor detects movement close by.

Lots of public places have automatic doors, for example, when you go into a supermarket or maybe even your school has automatic doors as well.

Streetlights.

Some streetlights use light sensors that detect the amount of natural light.

When the sensors sense that it has become dark, the light switches on.

Have you noticed that in the road where you live? Smart watches.

Some smart watches have heart rate monitors which use optical sensors to measure blood flow.

This can support people in keeping track of their health.

You might have a smart watch yourself or your parents.

They use 'em for lots of different things such as tracking the amount of steps you've taken every day.

Fire alarms. Some sensors detect smoke and high temperatures, which can trigger fire alarms, alerting people to a possible fire.

I'm sure you all have a fire alarm in your home.

Okay, now we're going to look at Task A.

You're going to explain what data can be collected using sensors.

There are two parts to the task.

The first part, explain what data can be collected using a data logger.

And in the second part, you're going to give some examples of the data that can be collected by sensors in the real world.

Think about the examples that we've just looked at together.

And maybe you'll be able to pick some of your own.

Pause the video and have a go at the task.

Okay, how did you get on? Let's have a look at some example responses together.

The first part of the task, explain what data can be collected using a data logger.

Sensors can collect different types of data.

The data logger can collect temperature, sound, and light data.

The second part of the task, gives some examples of the data that can be collected by sensors in the real world.

Sensors can collect movement data to trigger automatic doors, make burglar alarms sound, or traffic lights change colour.

Light sensors can detect raindrops on car windows and trigger the windscreen wipers to turn on.

They're also used in street lights to make the street light turn on when it is getting dark.

How does that answer compare to yours? Were you able to include as much detail when given examples of the data that can be collected by sensors in the real world? If you did, well done.

And if not, don't worry.

Maybe go back over some of the content from today's lesson.

Let's move on to the next part of our lesson, use data from a sensor to answer a question.

We can use the data from sensors to help answer real world questions.

You will now use the data logger to gather data that will help you to answer some real world questions.

This is a really exciting part of the lesson, where you're going to get hands-on with the data logger and see what it can really do.

You will use the data logger to take readings from different locations.

You will measure the temperature, light, and sound levels in each location and use this to answer questions.

Okay, let's get started.

To view the temperature, light, and sound readings, turn the data logger on using the start button.

The start button is here.

It has a green tick.

The readings will show in the digital display window here.

The data logger doesn't just collect data when you press the start button, the sensors are continuously gathering the temperature, light, and sound data.

The data logger displays the readings on the screen, so you can see the numbers change.

Okay, so you're going to think of six different locations in or outside your building.

It could be the classroom or maybe outside.

You could use a simple table to store your data.

That looks something like this.

So we have a column for location, so you'll write in the different locations that you're going to go to.

And then there'll be three columns for reading, one for degree C, one for lux, and one for decibels, because you will be recording the temperature in degree C, the light in lux, and the sound in decibels.

Okay, let's stop and check your understanding.

Which button do you use to view the temperature, light, and sound levels? Is it a, the orange menu button, b, the green start button, or c, the red stop button.

Give that question some thought and pause the video.

Okay, what do you think? Well, if you said b, the green start button, you would be correct.

That is the correct way to view the temperature, light, and sound levels on the data logger.

Okay, let's check that you understand what we mean by readings.

Look at the readings on the data logger.

What are the readings for? I want you to pause the video and give that some thought.

Okay, how did you get on? Well, let's have a look at the readings together.

So temperature, what is the reading? Well, you should have been able to identify that the reading is 21.

3 degrees Celsius.

What about light? Well, the reading for light is zero lux.

And finally, sound.

What is the reading for sound? Well, sound is three decibels.

Well done.

I hope you're getting to grips with using the data logger and understanding the different readings, their outputs.

Now let's have a look at Task B, where you're going to use data from a sensor to answer a question.

Part 1, you're going to choose your six locations and use the data logger to measure temperature, light, and sound levels in each place.

Make sure to record your results on the table that we discussed earlier.

Then you're going to answer the following questions using the data you've collected.

Which location is the coolest, darkest, quietest, warmest, brightest, and loudest? Pause the video and go and have fun using your data logger.

Okay, how did you get on with the task? I'm sure you've been busy finding lots of different locations where you can use your data logger.

Let's have a look at some example results.

Here we can see a completed table.

So this person has been really busy getting around the different parts of the school.

You can see the different locations that they went to.

Are they similar to the ones where you visited? So this person has taken data logger readings in the classroom, in the playground, in the dinner hall, in the PE store, in the school office, and in the bike shed.

And on the right-hand side of this table, you can see all the different readings that they took.

So they have readings of temperature in degrees Celsius, they have readings of light in lux, and they have sound readings in decibels.

How does your table compare to this one? Did you find six locations? And have you recorded all of your readings accurately? Well done if you've done this part.

Let's move on to the second part of the task.

So the second part of the task was to answer some questions about the locations where the data logger was used.

So let's have a look at this together.

Which location is the coolest? So if we look at this table, we can see that the PE store is the coolest as it has a temperature of eight degrees C.

Which location is the darkest? Well, we can see, looking at this table, that also the PE store is the darkest, with 235 lux being the reading in the PE store.

Which location is the quietest? Well, we can see here that the school office is the quietest, with a reading of 59 decibels.

Which location is the warmest? The dinner hall is the warmest, with a reading of 21 degrees C.

Which location is the brightest? The playground is the brightest, with a reading of 1,000 lux.

That makes sense, doesn't it? Because it's outside and the sun is out, so it's going to be bright.

And which location is the loudest? The playground.

Again, that makes sense because everybody's out there having fun and the reading is 82 decibels.

Well done having a go at that task.

Were you able to answer those questions using your own data? How did you find using the data logger? Was it tricky or did you find it quite easy? You've now reached the end of today's lesson.

You've done a fantastic job using the data loggers.

Well done.

I hope you've had fun.

Let's summarise what we've learned today.

A data logger is a digital device that records data using sensors.

Sensors can collect various types of data, such as temperature, light, and movement.

Data from sensors can help answer real world questions.

I hope you've enjoyed today's lesson.

And I look forward to seeing you next time.