Spain 4º ESO Technology
Chapters: 4
1. Problem-solving process
Strategies and techniques · Products and materials · Manufacturing · Dissemination
- The Design Process: From Problem to Product – The design process is a loop of steps designers use to solve a real problem for real people: investigate the need, define it in a brief and a measurable specification, generate many ideas, build a prototype, then test and evaluate it against the specification. Whatever fails sends you back round the loop. This repeating is called iteration, and it is how almost every product, app, building and artwork is improved.
- Sustainable Design: Products That Are Kind to People and Planet – Sustainable design means making products that meet our needs while harming nature and people as little as possible. Every product has a life cycle: materials, making, transport, use and end of life. A life cycle assessment adds up the ecological footprint (energy, CO₂, water, waste) at each stage. The social footprint is the effect on workers and communities: pay, safety, child labour, fair trade. Designers use the six Rs (rethink, refuse, reduce, reuse, repair, recycle), design for maintenance, repair and disassembly, and avoid planned obsolescence. Ecodesign also weighs the economic side: a product must be affordable and profitable, so the best designs balance environment, society and economy.
- CAD/CAM: Digital Design and Manufacture – CAD (computer-aided design) is drawing and testing a product on a computer as an exact 3D model. CAM (computer-aided manufacture) turns that model into instructions (a toolpath, saved as G-code) that a computer-controlled machine follows to make it. CNC milling and lathes cut material away (subtractive). 3D printers build up layers (additive). Laser cutters cut flat sheets. Using CAD and CAM together makes parts accurate, repeatable and quick to change, and lets designers make fast prototypes (rapid prototyping). The costs are expensive machines, training and less hand skill.
- Digital Presentations – A digital presentation is a set of slides shown on a screen to support a talk. Good presentations are planned first (purpose, audience, storyboard). Each slide has one idea: a short title, a few key words, and a picture, chart or diagram that helps. Use a consistent design (slide master or theme), strong colour contrast and large fonts. Add graphics, charts, audio, video and hyperlinks only when they help the message, and give credit for images you did not make. Use transitions and animations sparingly. Finally rehearse with speaker notes, run the slide show, and share or print it in the right format (PDF, video, handouts).
2. Technological operators
Analogue electronics · Basic digital electronics · Basic pneumatics · Components for robotics
- Basic Electronics: Components and Circuits – Electronics uses small components to control electric current. A battery or power supply gives energy; a switch opens or closes the path. A resistor limits current (V = IR), a capacitor stores charge and can smooth or delay a signal, a diode lets current flow only one way, an LED is a diode that gives light, and a transistor uses a small base current to switch or amplify a much bigger current. Each part has a standard circuit symbol. Circuits are planned on paper or in a simulator, tried on a breadboard, and made permanent by soldering on a circuit board, using the right materials and safety steps. Analogue circuits handle smoothly changing signals; digital circuits handle on/off signals.
- Boolean Logic – Boolean logic works with only two values: 1 (true) and 0 (false). Logic gates act on them: NOT flips a value; AND gives 1 only if all inputs are 1; OR gives 1 if any input is 1; NAND and NOR are the opposites of AND and OR; XOR gives 1 when inputs differ. A truth table lists the output for every input combination (2ⁿ rows for n inputs). De Morgan's laws: (A·B)' = A' + B' and (A + B)' = A'·B'. Gates joined together form logic circuits that match Boolean expressions.
- Control Systems and Feedback – A control system makes a machine or process behave the way we want. Every system has input → process (controller) → output. In an open-loop system the controller does not check the result (a toaster on a timer). In a closed-loop system a sensor measures the output and feeds it back; the controller compares it with the set point and corrects the error (a thermostat, cruise control). Real systems are built from sensors, a controller (electronic circuit, microcontroller or PLC) and actuators (motors, heaters, valves, pneumatic cylinders). Many are now networked (IoT, SCADA) so they can be watched and controlled from far away.
- Robotics: How Robots Sense, Think and Act – A robot is a machine that senses the world, decides what to do with a program, and acts with motors. It has a body (structure), sensors, a controller, actuators, a transmission such as gears, and a power supply. Robots help in factories, hospitals, farms, homes and space.
3. Computational thinking, automation and robotics
Programmed control systems · Computers for programming and control · Internet of Things · Robotics
- Sensors: How Machines Sense the World – A sensor turns a physical quantity (light, temperature, distance, moisture, sound, pressure) into an electrical signal. Analogue sensors give a smooth voltage; an ADC turns it into a number the computer can use. A controller compares the number with a threshold and switches an actuator, often through a relay. Readings taken at regular times are data logging. Good sensors have the right range, sensitivity, accuracy and response time.
- Control Systems and Feedback – A control system makes a machine or process behave the way we want. Every system has input → process (controller) → output. In an open-loop system the controller does not check the result (a toaster on a timer). In a closed-loop system a sensor measures the output and feeds it back; the controller compares it with the set point and corrects the error (a thermostat, cruise control). Real systems are built from sensors, a controller (electronic circuit, microcontroller or PLC) and actuators (motors, heaters, valves, pneumatic cylinders). Many are now networked (IoT, SCADA) so they can be watched and controlled from far away.
- Internet of Things (IoT) – The Internet of Things (IoT) is a network of everyday objects that have sensors, a small computer and a network connection, so they can collect data, share it over the internet and act on it. A sensor turns a physical change into data, a microcontroller processes it, the network (Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, Zigbee, 4G/5G, LoRa) carries it to a cloud server or app, and an actuator turns commands into action. IoT is described in three layers: perception, network and application. It brings convenience and saves energy, but needs strong privacy and security.
- Robotics: How Robots Sense, Think and Act – A robot is a machine that senses the world, decides what to do with a program, and acts with motors. It has a body (structure), sensors, a controller, actuators, a transmission such as gears, and a power supply. Robots help in factories, hospitals, farms, homes and space.
4. Sustainable technology
Sustainable and accessible design · Bioclimatic architecture · Transport and sustainability · Open communities and tech volunteering
- Sustainable Design: Products That Are Kind to People and Planet – Sustainable design means making products that meet our needs while harming nature and people as little as possible. Every product has a life cycle: materials, making, transport, use and end of life. A life cycle assessment adds up the ecological footprint (energy, CO₂, water, waste) at each stage. The social footprint is the effect on workers and communities: pay, safety, child labour, fair trade. Designers use the six Rs (rethink, refuse, reduce, reuse, repair, recycle), design for maintenance, repair and disassembly, and avoid planned obsolescence. Ecodesign also weighs the economic side: a product must be affordable and profitable, so the best designs balance environment, society and economy.
- Sustainability – Sustainability means meeting our needs today without taking away the ability of future people to meet theirs. It rests on three pillars — environment, society and economy. A resource is used sustainably when we use it no faster than it renews. Today humanity uses about 1.7 Earths' worth of resources a year, and this use is very unequal. Stewardship, careful planning and spatial tools like GIS help us move towards sustainability.
- Civic Engagement: How Citizens Take Part – Civic engagement means taking part in the life of your community and country. It is like a ladder: stay informed, vote, join groups, volunteer, then organise and campaign. Citizens vote in elections to choose representatives and in referendums to answer one question directly. They join political parties (which aim to govern), trade unions (which defend workers) and associations or NGOs (which work for a shared cause). Between elections they sign petitions, volunteer, mediate local conflicts and campaign online, checking facts first. Whistleblowers reveal hidden wrongdoing, and a free press and public opinion turn it into action. Organising a community event shows all these skills: planning, teamwork and responsibility.