Is this the list? - If so your welcome to ue it.
The UK GCSE has 2 options - Electronics which has an option for using PIC chips in your project and Systems and Control which is more biased towards Microprocessors but could use PIC, or a PC based control box, or hard electronics in some sort of control project which has - Inputs from sensors, Some kind of processing - And a mechanical or Pneumatic output.
The software is at present only considered at Flow chart level and many schools use Flowol or similiar system to programme in flowcharts - Few actually teach the students to use a programming language.
In electronics even fewer use a "real" programming language and the focus is on the operation of the end product - The PIC aspect is just another electronic component.
Many schools are moving over to a 'Product Design' GCSE approach - I think for many reasons but mainly because you get away from the need for specific detail knowledge and need a more general knowledge of Design and Technology. Perhaps a set of simple projects to make basic products based on picaxe processors could be welcomed by the educational establishment.
Examples:
Decorative LED based light that changes colour.
Games.
Dice.
Communications via - Light, Infra red.
Small robots, line followers, Light seekers, maze solvers (wall followers),
Infrared control of somehing (curtains, a robot)
Emergency beacons for accidents, car breakdown etc.
Home security.- Alarms or detecting security lights.
Dimming or night operating lights for home or garden.
Bearing in mind that at GCSE (16 years old) can only deal with low voltage systems, although they would be able to use a commercial mains power supply.
or
you really should choose your own project - Can your teacher advise you as He/she will know you a lot better than us.
Projects we have covered in the past few years include:
Light seeking robots
Robot kits as toys
<A href='http://www.xs4all.nl/~sbolt/edz.htm' Target=_Blank>External Web Link</a>
Dizzy an aware robot.
Automatic cat flaps
Security lights with sonar
Speed trap for radio controlled cars
Bike speedo
Robot arm
Rev counter for a moped (erratic operation)
Mood lights
Automatic lights - Dawn/Dusk
garden lights
Walking robots
light chasers for discos
LED jewellery
Strobe light
IR control
Automata
rolling ball mazes
Bike indicators
Fluid level indicators
Industrial plant models including tank empty/fill, conveyors to sort package by size/weighing systems/Monitoring systems for various materials/level monitoring by contact and non contact/flow monitoring, Data logging.
Daylight monitor
Remote control vehicles - IR control and radio using Picaxe to give some intelligent activity.
The critical parts:
Make sure you can complete the task.
make sure you can do it well.
make sure you fully understand what the exam board requirements are for your folder work -
Download a copy of the syllabus from the exam board and look up the marking criteria. then make sure you give your teacher something to marl in every section.
Work in a logical manner through the folder.
Your folder is a "story" of the development of your project - It shows your investigation and identification of possible problems to solve.
Your analysis of the problem.
The research you do to support your development of a solution.
The specification for your project.
The ideas you have of possible solutions.
The development of the final solution using the best of your ideas.
The manufacture of the hardware/software prototype.
And the testing of the solution to make sure it performs correctly.
If not - if you can be more specific I might recall what it was (I have over 1300 posts!)
