Control Systems

All posts tagged Control Systems

DARPA Has Delivered Self-Steering Bullets

Posted by Andrew (Team UV) on May 12, 2015
Posted in: Well Read. Tagged: , , , , , , , , , , .

Yours Truly Shooting a MP5!

Trying to hit a moving, accelerating, and evasive target at long range?  No problem, America’s Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA) has you covered.  That’s right…a project named Extreme Accuracy Tasked Ordnance (EXACTO) now allows the military to hit targets that move and evade with high accuracy.  The video below shows an experienced marksman using the remarkable technology along with a novice shooter completing the same task.

The EXACTO program is understandably secretive about the technology but we know that they have stuffed a “real-time optical guidance system” into a .50 caliber size round.  The system accounts for the rough terrain, environments (weather, wind, etc), and other factors soldiers are exposed to that can hinder successful hits.  Future work can now be done on other caliber rounds and other applications.

More information here!

Until next time…

Gimball! The World’s First Collision Tolerant Drone!

Posted by Ketton (Team UV) on March 5, 2015
Posted in: Presentations. Tagged: , , , , , , , , , , . Leave a comment
flyability-rescue-drone-2015-02-09-02

Gimball drone. Photo Credit: interestingengineering.com

With all the talk about drones lately, especially Amazon’s drone, I thought this would be cool to mention.  Today, I want to introduce you to Gimball!  The collision tolerant drone!

There is always a learning curve when first piloting a drone.  You may not be as good as you think when you keep knocking into things.  The last thing you really want is to watch your drone engage in a mid-air collision, but for Gimball it is it’s main selling point.  Described as the first “collision tolerant drone” it won $1 million at the Drones for Good international competition held in Dubai.

It was created by Swiss company Flyability and it utilizes a rotating spherical outer cage that means it can be used safely in close proximity with people.  Designed to enter hostile environments such as burning buildings and radioactive sites, Gimball maps its surroundings and can roll across ceilings and floors, navigate restricted areas, and transmit RGB and infrared images back to disaster relief services.  Surrounding the multi-axis gimbal system with its built-in camera is a carbon fiber outer cage that absorbs the shock of any collisions and the gimbal system means that the cage can roll about independently of the camera.

Check out the video below!

GuardBot is Here to Protect You, Citizen!

Posted by Andrew (Team UV) on March 3, 2015
Posted in: Well Read. Tagged: , , , , , , , , , , .

Friendly neighborhood GuardBot. Photo Credit: cdr.cz

Connecticut-based company, GuardBot has recently released their take on an autonomous broadcasting, reconnaissance, and security robot.  What began as a bot aimed for use on Mars, is now a potential patrolling robot for the US military.  Guardbot, also the name of the bot, is capable of tackling various terrains from sand, grass, mud, and snow to even water.  In solid to slightly wet environments, it can achieve a top speed of 6 mph and can even climb hills up to 30 degrees in slope.  In water, Guardbot can achieve a top speed of 4 mph, still perfect enough for guard duties.

Going for a swim. Photo Credit: cdn.ft.rs

Guardbots can be ordered in a range of sizes from 4 inches to 9 feet in diameter but the standard size is 2 feet.  Inside the bot, a number of electronic controls are housed to achieve various tasks.  These tasks are set by the client and anything from night vision to laser scanners can be installed.  It also features live streaming, high definition cameras and a pendulum-stabilized electronics tray to keep everything oriented upright.

Tiny GuardBot for home use. Photo Credit: soocurious.com

Although very different from our project, the goals of these two devices are the same.  Both can be used for reconnaissance and security missions but can also be customized to meet other needs.  Our project is capable of being used in tracking, exploratory, and guarding scenarios (in addition to our primary application of ISR).  GuardBot can also be used to patrol parking lots and in emergencies where explosives or chemicals are present.

More information and a video here!

Please continue to support our GoFundMe campaign and share it with your friends!

Until next time!

1…2…3…Think! Pop-up Design Challenge

Posted by Andrew (Team UV) on February 22, 2015
Posted in: Open Mind. Tagged: , , , , , , , , , , .

Hubble Telescope. Photo Credit: NASA.org

I approached this Open Mind a little differently from my latest round of posts.  Instead of developing ideas and solutions over the course of a month, I gave myself a “pop” design challenge.  The topic: If you were the lead designer for a new NASA Telescope, what considerations would be most important to you?  My goal: Instead of developing the best or most important considerations for this challenge, I would develop the first three considerations that popped into my head.

My first thought dealt with finances.  As the project manager, I would need to know how much funding the team has and what it will be used for.  To me, the days of dumping money into a project especially for exploration are far and few between.  It’s unfortunate but there are companies out there that are reviving the passion for space and underwater exploration; our team included.  In order to justify spending money on a new exploration project, the team will absolutely have to design intelligently.  By using sustainable materials and avoiding “reinventing the wheel”, the design team can focus on improving technology already available thus potentially saving money.

