1. H193 Project Lecture 30 To the Instructor:
This lecture will discuss various aspects of the Engineering H193 design, build, test and compete project--An autonomous robot which is to perform a set of tasks according to the specific scenario.
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2. ENG H193 Administrative Issues
Teams should be established March 26th or so (Watch your over spring break)
Each team member must purchase a coupon
All four (or three) coupons must be purchased before the team gets their starter kit
The cost of the course materials is $75 per team member. Please bring cash or check to purchase the coupons (No Buck-ID, no charge cards)
Coupons will be sold in the office (HI 244) on Monday thru Wednesday the first week of class
To the Instructor:
The team formation process should be well underway by now. Earlier, students were asked to provide their input to the team formation process. Teams are formed of four (sometime three) students from the same section of H193. Each student should provide up to 6 or 7 names of other students in their own section of H193 with whom they would like to work with on a robot team. Each student should also provide perhaps 2 or 3 names of students in their own section with whom they really do not want to work with. If a student provides the required number of names of students to work with, the team formation process should make every effort to give them at least one person they want to work with. No student should be placed on a team with someone they do not want to work with.
To recover the cost of building the robot course, renting competition space, amortizing cost of handy Board controllers, and covering cost of consumables, students will be asked to pay a "materials" fee. The course materials fee was $75 for the Spring 2003.
For reference:
Here is a copy of the sent to all students which describes some of the team formation process.
FEH ENG H193 participant, Here is an explanation of the team formation process in which you will have some input: Our first priority is to make the teams competitive. Therefore, we try to balance the skills abilities in each team - programming, building, generating ideas, writing, and so forth. This is especially important from the standpoint that you are taking ENG H193 for a grade, and a portion of your grade depends on meeting certain performance requirements for your robot. We don't want to give some teams unfair advantages over others. Our second (really equal) priority is making sure that you do not work with someone who you feel would be a bad teammate or someone with whom you just do not want to be on a team. Our third priority is arranging the teams so that you get to work with at least one person who is on your list of requested teammates. This is not always as simple of a task as it sounds. The first two priorities can make this quite difficult, in some cases.
So that you have the best chance of working with someone you request, you are required to choose at least 6 people from your section that you feel you would work well with. Feel free to select more than 6 (by entering the names of the additional people in the comments box). Additionally, you may give us up to 2 names of people in your section of H193 who you do not want to work with. Note that in some sections of ENG H193 with somewhat low enrollment, the limit on \the number of students you may specify in each category will be lower. If you would like to give any comments about your selections, you may do so in the comment field provided. If you do not give us the requested number of names on your "want to work with" list, there are no guarantees that we will be able to honor your wishes. Additionally, if you give us more than 2 names on the "don't want to work with" list, we are under no obligation to honor any of those requests. (See exceptions, explained below) It is common that a few of you will want to make changes after your Team Preferences survey submission. You may do so until the submission deadline noted below by ing Mary Lamont directly If you have any additional questions about the process, please contact Mary Lamont or Rick Freuler. Exceptions: From personal experiences and from the experiences of past FEH students, we can tell you that it is generally not a great idea to be on the same team as your roommates or as a significant other. We know the roommate idea seems appealing to many, but trust us that when you get involved in a project that is going to consume so much of your time, you will not want to have to think about it 24 hours a day, and you will value having some "down time" back at the dorm. This becomes difficult when you are living with your teammates. Working with a significant other can add additional stresses to both the ENG H193 experience and your relationship. (It is particularly unpleasant for the whole team if there is a break-up partway through the class.) With this in mind, you should make a "free" request not to work with some of your classmates based on these issues by entering the name(s) in the question about roommate(s) and significant other and explaining the situation in the "comments" field of the survey. These types of "don't want to work with" requests will not be counted toward your limit of 2. To complete the Team Preferences survey, please visit: You will need to log into the "Team Developer" system by entering your University ID and password. Once you have logged in, click the link for the "ENG H193 Team Preferences Survey". Please read the instructions carefully, and review the listed course section and student names to verify that our information on what class you are in is up-to-date. If you have problems or if the survey is listing you in the wrong course section, please DO NOT submit the incorrect survey. Instead, click the "Cancel" button and then send an to to report the problem. Please also remember that currently the system does not allow you to go back later and change your requests, so double-check your responses before submitting and do not submit an incomplete survey. We ask that you complete this "survey" by Wednesday, March 11:59PM. This allows you a few days to give careful consideration to your requests. It also gives you some time to, perhaps, introduce yourself to that person you worked with on some "hands-on" lab team earlier this year and wouldn't mind working with again, but you don't remember his or her name.
