Senior Design Project - Robot Arm
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We are Nathan Lareau (left) and Kilton Tabor (right). Both of us are currently finishing up our junior year at the University of Southern Maine. As part of the curriculum in the engineering department, we must complete a senior design project. We have formed our team with the goal of designing and manufacturing an automated robotic arm. The purpose of this robotic arm is to replace the current robots at the university. If you wish to donate to our project it will be greatly appreciated. If not please continue to follow our project as we hope to continue updating our progress on this page. Below is more information about both our project and ourselves. If you have any questions feel free to contact us at [email redacted].
Our Project
The robots we currently use for our classes are called MICROBOT TeachMovers. These devices were built in the 1980's. Due to the age of these robots they are beginning to wear down. Replacement parts are hard to find as well. By creating a new robot this will no longer be a worry.
The MICROBOT is a 5 degree of freedom manipulator (has 5 rotational joints) made from sheet metal, and has a claw gripper on the end. The motors are all located in the base of the robot and cables are attached to the joints to move them. The MICROBOT can be controlled in two ways: 1) By use of a control pad with buttons for moving each joint left or right or 2) By use of serial communication to a computer where a program can be written. The MICROBOTs range of motion is rather limited. The MICROBOT can only rotate 90 degrees each way (180 degrees total) at the base. This means that it has almost no operation abilities in the area behind it. The MICROBOT also has difficulty reaching areas too close to it. The MICROBOT is also limited in reach, with a maximum reach of 17.5 inches.
The robot we intend to create will be based off of this robot for teaching purposes. It will also be a 5 degree of freedom manipulator. However we plan on making improvements. Our robot will be made from aluminum. This will greatly improve the strength and durability of our robot. This will make it last for many years. We will also be placing the robots motors on the arm itself rather than using a cable system. This will allow for improved mechanics. Not many modern day computers use serial connectors anymore, so our robot will use USB to connect to the computer. Our robot will be more dexterous than the MICROBOT. Our robot will have the ability to rotate 360 degrees on the base. Our robot will also be designed to touch any points close to it, and even its own base. This will mean that the robot will be able to operate in the entire spherical region around itself. Our robot will also have a greater reach than the MICROBOT. These areas we are going to improve on, but with more budget we can also improve speed, strength, and durability of the robot. Our main goal is to build a better MICROBOT.
To challenge ourselves, we wanted to add yet another element to our robot. Our robot will use sonar sensors to detect and locate objects. From there it will pick up the object and place it somewhere else. After that it will wait for another object to enter the working region. This element adds a unique challenge to our project.
The tasks will be split into two pieces, Kilton will be working as the mechanical engineer on the project and Nathan will be working as the electrical engineer. Kilton will be designing and manufacturing all mechanical parts including joints, gearing, and housings. Nathan will be in charge of programming the motion of the robot and the multiple modes of operation. Throughout this we will be collaborating extensively with each other as well as with Prof. Scott Harding and Prof. Carlos Luck.
This project is due at the end of the fall semester of 2015. This gives us about 7 months to design, manufacture, and test our robot. To maximize our efficiency we will be working on this project over the summer. In December we will be presenting our project to the school. We hope to also present it at Maine's Engineering Expo, USM's Thinking Matters, and hopefully many other events. After this project is finished the robot will stay at USM in the engineering department for further use in education. If we have the opportunity we may even be able to further improve our design in the spring of next year. The hope is that this robot can be used not only for classroom teaching, but for senior and junior projects in future years.
About Us
Kilton Tabor is a junior studying mechanical engineering at USM. Kilton has thoroughly studied materials sciences and composites. Kilton has a lot of experience building makeshift devices in his hobby shop throughout his life. His educational aptitude and hands on experience combine to make an excellent mechanical engineer.
Nathan Lareau is also a junior at USM. He studies electrical engineering. His areas of interest include renewable energies and embedded systems. He has also recently gained an interest in biotechnology due to his recent diagnoses of type 1 diabetes. Nathan enjoys hockey, golfing, and being at the beach in his spare time. For more information about Nathan's school and professional work visit his LinkedIn page.
The two of us have already extensively worked as a team together. We have worked together in our robotics course and for our junior design project. Our junior design project was the design of a small scale collapsible wind turbine. This turbine is intended for use by researchers needing power in remote areas. The advantage of our wind turbine over other small scale versions is that ours can easily collapse into a carryon bag. Below is a video of the carbon fiber wind turbine operating at around a 7mph wind speed.
