Semester Wrap-Up

We have a working Laser Battle Bot! After learning what we needed to from the initial controller prototype, we 3D printed our final controller housing. It was a tight fit in there, as seen below, and there are definitely some things we plan to change in the next iteration, but the controller feels comfortable to hold and sends the necessary signals to the robot. We were really proud of the way it turned out.



We had to do a last-minute redesign of the tank housing in order to get it printed in time, thinning the walls and bringing it in tighter to the robot base. It turned out looking nice! The IR phototransistors posed a bit more of a problem than we had realized. We had initially planned to place them in an LED shroud, then press fit them into the housing. After looking at the logistics of the wires, we realized that we either had to solder them after pressing them all in the housing or else find a way to get them into the housing with all the wires already soldered together. We couldn't press fit them from the inside since the shroud had a slight draft angle to it. We ended up designing the holes shown below, which allowed us to slide the shroud to the outside of the housing, slide it down in the narrow portion, then press it in from the outside.

 

Ultimately, the robot looked much like we had envisioned it! The final product can be seen below. We were able to implement sounds on both the tank and the controller. The tank makes a quick buzz when it fires, then a more prolonged noise when it gets hit. The controller makes a noise every time it sends the firing command to the tank, changing tone depending on which weapon was fired.



We met our initial goal of having a minimum viable product of tanks that can drive and shoot one another. As soon as finals are over, we plan to print another tank and controller and test them in a competitive setting. The only major issue left to address is that of the tank RF response, which hasn't fully been worked out. We plan to do this by changing the structure of the code slightly so that the radio switching occurs in a more orderly, smooth manner.

Now that the semester is over, we don't plan to stop. We still plan to create modular housings that can be interchanged. The clip we designed on the back will allow for easy removal and replacement of the different housings. We also have a fairly detailed plan of how to incorporate secondary weapons, such as a pulse cannon. It's been a fun project to work on, and we anticipate that it will continue to be so as we move forward with it!

Comments

  1. Mark ColtonApril 23, 2018 at 10:44 AM

    This was a fantastic project. You guys went above and beyond expectations. Keep me posted if you make improvements.

    ReplyDelete

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