An Even Deadlier Catch!
Project Goal Summary:
Design and build a tele-operated Deadlier Catch Harvester (DCH) and a companion Harvester Controller (HC). Fleets of DCHs will operate in Terman Pond and cooperatively strive to harvest a crop of virtual crab during a series of crabbing "seasons." To collect crab, a DCH must swipe the RFID card floating on a Crab Pot. After collecting the RFID (and some encrypted information from an on-board security controller), the boat must transmit this information to Neptune, God of the Seas. Neptune, God of the Seas, will then speak to the puny mortal boat and convey how much crab has been collected from the pot as well as how quickly crab accumulate in that pot this season. DCHs working together on a team can communicate this accumulation rate information with each other. After a DCH has collected as much crab as it can carry, it must return to an unloading dock and swipe the RFID there.
But it's not always smooth sailing for the DCHs out on Terman Pond. Torrential downpours or enemy fleets with water cannons can water log DCHs. A DCH is considered waterlogged when the blue funnel it carries fills past a certain level. When a DCH becomes waterlogged: it loses all its crab, it must alert its fleet with a visible "waterlogged indicator," and it can not collect any more crab until it returns to the dry dock for repairs. Repairs are completed by swiping the dry dock's RFID card.
Design and build a tele-operated Deadlier Catch Harvester (DCH) and a companion Harvester Controller (HC). Fleets of DCHs will operate in Terman Pond and cooperatively strive to harvest a crop of virtual crab during a series of crabbing "seasons." To collect crab, a DCH must swipe the RFID card floating on a Crab Pot. After collecting the RFID (and some encrypted information from an on-board security controller), the boat must transmit this information to Neptune, God of the Seas. Neptune, God of the Seas, will then speak to the puny mortal boat and convey how much crab has been collected from the pot as well as how quickly crab accumulate in that pot this season. DCHs working together on a team can communicate this accumulation rate information with each other. After a DCH has collected as much crab as it can carry, it must return to an unloading dock and swipe the RFID there.
But it's not always smooth sailing for the DCHs out on Terman Pond. Torrential downpours or enemy fleets with water cannons can water log DCHs. A DCH is considered waterlogged when the blue funnel it carries fills past a certain level. When a DCH becomes waterlogged: it loses all its crab, it must alert its fleet with a visible "waterlogged indicator," and it can not collect any more crab until it returns to the dry dock for repairs. Repairs are completed by swiping the dry dock's RFID card.
Figure Showing Competition Area and RFID Locations
Our Approach:
Our approach was to make as simple a design as possible and have plenty of time for testing and integration. Our boat used a catamaran design for stability, which also gave us ideal locations to place our motors for a tank-drive propeller system. Rather than worry about the complexities of shooting a water cannon, we strove for a more defensive approach by placing our funnel on a swiveling arm. With careful packaging, we situated all the electronics into one plastic container that was suspended between the two pontoons. Having our RFID scanner at the bottom of this plastic container allowed us to scan crab pots by moving over them.
Our HC was not entirely user friendly (by intentional design), but it was fun to watch people try to drive. We had two accelerometers, whose rotational position relative to gravity controlled the speed and direction of the two motors. Finally, we had a compass mounted on a belt so that the motion of the funnel on the boat reflected the motion of the users hips. All of the components were boxed and worn in a stylish fishing vest.
Our approach was to make as simple a design as possible and have plenty of time for testing and integration. Our boat used a catamaran design for stability, which also gave us ideal locations to place our motors for a tank-drive propeller system. Rather than worry about the complexities of shooting a water cannon, we strove for a more defensive approach by placing our funnel on a swiveling arm. With careful packaging, we situated all the electronics into one plastic container that was suspended between the two pontoons. Having our RFID scanner at the bottom of this plastic container allowed us to scan crab pots by moving over them.
Our HC was not entirely user friendly (by intentional design), but it was fun to watch people try to drive. We had two accelerometers, whose rotational position relative to gravity controlled the speed and direction of the two motors. Finally, we had a compass mounted on a belt so that the motion of the funnel on the boat reflected the motion of the users hips. All of the components were boxed and worn in a stylish fishing vest.
Project completed as part of ME218C: Smart Product Design (aka Mechatronics)
by Ben Duncan, Aaron Rosekind, and Peter Kardassakis (BAP)
by Ben Duncan, Aaron Rosekind, and Peter Kardassakis (BAP)
