ShelfMate

A shelf sorting robot which is the product of a strenuous engineering design cycle.

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Inspiration

As our Mechatronics 101 final design project, we aimed to make a working prototype to assist the elderly with organizing their shelves, or for industrial purposes.

What it does

ShelfMate was capable of transporting objects from one shelf compartment to another in two axes. Really, it operated in three axes as it extended in and out of compartments to pick up objects with an electromagnet.

How we built ShelfMate

The robot was programmed in C. The shelf is represented digitally as an array of struct instances, each with properties like fiiled/empty and coordinates. The winch motor, delivery carriage, and extension mechanism was built with Lego's NXT kit by our own design. The circuitry + electromagnet which picks up objects was homemade with a bolt, magnet wire, and some nichrome wire for resistance. The support arch was made with wood and some custom designed 3D printed parts.

Challenges we ran into

Late into the project timeline, it was discovered that the current winch motor was not strong enough to lift the entire platform and delivery robot, so we researched instead of giving up and implemented a worm gear solution which was much stronger. Also, cubes were supposed to be classified by color and delivered to their corresponding compartments, however the color sensor was not working properly anywhere we put it. Lastly, the electromagnet was supposed to be toggled automatically but the external micro-controller was not reliable, after several late nights, it was decided that there would be a manual switch for the demo.

Accomplishments that we're proud of

We built a sophisticated robotic system from a box of parts and determination. We are also proud of the full engineering design process that was used, which included detailed documentation, project planning, and multiple design presentations.

What we learned

Be skeptical of the first solution that pops into your head. Scale-down early when pressed for time. Test the capabilities of your equipment as soon as you can. Don't be satisfied with: "there is no way this is going to work"; make it work! Most importantly, a team that sticks together and supports one another can accomplish anything and still have fun when it feels like failure is lurking.

Built With

  • autocad
  • c
  • lego-nxt
  • shop-tools
  • tetrix
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