The second thought to pop up was about the project’s overall life cycle.  As a manager, I would need to establish an efficient way to not only start and end the project, but see if the telescope has life after decommission.  Can anything off the telescope be used or recycled after it’s no longer needed?  There’s more to “design” now than ever since there’s a push to go green in all industries.  Anything from control systems to frame material can be inspected and potentially approved for reuse.  These parts don’t have to be used for serious missions but can be utilized in testing scenarios or for higher education.

The final thought before I called time revolved around power generation.  Fuel supply and consumption are always design concerns for any project but none more than in space/underwater applications.  There are particles of various sizes translating across space.  If a designer can harness the power of small impacts on the telescope by the particles or generate rotational motion from the moving particles, power can be generated.  This power can be used to charge batteries in times of need.

Well there you have it, an expedited Open Mind that took place in less than one minute.  Take a look at other Team UV Open Minds from previous months and don’t forget to support our GoFundMe site!

Until next time!

Autonomous Navy Swarmboats

Posted by Andrew (Team UV) on January 27, 2015
Posted in: Well Read. Tagged: , , , , , , , , , , . Leave a comment

Swarmboats testing. Photo Credit: DefenseTech.org

The US Navy, specifically the Office of Naval Research, recently released information about their latest protection technology for their own fleet.  They have employed smaller autonomous boats, called Swarmboats, that swarm and intercept threats in order to protect the larger Navy ships.  Smaller, faster, and more nimble boats are fitted with a system called CARACas which stands for Control Architecture for Robotic Agent Command and Sensing.  To make this system as modular as possible, engineers have designed their control systems to be as “plug and play” as possible, allowing any boat to be retrofitted.  Initial testing showed that up to 13 Swarmboats can be linked up to protect a “mother” ship.  Right now the protection boats are used to detect and deter but have the capabilities to destroy upon command!

13 of our senior project vehicles all synced up under water?  Drool…

The motivation behind such a project was the terrible attack on USS Cole in 2000.  A small enemy boat filled with explosives simply approached the ship and killed 17 sailors and injured many others.  Swarmboats could have easily intercepted the enemy boat and prevented it from coming within deadly range.

More information can be accessed here.

Until next time…

Learning Arduino Part 5: Arduino Shields Galore!

Posted by Andrew (Team UV) on January 22, 2015
Posted in: Presentations. Tagged: , , , , , , , , , , .
Arduino Compatible Mega Motor Shield 1A-5-28V- Click to Enlarge

Stacked Shields on an Arduino. Photo Credit: robotshop.com

Arduino boards are very helpful and powerful tools to help connect the electronics world to the real world around us.  Like I said in Part 1 of my Learning Arduino Series, they can read inputs and control outputs very quickly; faster than any human can do manually.  With that said, an Arduino board, such as my handy UNO R3, can only do so much.  After an “Arduinonian” has experimented with all the things in their beginners pack, they often want to venture out to more complex and demanding projects.  Want to drive more than one motor?  Want to drive two DC motors and 2-3 Servos?  Want to connect your board to the internet or save data and images to an SD card?  There’s a shield for that!

Robot Shield. Photo Credit: OpenElectronics

Shields are commonly made for microprocessors like the Arduino UNO R3 to inject it with extra functionality.  They are designed to piggyback directly on top of your logic board, through the use of stacking headers, which can allow the use of pins not already in use by the shield itself.  Some shields allow programmers to pull more amperage for driving bigger, hungrier motors while others add GPS or Bluetooth capabilities.  There are WAY too many shields out there to describe in one post, so i will share with you some of the ones I have used and some that I plan to use in the near future.

1) Arduino Motor Shield R3

Arduino Motor Sheild. Photo Credit: Arduino.cc

The important thing about shields is that you want to make sure they are stackable with your specific board.  For example this motor shield is called R3 because it fits perfectly on top of the UNO R3 but wouldn’t fit on the earlier R2.  I bought this motor shield to do a few different projects that required me to use much stronger motors than the UNO R3 can handle.  With the shield installed, a programmer can pull up to 4A, 2A per channel, safely with operating voltages up to 12V.  It’s designed to drive relays, solenoids, DC motors, and stepper motors.  In fact, it can drive two DC motors independently or one stepper motor with speed and direction control for either case.  The shield can be powered by the same power supplied to the logic board (i.e UNO R3) or it can be powered by an external source through the VIN and GND terminals on the shield.

I found this shield to be very easy to use especially with everything already soldered on, even the headers.  Working with the supplied library was also a breeze and allowed me to get my projects up and running in no time.  I would totally recommend this shield for a beginner or even a professional looking to power up to 12V motors for its low price and easy implementation.

Click here for more info on this shield.

