About Possytronics

Our aim

At Possytronics we aim to provide quality teaching materials that ensure that learning Design and Technology is fun. We do this by working with teachers and creating new products that we know work and can be adapted for use in the classroom.

We believe it is important that all children fulfil the Design and Technology National Curriculum by providing them enjoyable experiences within electronics, systems & control and textiles.

Our projects encorporate new smart materials so that students will find projects more exciting and involving whilst Teachers can relax knowing that the projects conform to the current curriculum.

Our school projects are suitable for Key stage 3 and 4 and come complete with instructions and guidelines on how to create each project from scratch. Our teachers booklet and C.D include (where applicable):

  • Project brief
  • Design specification ..using ACCESS FM
  • Research
  • Product analysis
  • Design ideas
  • Process plan
  • Assessment sheets
  • Lesson evaluation sheets
  • Lesson plans
  • Schemes of work
  • High, medium, low ability worksheets and resources
  • Smart materials information
  • Full model assembly instructions and templates - approximately 100 pages

PICS... The future of Design and Technology?

What is a PIC ?

A PIC (Peripheral interface controller) is a very popular series of microcontrollers made by microchip.

A microcontroller is basicly a computer on a chip consisting of memory, processing units and inputs and outputs circuitry in a single unit.

Generally the PIC range of microcontrollers are supported by UK education suppliers; this subset has been selected to provide a choice of facilities likely to meet the needs of pupils from KS2 to post-16 while being affordable for schools.

For this very reason Possytronics has developed a rang of low cost projects using the 8-pin and 18-pin microcontrollers to learn pupils sequential control systems and programming procedures, but can also be used to do various PIC based projects.

An example of student PIC based projects, achieved using the 8-pin traffic light project are shown to the right.

The development of child-friendly software (Pic Logicator and programming editor) and newly released circuit wizard allows pupils to develop and test PIC programs and download them directly to the PIC chip with the use of a download cable, has been key to their usability in schools For this reason all Possytronics project boards are compatible with both manufacturors programming software.