We are Nathan Lareau (left) and Kilton Tabor (right). Both of us are currently finishing up our junior year at the University of Southern Maine. As part of the curriculum in the engineering department, we must complete a senior design project. We have formed our team with the goal of designing and manufacturing an automated robotic arm. The purpose of this robotic arm is to replace the current robots at the university. If you wish to donate to our project it will be greatly appreciated. If not please continue to follow our project as we hope to continue updating our progress on this page. Below is more information about both our project and ourselves. If you have any questions feel free to contact us at [email redacted].
Our Project
The robots we currently use for our classes are called MICROBOT TeachMovers. These devices were built in the 1980's. Due to the age of these robots they are beginning to wear down. Replacement parts are hard to find as well. By creating a new robot this will no longer be a worry.
The MICROBOT is a 5 degree of freedom manipulator (has 5 rotational joints) made from sheet metal, and has a claw gripper on the end. The motors are all located in the base of the robot and cables are attached to the joints to move them. The MICROBOT can be controlled in two ways: 1) By use of a control pad with buttons for moving each joint left or right or 2) By use of serial communication to a computer where a program can be written. The MICROBOTs range of motion is rather limited. The MICROBOT can only rotate 90 degrees each way (180 degrees total) at the base. This means that it has almost no operation abilities in the area behind it. The MICROBOT also has difficulty reaching areas too close to it. The MICROBOT is also limited in reach, with a maximum reach of 17.5 inches.
The robot we intend to create will be based off of this robot for teaching purposes. It will also be a 5 degree of freedom manipulator. However we plan on making improvements. Our robot will be made from aluminum. This will greatly improve the strength and durability of our robot. This will make it last for many years. We will also be placing the robots motors on the arm itself rather than using a cable system. This will allow for improved mechanics. Not many modern day computers use serial connectors anymore, so our robot will use USB to connect to the computer. Our robot will be more dexterous than the MICROBOT. Our robot will have the ability to rotate 360 degrees on the base. Our robot will also be designed to touch any points close to it, and even its own base. This will mean that the robot will be able to operate in the entire spherical region around itself. Our robot will also have a greater reach than the MICROBOT. These areas we are going to improve on, but with more budget we can also improve speed, strength, and durability of the robot. Our main goal is to build a better MICROBOT.
To challenge ourselves, we wanted to add yet another element to our robot. Our robot will use sonar sensors to detect and locate objects. From there it will pick up the object and place it somewhere else. After that it will wait for another object to enter the working region. This element adds a unique challenge to our project.
The tasks will be split into two pieces, Kilton will be working as the mechanical engineer on the project and Nathan will be working as the electrical engineer. Kilton will be designing and manufacturing all mechanical parts including joints, gearing, and housings. Nathan will be in charge of programming the motion of the robot and the multiple modes of operation. Throughout this we will be collaborating extensively with each other as well as with Prof. Scott Harding and Prof. Carlos Luck.
This project is due at the end of the fall semester of 2015. This gives us about 7 months to design, manufacture, and test our robot. To maximize our efficiency we will be working on this project over the summer. In December we will be presenting our project to the school. We hope to also present it at Maine's Engineering Expo, USM's Thinking Matters, and hopefully many other events. After this project is finished the robot will stay at USM in the engineering department for further use in education. If we have the opportunity we may even be able to further improve our design in the spring of next year. The hope is that this robot can be used not only for classroom teaching, but for senior and junior projects in future years.
About Us
Kilton Tabor is a junior studying mechanical engineering at USM. Kilton has thoroughly studied materials sciences and composites. Kilton has a lot of experience building makeshift devices in his hobby shop throughout his life. His educational aptitude and hands on experience combine to make an excellent mechanical engineer.
Nathan Lareau is also a junior at USM. He studies electrical engineering. His areas of interest include renewable energies and embedded systems. He has also recently gained an interest in biotechnology due to his recent diagnoses of type 1 diabetes. Nathan enjoys hockey, golfing, and being at the beach in his spare time. For more information about Nathan's school and professional work visit his LinkedIn page.
The two of us have already extensively worked as a team together. We have worked together in our robotics course and for our junior design project. Our junior design project was the design of a small scale collapsible wind turbine. This turbine is intended for use by researchers needing power in remote areas. The advantage of our wind turbine over other small scale versions is that ours can easily collapse into a carryon bag. Below is a video of the carbon fiber wind turbine operating at around a 7mph wind speed.
Organizer
Nate Lareau
Organizer
Saco, ME
