Team Dingo – GE 423 Spring 2007

 

 

 

 

 

This semester our project goal was to traverse a 12 tile square course collecting trash (aka orange golf balls) and depositing a soda can in the “recycling center.”

 

 

Our Philosophy

  1. Programming Design
    1. Enslaved undergraduate to code robot – This was the key to our approach.  Our code was designed modularly, tested modularly and then assembled, under the direct supervision of the grad students.  This resulted in a very efficient coding experience and a program that was easy to debug.  In point of fact we didn’t exactly follow this approach all the time, but to the extent that we did life was good.
    2. We finished basic functionality a week ahead of the contest and spent the last week tweaking our bot to outperform all the competition.
    3. We leveraged the code libraries offered by Dan Block to improve robot performance and cut design cycle time.
  2. Mechanical Design
    1. Can Gripper - we took a minimalist approach, using less material to design a more elegant solution.  Our can griper is highly reliable and has the added advantage of getting the can up and out of the way of our forward facing sensor suit.
    2. Golf Ball Catcher – We chose to implement an active solution to the golf ball collection problem.  Using a servo we open our front trap door moments before driving over a golf ball.  Carefully modulating speed the robot uses the momentum of the balls already in the capture volume to keep them away from the door when it opens.
    3. Atheistics – keenly aware that robot competitions are a spectator sport we took pains to present a sleek professional image – from the dragon teeth on the front jaw to the flashing signal lights in the rear 

 

Video

Full Run

Up Close

 

Our Code

 

 

Our Bios:

 

Dave – Starting centerfielder for the Cleveland Indians, Dave came back to grad school in 2005 to begin pursuing his life long dream of a successful carrier in academia.

 

 

 

 

Serena – Annapolis top 50 graduate and Former Commandant of the Marine Corps, Serena was assigned in 2006 to monitor numerous military contacts in Dr. Andrew Alleyne’s lab.

 

 

 

 

 

Chad – Hollywood director and movie mogul, Chad came back to school in 2004 inspired to finish an advanced degree by the graduation of his good friend Steven Spielberg.

 

 

 

 

John – After serving with distinction as an executive aid to Allen Greenspan, and sharing a noble nomination with his father, John came to Illinois where he will graduate with top honors from the College of Engineering.