Investigation
Before formulating a design plan, we needed to do some research. We started by first google searching some designs we liked the most. For example
Then, we narrowed down our options to what we considered doable. We decided we wanted to create a really heavy robot with a large emphasis on defence since we did not have the skills to make something more ambitious and complicated. After we found the design we wanted to work with, we were free to make a design plan to flesh out what we wanted to make
Design/Planning
After finding a design we wanted to base our robot off, the next step was to put our ideas on to paper. The following photos are sketches i used to list the pros, cons, measurements, and materials we needed for our bot
Now that our design and planning stages were finished, we were ready to jump into the creation
Creation: Building our Sumobot
Creation was by far the longest aspect of the whole project. We wanted our robot to be heavy, so we decided to use a steel sheet for our body because it was thicker and more durable than aluminum.
To Create our body we made a net on a steel sheet and cut it so that we had a series of rectangles we had to fold up to create a rectangular prism
Here is a picture of Jake and cooper during the initial stages of construction
notice the obvious enthusiasm on these gentlemen's faces.
By this point we had made our body after several attempts. We had to try about 3 times before we got it right
notice the obvious enthusiasm on these gentlemen's faces.
By this point we had made our body after several attempts. We had to try about 3 times before we got it right
Next I was tasked with building our gearbox. Not only were the pieces a size that were meant for the small hands of Chinese children that made them, but the instructions were also in another language. To figure out what to do, i had to solely rely on the poorly drawn diagrams. In total it probably took about 2 hours of trying and re trying then noticing that something was wrong until finally I had success. Pictured below, is the finished gearbox
Due to the large mass of our robot, we chose to go with the gearbox with the most torque
to help move the machine easily
to help move the machine easily
After our gearbox was complete. It was time to do our controller. Jake did a heck of a job making this thing and surprised both Cooper and I when we tested it and it actually worked
*A working controller circuit! after a few classes of trial and error, jake finally made a successful circuit for our controller. There was an immense feeling of satisfaction when we tested it out and it worked
After that we wired it to our motor and we were ready to finally finish our robot
Finally! We were finished! For added intimidation we added a dinky little 3D printed viking helmet, and because our robot was a viking we named it after the famed icelandic singer bjork
Evaluation
Having finally completed our robot and competed we others, it is clear to me that we learned alot. In the beginning, we argued very much about what design to use and it costed us alot of time. We have also learned to be more precise with our measurements. It took us a good 4 or 5 tries before finding a base that actually fit our body. Something that I would personally take away from this project is a lesson about group work. This made me realize that sometimes going with your friends isn't always the best idea and it probably would have been better to find someone with the same amount of interest in making a product work. That being said the experience wasn't entirely bad as i enjoyed working with my group for the most part and it was a tremendous learning experience from start to finish. In conclusion, as a group and individual a tremendous amount was learned about working with eachother, time management, and attention to detail. Moving forward this project will influence how i work in groups later on in the year for future projects.
Finally, pictured below is a photo of our bot during competetion, the one time we actually got it to move!
Finally, pictured below is a photo of our bot during competetion, the one time we actually got it to move!
*Jake piloting our bot to victory?