Robots

Science and engineering meet to create new surface water robot

Sarah Holland — Tue, 17 Oct 2023 13:35:06 +0000

Science and engineering meet to create new surface water robot Sarah Holland Tue, 10/17/2023 - 09:35

In his research on freshwater systems in the DC/Virginia area, ��AV College of Science professor R. Christian Jones was spending much of his time hauling boats. Too much, he thought.

McCue and Li with the autonomous surface water vehicle. Photo by Evan Cantwell/��AV.

“In order to take a sample from a pond,” he said, “I would need to haul a boat in, put the equipment in, launch it, and then bring it all back. It would add at least an hour and required the body of water to have an access point for a boat.”

As the director of Mason’s Potomac Environmental Research and Education Center (PEREC), Jones knew of a colleague who also works at the Potomac Science Center (PSC) where PEREC is housed, and who could help with this conundrum. He approached College of Engineering and Computing professor Leigh McCue and undergraduate student Ze Li with an idea: a machine that could go out on the pond, skim for plankton samples and collect water samples, and return to shore—all while the researcher remains on land.

This project is part of a larger grant from the National Science Foundation for Persistent and Accessible Maritime Monitoring (PAMM), of which McCue is the lead investigator. The multiyear grant—awarded in 2022 for more than $500,000—focuses on increasing educational, research, and robotics operations and development for students ranging from sixth grade to graduate level, in order to improve the applications of and expanded the use of unmanned marine vehicles. It also includes making such vehicles more accessible for individuals with motion limitations, which in turn can increase accessibility for all researchers.

“Researchers around the globe are utilizing robotics to conduct maritime research, which is an increasingly critical field of study,” explained McCue. “Through this grant, we’re developing more affordable maritime research tools to improve access for great science, whether citizen science or research-grade science. This project fit nicely into that mission.”

The autonomous surface water device created by Li this summer was built from scratch using CAD modeling and 3D printed materials. Li’s experience working with robotics through extracurriculars like his job with Starship Technologies—the company that manages the famous food robots seen rolling around campus—and the Mason Innovation Exchange’s (MIX) 3D printing training helped him navigate the challenges of creating this brand-new machine.

"We thought it was more beneficial to create something new by developing our design around an open-source hull model," Li said. “There’s more opportunity for us to iterate on the prototype.”

The team hopes to continue to improve the machine’s design, now that it’s being field-tested by Jones: improved autonomous capabilities and controls are both on the short list of potential improvements. Li also sees a potential for expanded testing of such data points as water temperature, turbidity, and salinity.

Jones predicts that this machine will be a boon for both access and efficiency. “The number of accessible ponds will increase dramatically with this, and we’ll be able to sample up to eight in a day instead of just one or two,” Jones said.

The machine will also allow for more immediate responses to sudden, unpredictable, and time-sensitive events, like taking samples immediately after storms. Jones even sees possible uses for this machine to take samples during major pollution events, keeping the researchers safe from exposure to harmful chemicals while still acquiring necessary data.

Jones emphasized that this project was made possible by the collaboration between the two colleges. “At a place like PSC where we’re all working together, seeing each other's labs and hearing about research, this sort of collaboration comes naturally,” he said. “It’s a beautiful opportunity for us all to become better researchers and do better science.”

Jones, McCue, and Li outside PSC. Photo by Evan Cantwell/��AV.

In This Story

Leigh McCue-Weil

Learn more about PEREC and its research

Design your own creations at the MIX

When robots meet sumo wrestling

Tama Moni — Mon, 25 Apr 2022 17:50:52 +0000

When robots meet sumo wrestling Tama Moni Mon, 04/25/2022 - 13:50

See Our Battlebots in Action

Systems Engineering students at the Norwalk Havoc Combat League on March 26.
From left to right: Rashed Almazrouei, Brian Romero, Nicholas Lechner, and
Sean Becker (team lead).

Battlebots is a nationally televised competition where robots battle in a closed arena. It is a breathtaking spectacle with robots colliding at high speeds and sparks flying. The winning robot must get a high score by hitting the opponent multiple times and pushing the opponent around the arena.

An enterprising team of Systems Engineering students in their Senior Design Capstone course designed, built, and tested a remotely controlled robot to compete in the 12-pound division in the Norwalk Havoc Robot Combat League (NHRL).

“The competition is unbelievably thrilling. The tension in the maintenance and repair bay preparing for the duel is high. Then you put your robot in the arena, and your heart is pumping at 120 beats per minute. Sparks flying, fans cheering. Whew!” said Brian Romero, a Systems Engineering student.

