Sponsors

Cypress Semiconductor Corporation

Sponsored Projects

  • Automatic Toothpaste Dispenser (Spring 2019)
  • Automatic Toothpaste Dispenser (Spring 2019)
  • Smart Electric Toothpaste Dispenser (Spring 2019)
  • Smart Electric Toothpaste Dispenser (Spring 2019)

Illinois Robotics in Space

Illinois Robotics in Space (IRIS) is an RSO at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. Every year IRIS competes in the NASA Robotic Mining Competition at Kennedy Space Center, works on smaller robotics-related projects and teaches younger students at local schools about what IRIS does.

Sponsored Projects

  • IRIS Localization System (Spring 2015)
  • IRIS Localization System (Spring 2015)

Illinois Tool Works Inc.

Sponsored Projects

  • Weld Gun Spatial Tracking System (Spring 2019)
  • Weld Gun Spatial Tracking System (Spring 2019)

Micron

Sponsored Projects

  • Soccer Team Gameplay Metrics (Spring 2019)
  • Soccer Team Gameplay Metrics (Spring 2019)
  • Traffic Sensing Bicycle Light (Spring 2019)
  • Traffic Sensing Bicycle Light (Spring 2019)

Siebel Center for Design

Sponsored Projects

  • Reconnaissance robot (SCD pitch) (Spring 2019)
  • Reconnaissance robot (SCD pitch) (Spring 2019)

Illini Solar Car

Sponsor

While Illini Solar Car started as a handful of engineering students in 2014, it takes more than that to create a solar car. Today we have grown into a much larger operation harnessing the skills of students from four colleges at Illinois to create one beautiful product.

Sponsored Projects

  • CUSTOM MPPTS FOR ILLINI SOLAR CAR (Spring 2024)
  • Active Cell Balancing for Solar Vehicle Battery Pack (Spring 2021)
  • Modules for Safe Power Distribution in an Electric Vehicle (Spring 2019)
  • Modules for Safe Power Distribution in an Electric Vehicle (Spring 2019)
  • Standalone Steering Wheel for Solar Racing Vehicle (Spring 2019)
  • Standalone Steering Wheel for Solar Racing Vehicle (Spring 2019)
  • Integrated Li-ion Battery Sensors (Fall 2018)
  • Integrated Li-ion Battery Sensors (Fall 2018)

LASSI

Sponsor

Laboratory for Advanced Space Systems at Illinois

Sponsored Projects

  • Power Board for Illini-Sat3 (Spring 2019)
  • Power Board for Illini-Sat3 (Spring 2019)

Lextech

Sponsor

Northrop Grumman Corporation

Sponsor

Northrop Grumman Corporation has provided funding for laboratory equipment and supplies in the area of applied electromagnetics, as well as support for the following groups.

Sponsored Projects

  • Filtered Back – Projection Optical Demonstration (Fall 2014)
  • Filtered Back – Projection Optical Demonstration (Fall 2014)
  • Wearable UV Radiation Sensing Device (Fall 2014)
  • Wearable UV Radiation Sensing Device (Fall 2014)
  • Radio Jammer (Fall 2005)
  • Radio Jammer (Fall 2005)

Advance Devices

Supporter

ARM

Supporter

Boeing

Supporter

Intel

Supporter

Raytheon

Supporter

Rockwell Collins

Supporter

Rockwell Collins has provided funding for laboratory equipment and supplies in the area of applied electromagnetics. A number of RF student projects have directly benefited from these improvements to the laboratory.

Sponsored Projects

  • Quadcopter - Sense and Avoid - Revised RFA (Fall 2014)
  • Quadcopter - Sense and Avoid - Revised RFA (Fall 2014)
  • Continuous-frequency Synthesizer (Spring 2005)
  • Continuous-frequency Synthesizer (Spring 2005)
  • football position tracker (Spring 2005)
  • football position tracker (Spring 2005)
  • Point-to-Point RF Communication for Wildlife Project (Spring 2005)
  • Point-to-Point RF Communication for Wildlife Project (Spring 2005)
  • RFID-based parking meter system (Spring 2005)
  • RFID-based parking meter system (Spring 2005)
  • Smart Inventory Management System (SIMS) Using RFID (Spring 2005)
  • Smart Inventory Management System (SIMS) Using RFID (Spring 2005)
  • Wireless Laptop Alarm (Spring 2005)
  • Wireless Laptop Alarm (Spring 2005)
  • Car rooftop antenna (Fall 2004)
  • Car rooftop antenna (Fall 2004)
  • Portable Wireless Locator System (Fall 2004)
  • Portable Wireless Locator System (Fall 2004)
  • Transmission line modeling in SPICE (Fall 2004)
  • Transmission line modeling in SPICE (Fall 2004)
  • Wireless Heart Attack Detector with GPS (Fall 2004)
  • Wireless Heart Attack Detector with GPS (Fall 2004)
  • Wireless switch of household appliances for handicapped (Fall 2004)
  • Wireless switch of household appliances for handicapped (Fall 2004)

