STEM Education Series
Sorting Machine Kit
Sort it out like a real factory machine! Press the red button, drop an object down the clear tube, and an infrared sensor takes a reading. In a flash, a servo arm swings to send the object into one cup or the other. Light objects go one way and dark objects go the other, all decided by the machine in a split second. It is a hands-on look at the sensors and automation that sort packages, recycling, and produce every day.
Sorting Machine Kit
The Big Idea
Sensors help machines make decisions automatically.
- Ages
- 10+Adult supervision required.
- Circuitry
- Technology
- Mechanical Design
- Problem Solving
Safety
- Contains small parts. Not suitable for children under 3.
- Adult supervision required.
What’s in the Kit
- All materials to build one Sorting Machine
- Full color, step-by-step instructions
What you add
- Three AA batteries
Real-world connection
How Do Machines Sort Millions of Items a Day?
Package centers, recycling plants, and fruit packing facilities rely on sorting machines to move huge numbers of items quickly and accurately. Each one follows three simple steps. A sensor takes a measurement, a set rule decides what that measurement means, and a moving part sends the item where it belongs. The infrared sensor in this kit shines invisible light on each object and measures how much bounces back, since light colors usually reflect more than dark ones. That single reading tells the servo arm which way to swing, the same sense-decide-move pattern that powers automation around the world.
For classrooms
The Sorting Machine Kit is a great fit for classrooms, after-school programs, and camps. Each kit builds one sorting machine and arrives individually packaged with all materials and instructions included.
Purchasing for your school or program? Request a quote.