02 Mission Instructions

In this mission, you are an engineer tasked with creating a robotic guide dog. Your prototype should be able to lead someone on a pre-planned path around your home without running into walls or obstacles.

For additional Accessibility Mission resources, check out the GoBox course summary page.  

2. Design: Guide Harness

Before you program your GoPiGo, you need to decide how your robot’s handler will detect the robot stopping. A seeing eye dog wears a harness with a rigid metal handle that allows the handler to feel the dog’s movement. What will you use to harness your GoPiGo? 


You can experiment with rigid materials (you may already have a yardstick or dowel in your home that would be the right size) or flexible materials (rope, string, or even the leash for a real dog).





You can test your materials by having a friend or family member hold the other end of your harness and lead you slowly around your space while you close your eyes. Have them stop, start, and turn a few different directions during your test. Which material makes it easiest to feel the changes in motion? 



Record your results in a table like this. 







Now that you know what materials work well for a harness, design your own. How long should your harness be? How will you attach it to your GoPiGo? Create a sketch of your harness on a piece of paper.