Skot Wiedmann

Supporter

Sponsored Projects

  • Interactive Proximity Donor Wall Illumination (Fall 2018)
  • Interactive Proximity Donor Wall Illumination (Fall 2018)
  • Modular Analog Synthesizer (Fall 2017)
  • Modular Analog Synthesizer (Fall 2017)
  • AUDIO - ANALOG/DIGITAL SYNTHESIZER - ANALOG VOLTAGE CONTROLLED OSCILLATOR TO DIGITALLY CONTROLLED STEP-SEQUENCER (Spring 2017)
  • AUDIO - ANALOG/DIGITAL SYNTHESIZER - ANALOG VOLTAGE CONTROLLED OSCILLATOR TO DIGITALLY CONTROLLED STEP-SEQUENCER (Spring 2017)

TAKE Solutions

Supporter

Funded Project 39 (smart door) Spring 2015

Texas Instruments

Supporter

Texas Instruments has donated laboratory equipment for DSP and RFID based projects. A number of student projects have directly benefited from these improvements to the laboratory.

Sponsored Projects

  • Miner Tracking Devices (Spring 2006)
  • Miner Tracking Devices (Spring 2006)
  • Quantum Cryptography Project 1 (Spring 2006)
  • Quantum Cryptography Project 1 (Spring 2006)

Xilinx

Supporter

Autonomous Sailboat

Riley Baker, Arthur Liang, Lorenzo Rodriguez Perez

Autonomous Sailboat

Featured Project

# Autonomous Sailboat

Team Members:

- Riley Baker (rileymb3)

- Lorenzo Pérez (lr12)

- Arthur Liang (chianl2)

# Problem

WRSC (World Robotic Sailing Championship) is an autonomous sailing competition that aims at stimulating the development of autonomous marine robotics. In order to make autonomous sailing more accessible, some scholars have created a generic educational design. However, these models utilize expensive and scarce autopilot systems such as the Pixhawk Flight controller.

# Solution

The goal of this project is to make an affordable, user- friendly RC sailboat that can be used as a means of learning autonomous sailing on a smaller scale. The Autonomous Sailboat will have dual mode capability, allowing the operator to switch from manual to autonomous mode where the boat will maintain its current compass heading. The boat will transmit its sensor data back to base where the operator can use it to better the autonomous mode capability and keep track of the boat’s position in the water. Amateur sailors will benefit from the “return to base” functionality provided by the autonomous system.

# Solution Components

## On-board

### Sensors

Pixhawk - Connect GPS and compass sensors to microcontroller that allows for a stable state system within the autonomous mode. A shaft decoder that serves as a wind vane sensor that we plan to attach to the head of the mast to detect wind direction and speed. A compass/accelerometer sensor and GPS to detect the position of the boat and direction of travel.

### Actuators

2 servos - one winch servo that controls the orientation of the mainsail and one that controls that orientation of the rudder

### Communication devices

5 channel 2.4 GHz receiver - A receiver that will be used to select autonomous or manual mode and will trigger orders when in manual mode.

5 channel 2.4 GHz transmitter - A transmitter that will have the ability to switch between autonomous and manual mode. It will also transfer servos movements when in manual mode.

### Power

LiPo battery

## Ground control

Microcontroller - A microcontroller that records sensor output and servo settings for radio control and autonomous modes. Software on microcontroller processes the sensor input and determines the optimum rudder and sail winch servo settings needed to maintain a prescribed course for the given wind direction.

# Criterion For Success

1. Implement dual mode capability

2. Boat can maintain a given compass heading after being switched to autonomous mode and incorporates a “return to base” feature that returns the sailboat back to its starting position

3. Boat can record and transmit servo, sensor, and position data back to base

Project Videos