The team, led by nationally ranked combat robotics builder and Systems Engineering student Sean Becker says: “In the Systems Engineering class, we conducted a detailed analysis of the alternative attacking and defending mechanisms that are mounted on the robots.” The team built a Monte Carlo simulation and played out bouts between robots with different attack and defense mechanisms. “Based on the simulation, we came up with a unique design that attacks the opponent where they are least protected,” explained Sean Becker.

“We also took a step back and conducted a thorough design and analysis of the Life-cycle of a robot in the competition,” explained Systems Engineering student Nicholas Lechner. “This led us to realize the importance of modularity in the robot design.” Teams can have only 20 minutes between bouts to disassemble the robot and replace malfunctioning parts. “If you have ever watched a Battlebot fight, you know how much damage is done,” says Nicholas.

The team developed CAD designs and ran a Finite Elements Analysis on the components. The team fabricated the components, assembled, and tested the robot. “We broke a lot of components in testing and had to go back to the drawing board to redesign over and over again,” explained Sean Becker. “I never really appreciated the importance of testing, testing, testing,” says Brian Romero.

“We also practiced and timed the maintenance and repair to be ready for the competitions,” says Systems Engineering student Rashed Almazrouei. “It is like a Formula One race car pit stop. The parts and tools have to be lined up, and everyone has a specific role. The interaction has to be choreographed perfectly,” Rashed explained.

The team drove up to Norwalk, Connecticut, to compete in the Norwalk Havoc Robot Combat League on March 26, 2022. The robot won four six bouts and finished third overall.

“As systems engineers, and by applying the systems engineering methods, we had a big advantage over the competition,” says Sean Becker. “The Life-cycle analysis and the attack-defense simulation reduced the time and costs by learning in the digital world, what we would have to learn by competing in ten competitions.”

“We would like to thank all our professors in the Systems Engineering department for sharing their wisdom with us,” says Rashed. “Also, your encouragement, support, and belief in us as engineers made a big difference,” says Nicholas.

They are not out of the tournament yet. Since succeeding in the 12-pound class, the team is raising funding and applying to the 250-pound class Battlebot competition, which will premiere on the Discovery Channel.

To learn more about Systems Engineering, Robotics, and the Battlebot team, contact Systems Engineering and Operations Research Department Chair John Shortle.

Topics

Mason Engineering students and faculty compete at 99 Luftballoons competition

Anonymous — Fri, 08 Jan 2021 17:02:30 +0000

Mason Engineering students and faculty compete at 99 Luftballoons competition Anonymous (not verified) Fri, 01/08/2021 - 12:02

Left to right: Dinesh Karri, Robert Hooks, and Joseph Matthew Prince getting ready to compete at the Luftballoons competition at Indiana University.

It’s a bird, it’s a plane, it’s a Lighter-Than-Air (LTA) robotic shark blimp, which is what a team of ��AV students and faculty used to participate in the 99++ Luftballoons Competition at Indiana University on November 9 through 13.

The competition took place at the Indiana University Bloomington campus where people from Mason, the University of California Los Angeles, Indiana University at Bloomington, Pennsylvania State University, the Office of Naval Research, the Naval Surface Warfare Center – Crane Division, and the Army Research Laboratory competed in an aerial soccer match using remote-controlled LTA robots.

“LTA robots don’t need any support to hold them in the air. Helicopters need propellers, but all LTA robots can stay in the air on their own. Instead, they need controls to move them about in the air,” says Mason graduate student and competition teammate Joseph Prince Mathew.

Each team had defenders and seekers to protect their goal and score points against the other team. “It got pretty competitive,” says Dinesh Karri, another team member. “But it was so much fun.”

Every team played each other, and the teams with the most points faced off at the end of the five-day event. “Unfortunately, we lost, but we had the most points overall throughout the week,” says Mathew.

Mathew and Karri were working with Assistant Professor Feitian Zhang to develop an underwater glider as part of their PhD studies when they found out about the opportunity to bring their skills to the air. “It was a change of medium, from underwater to air. The dynamics are pretty similar,” says Mathew.

Robert Hooks, a junior undergraduate electrical engineering major, jumped on the project because of his interest in robotics and autonomous systems. “When I heard about it from one of my professors, I was very intrigued. It was a valuable and fun experience to learn hands-on,” says Hooks.