Autonomous Robot

As part of Georgia Tech’s Sophomore/Junior Design course, a group of 4 of us were tasked with designing an autonomous robot build for a Kung-Fu Panda-themed competition. The competition would judge us based on certain tasks that were to be performed at the competition. These tasks would range from knocking down a figure (“Defeating Tai Lung”) to placing a figure on a platform 4 feet in the air (“Getting Po to the Palace”) to grabbing an object in a designated area (“Grabbing the Dragon Scroll”).

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In the competition, our team made the top cut, meaning we were in the top half of participants in terms of performance, but unfortunately, was eliminated in the first round of the elimination bracket. Our final design utilized rapid prototype methods to their fullest, with a majority of the machine being made of stock wood, 3D printed parts, and laser-cut MDF. The robot was also made fully automated using Arduino, utilizing IR sensors, limit switches, pneumatic actuators, and DC motors to perform all the tasks in the competition. Additionally, the robot had an internal clock to measure the rotating speed of the arena and sensors to detect the surrounding area of the arena.