Help Suggest a College Engineering Project

[Half Shell]

Hello!

I am a junior Robotics Engineering Student at WPI (Worcester Polytechnic Institute). We have a requirement called an MQP, or Major Qualifying Project. This is an absolutely huge project one must complete within their chosen field that is the equivalent of taking a few classes. All graduates must complete this requirement.

The Robotics Engineering Major is relatively new, starting at the beginning of this year in fact. We are the first college in the nation with an undergraduate degree in Robotics. I will be, hopefully, one of the first people to ever graduate with this degree.

This is, of course, part of my problem. With no prior projects to draw inspiration or creativity from, we are having difficulty deciding on a project.

The project must consist of significant design, construction and analysis, and testing. The budget is limited, yes, but can be negotiated.

Right now we are looking for project ideas that are extensive enough to challenge a 3 man engineering team (2 Robotics Engineers and one other of possibly another engineering science) yet not outside the realm of possibility. We don't mind a challenge - but we don't want to take on a problem that baffles researchers with 20 years of experience either.

Please, throw out ideas. It would greatly help our group :-D.

[airman00]

some ideas off the top of my head:

Autonomous flying robot with obstacle avoidance

Submarine Robot

Android Robot

Voice Activated Kitchen / Den

Autonomous Paintball robot


Please make sure to document the project extensively, and please post the documentation on this site, once you are done with it.

[frank26080115]

Can't go wrong with experimental swarm behaviour!

Or a biological-mechanical hybrid robot, AKA motorized hamster ball

[Half Shell]

One of the requirements is extensive analysis, and I will be blogging the project. This is the preparation stage, however, and the project won't take place until next year.

We debated SWARM already and it is on the list. Feel free to suggest SWARM projects. Right now designing a robot for the Google X Prize (ignoring how to get it there of course) is in front but may be too much for a mere three man team, even if we spend an entire year doing it.

The idea with the Xprize objective is to build the robot, designing it to deal with lunar conditions, capble of navigating the moon, recharge solarly, etc, but in the end leave the communication with earth and actually landing on the moon to another team.

Keep the ideas coming!

[skatj]

ROV with autonomous and manual pilot modes

Use a cell phone or some other untraditional microcontroller for a project maybe (There are amateur UAVs based entirely on cell phones, which have wireless capabilities, as well as built-in imaging and GPS, but that is a little advanced).

Hybrid vehicle which can travel across ground/air/water

Indoor navigation system

Remote piloting via a web browser (wireless module linked to a wireless module connected to a host computer, which is connected to the internet)

[ericthered]

You could make a spy plane/blimp where you could have the aironautical engineer design the airfoils and shape of the plane while you and the other guy make the rc and camera hook up.

And for my less serious ideas:
You could make a tesla tank that fires electricity.
sentry gun.
robot that can read books to children
whatever MIT courseware tells you to
and a kit kat bar that eats itself



By the way I'm intrested in going to WPI, what are the requirements for going there?

[Admin]

I recommend trying to do real world problems . . .

such as a teleoperated surgery robot (to be tested on frogs)

robot that can cook several types of food (just don't drop screws into it!)

exoskeleton

[airman00]

teleoperated sounds like a good idea  but getting such precision would be difficult and costly

[Half Shell]

We've debated both the surgery robot idea and exoskeleton before. The exoskeleton saw the most debate but in the end decided it a possible project, albeit not our favorite.

The frog idea has been discussed as well, but was dismissed due to our lack of knowledge in Biomedical Engineering, which is a major here. Though if we grab a BME.... hmm. Good idea maybe.