L6: Object-Oriented Programming — Part I

Overview

This lecture introduces object-oriented programming (OOP) in Python, covering both the design and implementation of classes. You will learn how to analyze a problem domain using requirement analysis, business rules, and noun/verb analysis, then translate that design into working Python code. The implementation phase covers class and object creation, the self parameter, the __init__ constructor, instance and class attributes, dunder methods for operator overloading and string representations, and encapsulation using @property decorators. All examples use a Robotics Competition Management System as the running domain.

Learning Objectives

By the end of this lecture, you will be able to:

• Explain the core principles of object-oriented programming (OOP).

• Gather requirements and identify business rules from a domain description.

• Apply noun/verb analysis to extract candidate classes, attributes, and methods.

• Apply a design process to identify objects, define classes, and model behavior.

• Define classes with attributes and methods using proper Python syntax.

• Understand the role of self and the __init__ constructor.

• Distinguish between instance attributes and class attributes.

• Override dunder methods: __str__, __repr__, __eq__, and operator methods.

• Understand abstraction and encapsulation as OOP principles.

• Use @property to create getters and setters the Pythonic way.

Next Steps

• In the next lecture, we will cover Object-Oriented Programming II:

  • Class methods and static methods

  • Relationships: association, aggregation, composition

  • Inheritance (MobileRobot, ManipulatorRobot) and super()

  • Polymorphism and duck typing

  • Abstract base classes (Task interface)

  • Data classes

• Review and experiment with all code snippets and exercises from today’s lecture.

• Practice writing classes with properties and dunder methods.

• Read Real Python: Inheritance and Composition.