Project

# Title Team Members TA Documents Sponsor
15 Antwieght Battle Bot
 Carlos Carretero
Dany Rodriguez
Troy Edwards
 John Li proposal1.pdf
3D-PRINTED BATTLE BOT

Group members:
Daniel Rodriguez (drodr25)
Carlos Carretero (ccarr27)
Troy Edwards (troyre2)


PROBLEM

Our project revolves around Professor Gruev’s Battle Bot Competition. This competition has several requirements as well as limitations which must be adhered to. These requirements include 3D printed construction with predetermined materials, weigh less than 2 pounds, have a PCB that is controlled through Bluetooth or wifi, fighting capabilities, and safety measures for shutting the robot down. Our goal for this project is to have a robot that is capable of competing in the competition meaning that it can be controlled and attack as desired.

SOLUTION

As the project entails this robot will be fighting against other robots which means that our design must revolve around having the ability to disable the opponent's threats or render their robot immobile. In order to accomplish this we will have a 3D-printed chassis made of PLA+ with an ESP32 microcontroller for motor and movement control. This Microcontroller has onboard wifi and Bluetooth allowing us to decide which is best for controlling our robot. In our design, we will use 3 motors, two for movement and one for controlling our battle element which involves a lift to try and flip our opponents over. The motors will be powered by a set of LiPo batteries as they have a high power output in comparison to their size and weight helping with the weight restrictions. The motors used for movement will also have an h bridge that allows for forward and backward movement allowing the robot to turn and have smooth movement. Voltage control circuits will also be implemented in order to account for the different voltages required for the microcontroller and the motors.

SOLUTION COMPONENTS

SUBSYSTEM: CHASSIS

The chassis of the battle bot will be 3D printed using PLA+ material to have a strong and lightweight robot. It will house all the components including the PCB, motors, and power source. Our weapon will also be incorporated into the chassis to ensure that the lifting mechanism is sturdy enough to flip over opponents as well as enclosed enough to prevent damage to the robot. The body will be horizontal with a very low center of mass to avoid others flipping it over. The wheels and all electronic components will also be enclosed to prevent any damage there.


SUBSYSTEM: COMBAT
Our lift system will be integrated into the chassis as a movable ramp that is powered with a motor for raising and lowering the ramp. The ramp will most likely be made of titanium in order to keep a lightweight setup. It is located on the front of the bot allowing us to drive into our opponents while raising the ramp to try and flip over the other bot.


SUBSYSTEM: POWER DISTRIBUTION

Since we will be using LiPO batteries which have higher voltages of either 11.1V or 14.8V we have to design a circuit to step this power down for our lower voltage components like the microcontroller and DC motors for movement. This part of the project will also need some sort of circuit to be able to safely cut power to motors in case of an emergency as required. This type of battery is commonly used in battle bot applications which is why we are using it for our design. The battery will first be connected to a kill switch before anything else to ensure that the robot can be shut down safely.

SUBSYSTEM: CONTROL

The ESP32 microcontroller is a great option for our project as it has wifi and Bluetooth built in allowing us to have a way to control our robot. We can either use the BLE protocol to talk to the microcontroller, due to low power consumption and low latency, and connect an external Xbox controller or use wifi to control them using a pc keyboard.


SUBSYSTEM: MOVEMENT

There will be 2 Brushed DC motors that control the 2 wheels in our robot and we will be looking to use something like the L298N DC motor driver to control those. This will also require voltage convertors as previously mentioned. The wheels will probably made from some high-friction material like rubber to ensure that the robot does not lose traction. The ESP32 has various GPIO ports that will allow us to control the motor drivers. For the motor for the ramp we can use a servo motor in order for precision control since we don’t need more than a 90-degree range of motion.


CRITERION FOR SUCCESS

Our project would be successful if the robot could move around using inputs given by the user externally. Also if the attack mechanisms had movement is the range that we wanted. We also want to ensure that the chassis has enough rigidity to handle the forces from the motors. It should be safe to power on and off. The robot should also be effective at immobilizing other robots.

Modularized Electronic Locker

Jack Davis, Joshua Nolan, Jake Pu

Modularized Electronic Locker

Featured Project

Group Member: Jianhao (Jake) Pu [jpu3], Joshua Nolan [jtnolan2], John (Jack) Davis [johnhd4]

Problem:

Students living off campus without a packaging station are affected by stolen packages all the time. As a result of privacy concerns and inconsistent deployment, public cameras in Champaign and around the world cannot always be relied upon. Therefore, it can be very difficult for victims to gather evidence for a police report. Most of the time, the value of stolen items is small and they are usually compensated by the sellers (Amazon and Apple are very understanding). However, not all deliveries are insured and many people are suffering from stolen food deliveries during the COVID-19 crisis. We need a low-cost solution that can protect deliveries from all vendors.

Solution Overview:

Our solution is similar to Amazon Hub Apartment Locker and Luxer One. Like these services, our product will securely enclose the package until the owners claim the contents inside. The owner of the contents can claim it using a phone number or a unique user identification code generated and managed by a cloud service.

The first difference we want to make from these competitors is cost. According to an article, the cost of a single locker is from $6000 - $20000. We want to minimize such costs so that we can replace the traditional mailbox. We talked to a Chinese manufacturer and got a hardware quote of $3000. We can squeeze this cost if we just design our own control module on ESP32 microcontrollers.

The second difference we want to make is modularity. We will have a sensor module, a control module, a power module and any number of storage units for hardware. We want to make standardized storage units that can be stacked into any configuration, and these storage units can be connected to a control module through a communication bus. The control module houses the hardware to open or close all of the individual lockers. A household can purchase a single locker and a control module just for one family while apartment buildings can stack them into the lockers we see at Amazon Hub. I think the hardware connection will be a challenge but it will be very effective at lowering the cost once we can massively manufacture these unit lockers.

Solution Components:

Storage Unit

Basic units that provide a locker feature. Each storage unit will have a cheap microcontroller to work as a slave on the communication bus and control its electronic lock (12V 36W). It has four connectors on top, bottom, left, and right sides for stackable configuration.

Control Unit

Should have the same dimension as one of the storage units so that it could be stacked with them. Houses ESP32 microcontroller to run control logics on all storage units and uses the built-in WiFi to upload data to a cloud server. If sensor units are detected, it should activate more security features accordingly.

Power Unit

Power from the wall or from a backup battery power supply and the associated controls to deliver power to the system. Able to sustain high current in a short time (36W for each electronic lock). It should also have protection against overvoltage and overcurrent.

Sensor Modules

Sensors such as cameras, motion sensors, and gyroscopes will parlay any scandalous activities to the control unit and will be able to capture a photo to report to authorities. Sensors will also have modularity for increased security capabilities.

Cloud Support

Runs a database that keeps user identification information and the security images. Pushes notification to end-users.

Criterion for Success:

Deliverers (Fedex, Amazon, Uber Eats, etc.) are able to open the locker using a touchscreen and a use- provided code to place their package inside. Once the package is inside of the locker, a message will be sent to the locker owner that their delivery has arrived. Locker owners are able to open the locker using a touchscreen interface. Owners are also able to change the passcode at any time for security reasons. The locker must be difficult to break into and offer theft protection after multiple incorrect password attempts.

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