Speed control during mission in Drone Programming - Practice Problems & Coding Challenges

Challenge - 5 Problems

❓ Predict Output

intermediate

What is the output of this speed adjustment code?

Consider this snippet controlling drone speed during a mission. What will be printed?

Drone Programming

speed = 10
for waypoint in range(3):
    if speed > 5:
        speed -= 3
    print(f"Speed at waypoint {waypoint}: {speed}")

A

Speed at waypoint 0: 7
Speed at waypoint 1: 4
Speed at waypoint 2: 4

B

Speed at waypoint 0: 7
Speed at waypoint 1: 4
Speed at waypoint 2: 1

C

Speed at waypoint 0: 10
Speed at waypoint 1: 7
Speed at waypoint 2: 4

D

Speed at waypoint 0: 7
Speed at waypoint 1: 7
Speed at waypoint 2: 7

💡 Hint

Look carefully at how speed changes inside the loop and when it stops decreasing.

The speed starts at 10. At waypoint 0, speed > 5 so speed becomes 7. At waypoint 1, speed is 7 > 5 so speed becomes 4. At waypoint 2, speed is 4 which is not > 5, so speed stays 4.

🧠 Conceptual

intermediate

Which statement best describes speed control in a mission?

In drone programming, why is it important to adjust speed dynamically during a mission?

A To avoid any speed changes to keep the mission predictable

B To keep the drone always at maximum speed regardless of conditions

C To save battery by flying slower when possible and faster when needed

D To randomly change speed to confuse obstacles

💡 Hint

Think about energy use and mission efficiency.

Adjusting speed helps conserve battery and adapt to mission needs, like slowing near obstacles or speeding on clear paths.

🔧 Debug

advanced

What error does this speed control code raise?

Identify the error when running this code snippet:

Drone Programming

speed = 5
for i in range(3):
    if speed < 10:
        speed += 2
    print(speed)

A SyntaxError due to missing colon after if statement

B TypeError because speed is an integer

C IndentationError due to print statement

D NameError because variable i is not used

💡 Hint

Check the if statement syntax carefully.

The if statement is missing a colon at the end, causing a SyntaxError.

❓ Predict Output

advanced

What is the final speed after this mission segment?

Given this code controlling speed increments, what is the final speed printed?

Drone Programming

speed = 3
increments = [2, -1, 4, -3]
for inc in increments:
    speed = max(0, speed + inc)
print(speed)

A 3

B 5

C 6

D 4

💡 Hint

Add each increment carefully and ensure speed never goes below zero.

Speed changes: 3+2=5, 5-1=4, 4+4=8, 8-3=5. Final speed is 5.

🚀 Application

expert

How many speed changes occur in this mission code?

Count how many times the speed variable changes value during this mission segment:

Drone Programming

speed = 7
changes = 0
for step in range(5):
    new_speed = speed - step
    if new_speed != speed:
        speed = new_speed
        changes += 1
print(changes)

A 2

B 5

C 3

D 4

💡 Hint

Check each loop iteration and compare new_speed to current speed.

Speed changes at steps 1,2,3,4 but not at step 0 because new_speed equals speed then.

Practice

1. What is the main reason to adjust the drone's speed during a mission?

easy

A. To save battery by flying as fast as possible

B. To change the drone's color

C. To make the drone hover in place

D. To fly slower near obstacles for safety

Solution

1. Step 1: Understand speed control purpose

   Speed control helps adjust how fast the drone flies to match mission needs.

2. Step 2: Identify safety reason

   Flying slower near obstacles reduces crash risk and improves control.

3. Final Answer:

   To fly slower near obstacles for safety -> Option D

4. Quick Check:

   Safety needs slower speed near obstacles = B [OK]

Hint: Slower speed near obstacles means safer flight [OK]

Common Mistakes:

• Thinking faster speed always saves battery
• Confusing speed control with hovering
• Believing speed changes drone color

2. Which of the following is the correct way to set the drone speed to 5 meters per second in code?

easy

A. setSpeed(drone, 5)

B. drone.speed = '5mps'

C. drone.setSpeed(5)

D. drone.speed(5)

Solution

1. Step 1: Identify correct method syntax

   The method to set speed is called on the drone object with a number argument.

2. Step 2: Check each option

   drone.setSpeed(5) uses drone.setSpeed(5) which is correct syntax for setting speed to 5.

3. Final Answer:

   drone.setSpeed(5) -> Option C

4. Quick Check:

   Method call with number argument = A [OK]

Hint: Use object.method(value) to set speed [OK]

Common Mistakes:

• Using string instead of number for speed
• Calling speed as a function instead of method
• Passing drone as argument instead of calling method on it

3. What will be the output of this code snippet?

drone.setSpeed(3)
print(drone.speed)

medium

A. None

B. 3

C. Error: speed attribute not found

D. drone.setSpeed(3)

Solution

1. Step 1: Understand setSpeed effect

   Calling drone.setSpeed(3) sets the drone's speed attribute to 3.

2. Step 2: Print drone.speed value

   Printing drone.speed outputs the current speed value, which is 3.

3. Final Answer:

   3 -> Option B

4. Quick Check:

   Set speed to 3, print speed = 3 [OK]

Hint: setSpeed changes speed attribute; print shows it [OK]

Common Mistakes:

• Expecting method call to print
• Assuming speed attribute is missing
• Confusing method name with attribute

4. The following code is intended to set the drone speed to 10 m/s but causes an error. What is the problem?

drone.setspeed(10)

medium

A. Method name is case-sensitive; should be setSpeed

B. Speed value 10 is too high and causes error

C. Missing parentheses after method name

D. drone object is not defined

Solution

1. Step 1: Check method name spelling

   Method names are case-sensitive; 'setspeed' is incorrect, correct is 'setSpeed'.

2. Step 2: Confirm other options

   Speed 10 is valid, parentheses are present, and drone object assumed defined.

3. Final Answer:

   Method name is case-sensitive; should be setSpeed -> Option A

4. Quick Check:

   Case-sensitive method names cause errors = A [OK]

Hint: Check exact method name spelling and case [OK]

Common Mistakes:

• Ignoring case sensitivity in method names
• Assuming value too high causes error
• Forgetting parentheses after method

5. You want the drone to fly slower near obstacles and faster in open areas during a mission. Which code snippet correctly changes speed based on distance to obstacle?

distance = drone.getDistance()
if distance < 5:
    drone.setSpeed(2)
else:
    drone.setSpeed(8)

hard

A. Correctly sets speed slower near obstacles and faster otherwise

B. Sets speed faster near obstacles, which is unsafe

C. Uses wrong comparison operator; should be distance > 5

D. Does not change speed at all

Solution

1. Step 1: Understand distance check

   Code checks if distance to obstacle is less than 5 meters.

2. Step 2: Analyze speed settings

   If close (distance < 5), speed is set to 2 (slow). Else speed is 8 (fast). This matches safe speed control.

3. Final Answer:

   Correctly sets speed slower near obstacles and faster otherwise -> Option A

4. Quick Check:

   Distance check controls speed safely = C [OK]

Hint: Use if distance < threshold for slower speed [OK]

Common Mistakes:

• Reversing comparison operator
• Setting faster speed near obstacles
• Not calling setSpeed inside condition