design Archives - Robots For Roboticists

Drone Sensor Payload Design Hands On

This post is part of the Hands on Robot Design series. See here for the full list of posts/topics http://robotsforroboticists.com/hands-on-ground-robot--drone-design-series for information on mechanical, electrical, motion control, computing, sensors, and more. Once we had a drone we needed the sensors and computer to make this drone operate. Keeping with the idea of trying to make the drone as light as…

Electrical & Electronics Mechanical Robots

Drone Design Hands On

This post is part of the Hands on Robot Design series. See here for the full list of posts/topics http://robotsforroboticists.com/hands-on-ground-robot--drone-design-series for information on mechanical, electrical, motion control, computing, sensors, and more. The drones designed for the DARPA SubT challenge needed to be great at flying through tunnels and exploring unknown subterranean environments. The plan was to be as aggressive as…

Computing & Networking Electrical & Electronics Systems & Sensors

Sensor Payload – Hands On Ground Robot Design

This post is part of the Hands on Ground Robot Design series. See here for the full list of posts/topics http://robotsforroboticists.com/hands-on-ground-robot--drone-design-series for information on mechanical, electrical, motion control, computing, sensors, and more. Sensor Selection Based on the system requirements we determined that we needed RGBD cameras in all four directions to help find required artifacts (survivors, fire extinguishers, cell phones,…

Electrical & Electronics

Power System & Soft Start – Hands On Ground Robot Design

This post is part of the Hands on Ground Robot Design series. See here for the full list of posts/topics http://robotsforroboticists.com/hands-on-ground-robot--drone-design-series for information on mechanical, electrical, motion control, computing, sensors, and more. Power System The power system of the robot is key for making everything move and for powering all of the sensors and computers. Often reliability issues within a…

Mechanical

Mechanical & Wheels – Hands On Ground Robot Design

This post is part of the Hands on Ground Robot Design series. See here for the full list of posts/topics http://robotsforroboticists.com/hands-on-ground-robot--drone-design-series for information on mechanical, electrical, motion control, computing, sensors, and more. Robot Size Decision After we have the list of system requirements we start with the design of the mechanical structure of the robot. In this case we decided…

Robots Systems & Sensors

Hands On Ground Robot & Drone Design Series

Hi all, This is a new series looking at the detailed design of various robots. To start with we will be looking at the design of two different robots that were used for the DARPA Subterranean Challenge. Both of these robots were designed for operating in complex subterranean environments, including Caves, Mines & Urban environments. Both of these robots presented…

Misc Robots Systems & Sensors

Book Review: The Design and Engineering of Curiosity

As soon as I saw this book existed on Amazon, I instantly wanted to read it. It is not often that I see a book dedicated to the detailed engineering design of a complex robotic system. The Design and Engineering of Curiosity: How the Mars Rover Performs its Job by Emily Lakdawalla did not disappoint. It is a fascinating read…

Misc

Design Thinking for Robotics and Life

Hi all Recently I went to a seminar about design thinking. Design thinking is an approach to solving a problem from any domain. During the seminar people used design thinking to analyze how to automate password recovery, lead a finance team, build an activities team, and others. I used this as an exercise to look at how to teach Jr.…

Mechanical

Wheel & Grouser Design

For many robots the wheels are an afterthought however they are essential for letting the robot drive around. Another thing that is often neglected is choosing the proper grousers for your wheel. Most of the design parameters for wheels and grousers are based on experience, intuition (which may or may not be correct) and qualitative assessments. Serious wheel design is…

Systems & Sensors Testing

Designing for Success – Field Testing Series – Part 2

This post is part of a series on testing robots with a focus on field testing. It will start with why we test robots, work its way through planning for a field test, to performing the test, and finally what to do after the test. We will conclude with a description of many common tests that we subject our robots…