Project
| # | Title | Team Members | TA | Documents | Sponsor |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 11 | Glove Controlled Drone |
Aneesh Nagalkar Atsi Gupta Zach Greening |
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| Glove Controlled Drone Team Members - Aneesh Nagalkar (aneeshn3) - Zach Greening (zg29) - Atsi Gupta (atsig2) # Problem Controlling drones typically requires handheld remote controllers or smartphones, which may not feel natural and can limit user interaction. A more intuitive way to control drones could increase accessibility, improve user experience, and open possibilities for new applications such as training, entertainment, or assistive technology. # Solution Our group proposes building a wearable gesture-control glove that sends commands to a quadcopter. The glove will use motion sensors to detect the user’s hand orientation and movements, translating them into drone commands (e.g., tilting forward moves the drone forward). The glove will transmit these commands wirelessly to the quadcopter through an ESP32 Wi-Fi module. The drone will be purchased in parts to simplify integration and ensure reliable flight mechanics, while the glove will be custom-built. To improve from previous iterations of similar projects, we plan to: - Use IMU sensors instead of flex sensors for more precise and complex gesture detection. - Add haptic feedback to communicate status updates to the user (e.g., low battery, weak signal). - Implement an emergency shutoff mechanism triggered by a specific hand gesture (e.g., closing the hand). - Potentially integrate a camera onto the quad copter that will be signalled by a different hand gesture. The system is also scalable to include advanced commands such as speed adjustments based on motion severity. # Solution Subsystems **Subsystem 1: Gesture Detection** - IMU and gyroscope sensors embedded in the glove to detect orientation and movement. - Sensor fusion algorithms to interpret gestures into defined drone commands. 1. Three axis gyroscope: mpu-6050 2. IMU: Pololu MinIMU-9 v6 Controls: Here is a clear definition of how the drone will move - Drone maintains a constant hover height (handled by the drone’s onboard flight controller barometer/altimeter stabilization) - The glove only controls horizontal motion and yaw (turning - Pitch forward (tilt hand down): Move forward - Pitch backward (tilt hand up): Move backward - Roll left (tilt hand left): Strafe left - Roll right (tilt hand right): Strafe right - Yaw (rotate wrist clockwise/counter-clockwise): Turn left/right - Clenched fist (or another distinct gesture): Emergency stop / shutoff **Subsystem 2: Communication Module** - ESP32 microcontroller on the glove acts as the transmitter. - Wi-Fi connection to the drone for sending control signals. 1. ESP32 microcontroller 2. Integrated ESP32 wifi chip 3. Voltage regulation **Subsystem 3: Quadcopter Hardware** - Drone hardware purchased off-the-shelf to ensure stable flight. - Integrated with receiver to interpret Wi-Fi commands from the glove 1. LiteWing – ESP32-Based Programmable Drone **Subsystem 4: Feedback and Safety Enhancements** - Haptic motors embedded in the glove to provide vibration-based feedback. - Emergency shutoff gesture detection for immediate drone power-down. 1. Vibrating Actuator: Adafruit 10 mm Vibration Motor 2. Driver for actuator: Precision Microdrives 310-117 3. Battery: Adafruit 3.7 V 1000 mAh Li-Po 4. Glove that components will be affixed to # Criterion for Success, minimum 5/7 of these - The glove reliably detects and distinguishes between multiple hand movements. - The drone responds in real time to glove commands with minimal delay. - Basic directional commands (forward, back, left, right, up, down) work consistently. - Scaled commands (e.g., varying speed/acceleration) function correctly. - Haptic feedback provides clear communication of system status to the user. - The emergency shutoff mechanism works reliably and immediately. - The system demonstrates smooth, safe, and intuitive user control during a test flight. |
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