Motivation:

One particularly difficult task for elderly persons is the transport of different objects across a room. My teammate and I envisioned a product which the elderly could easily control with the orientation of their hands, removing any obstacles that can occur when getting up, walking to an object, and transporting it with themselves to another part of the same room. The first step to achieving a remotely controlled product that can robustly complete the above task is to design a hand-controlled movable table which can transport object across a room, similar to a RC car.

To align with the course learning outcomes, we aimed to incorporate the TI MSP432 microcontroller with feedback from an IMU and motor encoders to enable real-time coordination of the “RC car” wheels. We aimed to create a robust mechanical framework with balanced mass properties, designed to maintain stability and structural integrity.

Results:

Due to time constraints, we aimed to build functionality for the car to move forwards and backwards at different speeds. We initially designed and modelled the kinematics of the mechanical system, which consisted of an acrylic table attached to four Mecanum wheels (chosen for their ability to translate the car). We chose suitable DC motors and encoders to achieve the desired forward and backward speeds of the car. The full design of the electrical system was then created, with the integration of the MSP432 microcontroller and gyroscope components. Lastly, a closed-loop control system for each Mecanum wheel was established, incorporating encoders and IMUs to achieve precise control over speed while enduring perturbations. The entire system was tested and deemed successful: it was responsive within 100ms, and followed the intended path (with maximum offset of 0.05m for every 1m travelled).

Despite the simple functionality that we aimed to achieve, the integration of all mechanical and electrical components was very time-consuming. There were many struggles we faced, from the timer on the microcontroller to the filtering of gyroscope raw readings. However, from this experience, I was able to gain a very deep understanding and appreciation for the way each component of an electromechanical system can work together with other ones to execute an overall function in the real world.

Project Details: