Society of Robots - Robot Forum
General Misc => Robot Videos => Topic started by: altapowderdog on November 05, 2014, 12:53:04 PM
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This is a transforming wheel robot that I built.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nLwOx1qZbEg&list=UUPMThfZUPqx_dlbjoY0jznQ (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nLwOx1qZbEg&list=UUPMThfZUPqx_dlbjoY0jznQ)
The whole thing was made with a Makerbot with the exception of the rack and pinion used to actuate the wheels. Those were laser cut from acrylic. An Arduino board controls the motors though an adafruit motor shield, and gets its inputs from a bluetooth module.
I got the bluetooth module for less then ten bucks on eBay, and it was easy to make an Android app using the MIT App Inventor 2 to send the bluetooth module signals through my phone. It works better then an rc remote fore testing purposes, and is cheap. Plus it’s just cooler then a remote.
This transforming wheel design will allow robots to navigate indoor environments using encoders, which only work when the wheel is round. Then, when they go outside and can use GPS and compass sensors for position control, the wheels can transform into a spiky design reminiscent of Wheegs. This will allow the robot to move faster and navigate larger obstacles, which is important for outdoor use.
The spikes are also interchangeable for different surface. I’ve already made some that work better on sand, and in the future I’ll probably have metal spiked ones for traveling over ice.
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Nice.