With kind regards, Mary Lamont and Rick Freuler
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3. ENG H193 Robot "Starter" Kit
One completely functional Handy Board with charger/interface box, wall adapter, serial cable, link cable, and simple documentation
Basic set of sensors (CdS cell, optosensor, microswitches, IR receiver, encoder) plus some miscellaneous stuff
One kit of basic hand tools
One copy of "Robotic Explorations" by Fred Martin (the guy who designed the Handy Board)
Teams get $150 budget in Company Store
To the Instructor:
The Starter kit is described. "Rental" of the Handy Board and tool kit, some basic sensors and supplies, the robot course, and all H193 specific consumables are covered by the "materials fee". Each student team gets a $150 line of credit in the "company store" from which all parts for the robot should be obtained. There are hefty penalties for going over budget
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4. Reference Text Supplied
An excellent resource, written by the guy who designed the Handy Board!
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5. Typical Problems from Previous Years
Building a rigid chassis
Mounting a motor on the chassis
Connecting the motors to the drive wheel, sprocket, etc.
Getting the robot to drive straight
Reducing friction
Not starting soon enough !
To the Instructor:
It is usually helpful to list and discuss typical problems encountered by robot teams in previous years. You (and the students) should note the "not starting soon enough" theme which runs through the next several slides.
When the chassis is solid, the robot is generally solid. Driving straight is perhaps the most common problem.
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6. Typical Problems from Previous Years
Mounting sensors – avoid hot glue and duct tape
Mounting minimum no. of sensors to perform functions
Spaghetti wiring – Label wiring for each component (allows easy reinstallation of all wiring when you have to change Handy Board !)
Pick a color-coded wiring scheme and stick to it
Protecting the power trace on the Handy Board – The edge of the board is the +5V supply for the processor chip
To the Instructor:
You can probably not over-emphasize the importance of taking care with the Handy Board!
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7. The Handy Board H193 uses an "unexpanded" Handy Board, shown here.
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8. Typical Problems from Previous Years
Not making good solder joints
Not having enough sensors wired as spares
Not taking care of your batteries
"Zap" charge will zap (i.e., kill) your battery
First battery replaced at nominal fee
Second battery replaced at cost (about $20)
Not starting soon enough !
To the Instructor:
Zap charging can lead to the death of the NiCad…see tips and hints for Handy Board care in H193.
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9. Typical Problems from Previous Years
Sleep deprivation can be a problem.
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10. Typical Programming Pitfalls
Too much code – exceed memory of Handy Board
Failing to use global variables
Scarcity of comments in code (comments don’t take any memory space)
Improper use of functions
Inappropriate timing to check sensors
Not using modular approach to building code, not checking modules often
Suggestion -- Write a general "check sensor" routine and run it periodically
Not starting soon enough !
Certainly a major part of the success of the robot will be attributable to good controlling code.
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11. Potential Team Problem Areas
Making decisions that everyone supports
How to make decisions
Making work assignments
What happens when an individual is having trouble completing assigned work
Making a project schedule and keeping it updated (this will be a living document and requires weekly/daily change)
What to do if someone doesn’t come to meetings
HAVING ALTERNATIVE PLANS !!!!!! AND KNOWING WHEN TO GO TO THEM !!!!!!
Team dynamics are crucial to robot success.
To win some horse races, you must be willing to get off a dead horse and ride a fresh mount. Have alternative plans and be willing to switch to them
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12. Pursue Achievable Goals
Set and pursue achievable goals--emphasis on achievable!
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13. Take Calculated Risks
Nearly every design decision in engineering, and, in life as well, involves risk of some kind or amount. Choices and decisions should be based on a consideration of consequences and outcomes. Take carefully calculated risks.
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14. Keeping Up with Daily Work
Sharing project notebook, updating, team meeting agenda, and team meeting notes assignments
Document meetings and decisions made with rationale behind them
Checking the schedule
Keeping others up to date on your progress
Keeping up is an essential part of the formula for success.
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15. The 2003 FEH Robot Competition
Final Competition: May 29, 2003 from 3:30 to 5:30
Admission is free – friends and parents welcome
There will be some early rounds conducted during the middle of the day starting at about 12 noon
Competition style will likely include three rounds of match play followed by a single-elimination tournament -- This guarantees each team 4 opportunities to run on competition day
H193 has used this competition format for the past couple of years: Three rounds of pool play followed by a single elimination tournament. The first two rounds of pool play occur out of public view earlier in the day. The last round of pool play and the tournament are open to the public. This format guarantees each team no less than four chances to demonstrate performance on competition day, with two such chances guaranteed to be in the public venue.
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16. The Venue – French Field House
Two complete course areca set up in the Field house. There is one large screen for bracket information and one large screen for live action video display for each course--four 10'x14' projection screens and projectors are required.
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17. The Final Report
A final report is a part of the entire process which includes exposure to many project management kinds of things in addition to the design/build/test/compete part of the project..
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18. Celebrating Success – End of Year Picnic
Don’t forget to celebrate your success.
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