DOOMBA ME 4451: Robotics December 14, 2010 Dr. Harvey ... - helix

excessive weight that the iRobot is required to turn. This not only hinders the linear
distance of the robot, but it also results in the possibility of the robot not facing the target
object. While the deviations were on average very small, they were present.
Learning Experiences
Based upon the achievements that were reached during the extent of the project,
and the short-comings, our group concluded that there were several adjustments that
could lead to improvements in the design. For example, the robot’s wheel motors were
not sufficient to turn robot and trailer system accurately. A possible solution to this
would be to replace the trailer system with a lighter version or negating it all together.
Removing the need for the trailer would require the use of a wireless camera. Based upon
the short-comings of the camera used, this change would be welcomed. The current
camera was found to provide no distinct advantage in capture rate or in pixel resolution.
Similarly, the field of view of the camera limited the capability of the tracking system.
Therefore, by replacing the camera, several issues could be resolved.
The susceptibility of the image processing to slight variations in color and lighting
was a non-trivial issue that was encountered. In the final design of the project, the image
processing attempted to track two large circles. If the lighting was too saturated or the
background was similar in color, the tracking could be fooled. However, if the tracking
system were configured to detect a light emitting diode (LED), the system may be able to
track more effectively. Without a more effective means to track, the system will be
unacceptably unreliable.
Class Suggestion
The final project could be designed to be a more significant portion of the final
grade in the class. For the amount of time that is spent designing, building, and testing the
project the grade could reflect that time with a higher percentage of the overall grade.
Someone may spend on average 15 hours studying for a midterm and spend twice that on
their project, but the midterm is worth nearly twice the percentage that the entire project
is worth.
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