Project
| # | Title | Team Members | TA | Documents | Sponsor |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 34 | Portable Plotter Robot |
Matthew Paul Sagnik Chakraborty Shinan Calzoni |
Dongming Liu | design_document1.pdf other1.pdf proposal1.pdf proposal2.pdf |
|
| # Portable Plotter Robot Team Members: - Sagnik Chakraborty (sagnik3) - Shinan Calzoni (calzoni2) - Matthew Paul (mjpaul3) # Problem One of the biggest problems with plotter machines is their bulky rails needed to guide the tool head. This makes transportation a hassle and limits their use cases to offices with the space to house them. # Solution To solve this issue, we propose a portable plotting system that uses a small robot to hold a tool head and drive around the writing surface. This eliminates the need for any rails and allows the user to plot both on small and large scales. The system will also have 4 reflective markers to put on the corners of the writing surface and sensors on the device to make sure it does not leave the area. There will be a web app to communicate to the device what it should draw. # Solution Components ## Subsystem 1: Driving and Motion There will be 4 wheels with their respective stepper motors (Nema 17) and motor drivers (DRV8825) to control the plotter's movement. It also will contain an additional servo motor (HS-55) to actuate the tool head up and down onto the writing surface. Most of the subsystems will be connected to an ESP32 microcontroller, this subsystem will use it for controlling each of the motors. ## Subsystem 2: Boundary Detection and Positioning This subsystem will contain the ultrasonic sensor (HC-SR04) to accurately position and keep the device within the reflective boundary markers. It will communicate with the ESP32 microcontroller to relay sensor information and determine positioning. *Note: We are also looking into using UWB signals for more accuracy per Prof. Fliflet’s suggestion, specifically the RYUW122 module. ## Subsystem 3: Communication and Control Since the ESP32 has built-in WIFI capabilities, we will communicate with a web app to relay instructions for plotting and handling different commands. The web app will have a simple interface that allows the user to input measurements for simple shapes. The user will be able to remotely start the plotter from the app. *Note: We are looking into the possibility of having this machine read gcode that could be generated from vectorized files. If we go this route, an additional Raspberry Pi could be used for the image processing. ## Subsystem 4: Power Management This subsystem will use rechargeable lithium-ion batteries and various voltage regulators so that the correct amount of power can be delivered to the motors, sensors, and microcontroller. # Criterion For Success 1. The device can communicate with the web app to plot closed, single-lined shapes. 2. The Device footprint can stay within the boundary dictated by corner markers. 3. The Toolhead can actuate up and down to draw discontinuous lines. |
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