Project

# Title Team Members TA Documents Sponsor
60 Automatic Ice Fishing Rod
Andrew Osepek
James Niewiarowski
Luke Boelke
Zicheng Ma design_document1.pdf
design_document2.pdf
final_paper1.pdf
presentation1.pdf
proposal1.pdf
proposal2.pdf
video1.mov
Team Members:
- James Niewiarowski (jcn3)
- Andrew Osepek (aosepek2)
- Luke Boelke (lboelke2)

# Problem

Ice fishing can be a very tedious and labor-intensive process. While it is being performed, the fisherman must dedicate all of their attention to the task at hand, constantly jigging the rod, making multitasking impossible. It must be done in a very cold environment as well, which gets uncomfortable after long periods of time. Additionally, there can be long stretches with little to no bites. If the fisherman did not have to constantly attend to the rod, these stretches of no activity would be perfect for taking a break to warm up, eat a meal, etc., but the nature of ice fishing makes this impossible.

# Solution

We plan to create an automated ice fishing rod that eases the challenges associated with ice fishing. The user will have the ability to spool any lb-test line onto the device as with any lure when fishing. The fisherman can set the depth at which his lure hangs below the ice. The fishing rod will have the ability to jig the attached lure in hopes of attracting fish. When a tug occurs at the line, the user will be alerted through an alarm and notification. A mobile app will allow the user to set preferences to the depth of the line and jigging.

# Solution Components

## Fishing Rod

The fishing rod component will consist of an ice fishing rod (short rod length) attached to a tripod stand, holding the rod upright and dangling the line above the water. The fishing reel will have a hand crank on one side that will allow the fisherman to reel in the fish on their own, and on the other side, a clamp, which is easy to remove/attach, will connect the spool to a DC motor to allow for automatic reeling.

## Microcontroller

An STM32 microcontroller will do the processing on the device itself. The microcontroller will have the ability to turn the fishing spool in both directions allowing the lure to be reeled-out or reeled-in through a DC motor. Bending strain gauges will be placed at the tip and middle of the fishing rod to measure the degree at which the rod bends, thus determining if a fish is on the line. A push-pull actuator placed at the bottom of the fishing rod will simulate a fisherman jigging their rod by moving the tip of the fishing rod up and down. If the stress at the tip of the rod exceeds normal, the jigging functionality will halt and notify the fisherman. The microcontroller has wireless communication capabilities. From the user application, the fisherman will be able to adjust the settings of the fishing device above from a remote application.

Equipment: STM32 microcontroller, Hemobllo Strain Gauge Bending Test Sensor, Electric 12V - 2" Actuator, 12V DC motor

## Power subsystem

We will have batteries connected together in series to have adequate charge. There will also be a circuit for the power supply that regulates the power output from the batteries. There will also be a switch on the system to shut off the power supply to prevent the batteries from draining too fast. We will also need a power distribution system that will supply different amounts of electricity to the sensors, motors, and control board. The power subsystem will be designed to maximize efficiency of electricity used and try to reduce energy loss.

## User Application

The user application will allow the user to modify the settings of the fishing device (e.g., depth of the lure, whether to automatically reel in) while also allowing the user to insert/remove catch information from their account. For example, when they make a catch, they can type in the time caught, location, depth of lure, type of fish, etc. into the app, where it will then be uploaded to a GCP database. This information can then be viewed within the app for future reference.

## GCP Database

A SQL relational database that records each user’s catches. Two tables would exist in the database that contain user information and their related catch information. Attributes of the catch table would include time caught, location, depth of lure, type of fish, length of fish, weight of fish, and other information. GCP provides new users with a $300 credit which is more than enough for us to use their service.

## Testing
We believe we can demonstrate the functionality of this device in a staircase, a balcony, or another elevated surface, avoiding the need to go on a frozen lake.

# Criterion For Success

Rod automatically jigs back and forth in a controlled manner when the user is absent
Rod is able to reel in and reel out automatically.
- User will be able to adjust fishing rod’s setting in application
- User is able to store the information of their catch in the application and view previous catches
- Application gets a notification when sensors detect rod bending
- Jigging halts when sensors detect rod bending

The Marching Band Assistant

Wynter Chen, Alyssa Louise Licudine, Prashant Shankar

The Marching Band Assistant

Featured Project

NetID/Names

wynterc2 (Wynter Chen), alyssal3 (Alyssa Licudine), shankar7 (Prashant Shankar)

Problem

Drum majors lead and conduct marching bands. One of their main jobs is to maintain tempo for the musicians by moving their hands in specific patterns. However, many drum majors, especially high school students, need to learn how to conduct specific tempos off the top of their head and maintain a consistent tempo without assistance for performances. Even those with musical experience have difficulty knowing for certain what tempo they're conducting without a metronome.

Solution Overview

Our project consists of an arm attachment that aids drum major conducting. The attachment contains an accelerometer that helps determine the tempo in beats per minute via hand movement. A display shows the beats per minute, which allows the drum major to adjust their speed as necessary in real time. The microcontroller data is wirelessly transmitted, and a program can be downloaded that not only visualizes the data in real-time, but provides an option to save recorded data for later. There is also a convenient charging port for the device.

This project is a unique invention that aims to help marching bands. There have been previous projects and inventions that have also digitized the conducting experience, such as the Digital Conducting Baton from Spring 2015. However, these have been in the form of a baton rather than a glove, and are used to alter music files as opposed to providing feedback. Additionally, orchestra conductors use very delicate motions with a baton, while drum majors create large, sharper motions with their arms; thus, we believed that an arm attachment was better suited for marching band usage. Unlike other applications that only integrate digital instruments, this project seeks to assist live performers.

Link to RFA: https://courses.grainger.illinois.edu/ece445/pace/view-topic.asp?id=37939

Project Videos