2) PowerBoost 500 Shield

Power Boost 500 Shield. Photo Credit: Adafruit.com

Power Boost 500 Shield. Photo Credit: Adafruit.com

 

This shield is the latest shield I have worked with.  I soldered up the headers and the on and off switch just yesterday!  This shield by Adafruit is potentially going to be used in our Senior Project design granted it performs well in testing.  The idea behind this shield is to take a single cell battery outputting 3.7V and boost the potential to 5V.  This allows a single cell battery to power up your 5V Arduino project on the go!  It also has a recharging circuit built in so that the LiPo battery can be charged via microUSB.  All the indicators for ON, Charging, Done, and LOW are there to let you know that state of the battery.  Another major plus is that depending on the size of the battery, it can fit nicely within the width and height of the stacking headers!  So far testing has turned out great with 5V being supplied to my project with the use of only a single cell 3.7V 2,000mAh battery.  This will save us plenty of space and take care of charging in one small stack-able package.  Like most shields out there this one needed to be soldered before use and for that reason, I would recommend this shield to anyone as long as they can solder or know someone who can.

Click here for more information about this Adafruit shield.

3) Shields I want to use in the near future

Long story short…any of these!

The link above lists some cool shields to get you all started but don’t be afraid to look around for new and unique shields.  Sparkfun, Adafruit, and other suppliers are constantly coming out with new stuff.  To be honest, the possibilities of what you can do with an Arduino are endless especially when shields can be stacked on each other!  Look out for my next Learning Arduino post about breakout boards and things I have needed to collect since starting this hobby!

As always thank you to everyone who has supported us and continue to share our posts and GoFundMe site.  We really appreciate it!

Until next time…

A Student’s Take On: The Most Important Mechanical Engineering Class and His Favorite Class

Posted by Andrew (Team UV) on November 9, 2014
Posted in: Open Mind. Tagged: , , , , , , , , , , .

Cal Poly Pomona Engineering. Photo Credit: Engineering.CSUPomona.edu

The Cal Poly Pomona (CPP) school year has just begun but, for some of us on Team UV, the end of our undergraduate career is quickly approaching.  I recently enrolled in my last quarter and it feels amazing to almost be done after such a long journey.  I also want to note that no one is more excited about this than my parents and girlfriend!  For this week’s Open Mind, we were given a reflective prompt regarding which class we would say is the most vital in an undergraduate Mechanical Engineering career and which class we personally enjoyed the most.

Mechanical Engineering word cloud. Photo Credit: Oregon State University

In case you didn’t know, Mechanical Engineering curriculum covers many different sciences and engineering fields.  In a very short and summarized fashion, CPP mechanical engineering students receive education in mechanical/machine design, electrical engineering, thermal fluids, material and structural analysis, coding, and the control of all these subjects when used together.  The real list of classes is a mile long but I’m sure you get the picture: CPP Mechanicals are versatile!

Choosing one class out of more than 198 units and deeming it THE MOST IMPORTANT CLASS YOU WILL EVER TAKE is difficult because, for me, it has to be all encompassing.  The first class that satisfies this condition would have to be ME 325/L Machine Design/Lab.  The goal of this class is to instill students with the ability to design sound mechanical components.  Topics covered in this class include the design and analysis of: brakes, clutches, gears, belt systems, and power-transmitting shafts, to name just a few subjects.  In order to safely and effectively perform such designs, one would need background knowledge of, at the absolute least, stress analysis, material selection, classical mechanics, and something very unique.  That special something is engineering intuition or in other words, the ability to make decisions without the help of a book or equation.  Sometimes engineers don’t have all the information necessary to make a design happen but they can make an educated assumption and check on that assumption later on.  ME 325 is one of the only classes that gives students the opportunity to build their intuition and see how it effects the outcome of their design.  The ability to make solid design decisions and think creatively is invaluable to their education and is very desirable in industry.  An added bonus of this class is at least one design, build, and run project.  Here students can utilize other fields of engineering such as electrical and electronics engineering and thermal fluids to complete a given task.  For example, Team UV used our knowledge of fluid mechanics, electronics, classical mechanics, and materials engineering to develop a propulsion system (SHEILA-D!) as our final project.

Since I only have one ME class left I can safely name my favorite undergraduate class: ME 439 Control of Mechanical Systems.  I am currently taking this class but it has quickly turned into the most exciting part of my week.  I have really taken an interest in robotics and micro-controlling as shown in my Learning Arduino posts and my preparation this summer has really helped me out.  Students in this class utilize their knowledge of system modeling and response to help control mechanical systems.  Our in-class projects heavily rely on Arduino usage and the use of really cool electronics such as ultrasonic sensors (to determine distance) and motors (for actuation).  Keep an eye out for these new projects as they are completed in my Learning Arduino series!

So there you have it!  I’m sure that the other members of Team UV have different opinions on which classes are the most important so check back for their posts! Till next time…