Maze Robot - overview
Features
This design is inspired by a ML-R robot that was world champion in Robocup Junior competition Rescue Maze in Montreal, Canada in 2018, which was a successor of the robot that also won world championship in Nagoya, Japan, a year earlier. The design is simplified but also improved. The robot will not be able to recognize letters as cameras are missing. However, You can add them, such as OpenMV Cam H7. This is a basic version of ML-R maze example robots. An advanced version, based on a microprocessor, will be published in this web probably by September. As we understand how to make robots that can achieve world-class results, we hope the the advices for this model will help You, too.
Main features:
- This robot is rather small. Its measures are determined by 16 mm motors and wheels. It is important to have a small robot for Maze as passages can be narrow and it is easier to correct alignment errors if You have more space around the robot.
- Silicon tyres, which You will make by Yourselves, can drive the robot along a steep ramp, used in Maze. Note that it is not so easy to find wheels or tracks that can do the job, especially when there is a 2 cm bumper on the ramp. This robot can do it.
- Center of gravity is as low as possible. When going downwards, on the very top of the ramp, a robot with a high center of gravity tends to flip - a very unpleasant event.
- It has many precise lidars for distance measuring as aligning along walls is the best way of positioning the robot and is extremely important to avoid errors in advancing through the maze and achieving exit bonus.
- The robot uses the best IMU to determine ramps without mistakes and to correct movements when no walls are close enough.
- First aid packages' dispenser is simple in design, reliable, and has a low center of gravity.
- Thermal sensors measure temperature in 64 points, enabling You to develop a robust algorithm for heated victim recognition.
Demo
Here is an example of robot's capabilities, a short wall-following sequence in an improvised arena.
A sample program is available.
Building elements
| Element | Quantity |
|---|
| ML-R brick 1x1 L7 (mrm3d-br1x1l7) | 3 |
| ML-R brick 1x1 L7 parallel (mrm3d-br1x1l7par) | 2 |
| ML-R brick 1x2x2 (mrm3d-br1x2x2) | 1 |
| ML-R brick 1x2x3 (mrm3d-br1x2x3) | 4 |
| ML-R brick 2x2x0.55 (mrm3d-br2x2x0.55) | 1 |
| ML-R brick 2x2x0.55 L (mrm3d-br2x2x0.55l) | 2 |
| ML-R brick 2x2x0.55 L opposite (mrm3d-br2x2x0.55lo) | 2 |
| ML-R brick 1x1 L3 parallel (mrm3d-bric1x1l3par) | 2 |
| ML-R brick 1x1 L5 L5 (mrm3d-bric1x1l5l5) | 2 |
| ML-R brick 1x1 L5 L5 parallel (mrm3d-bric1x1l5l5p) | 2 |
| ML-R brick 1x1 L2 (mrm3d-brick1x1l2) | 3 |
| ML-R chassis 16 mm L14 (mrm3d-ch16l14) | 1 |
| ML-R dispenser (mrm3d-disp) | 1 |
| ML-R lid B for battery compartment (mrm3d-lid-b) | 1 |
| ML-R lid B for battery lid's buckle (mrm3d-lid-b-buckle) | 1 |
| ML-R PCB join short (mrm3d-pcb-join) | 4 |
| ML-R PCB join double (mrm3d-pcb-join-db) | 4 |
| ML-R wheel 70 mm (mrm3d-wh70) | 4 |
| ML-R 8x8 bicolor display, CAN Bus,UART, 4 switches (mrm-8x8a) | 1 |
| ML-R BDC Motor 12 V, 16 mm, 1:100, encoder (mrm-bdc16l50-100e) | 4 |
| Metal bolt M2 5 mm, 1 pc. (mrm-bolt5m2met1) | 8 |
| Nylon bolt M2 5 mm, 1 pc. (mrm-bolt5m2nyl1) | 36 |
| Steel bolt M3 6 mm, 1 pc. (mrm-bolt6m3met1) | 8 |
| Nylon bolt M2 8 mm, 1 pc. (mrm-bolt8m2nyl1) | 2 |
| ML-R CAN Bus power supply (mrm-can-pow) | 1 |
| MRMS ESP32: Arduino, IMU, eFuse, BT, WiFi, CAN Bus (mrm-esp32) | 1 |
| ML-R 2 x 3.6A FET driver (mrm-fets) | 1 |
| ML-R wheel hub for 3 mm shaft (mrm-hub3) | 4 |
| MRMS CAN Bus cable 10 cm (mrm-jst-can10) | 3 |
| MRMS CAN Bus cable 15 cm (mrm-jst-can15) | 1 |
| MRMS CAN Bus cable 5 cm (mrm-jst-can5) | 5 |
| MRMS CAN Bus cable 7.5 cm (mrm-jst-can7.5) | 3 |
| ML-R Cable KK254-KK254 10 cm (mrm-kk2.54-2.54-10) | 1 |
| ML-R Cable KK254-KK254 15 cm (mrm-kk2.54-2.54-15) | 5 |
| ML-R Cable KK254-KK254 5 cm (mrm-kk2.54-2.54-5) | 2 |
| ML-R Cable KK254-KK254 7.5 cm (mrm-kk254-254-7.5) | 1 |
| ML-R Cable KK396-KK254 10 cm (mrm-kk3.96-2.54-10) | 1 |
| ML-R Cable KK396-KK396 7.5 cm (mrm-kk396-396-7.5) | 1 |
| MRMS LIDAR 2m VL53L0X, CAN Bus (mrm-lid-can-b) | 8 |
| MRMS Motor Driver 4x3.6A CAN Bus (mrm-mot4x3.6can) | 1 |
| Nylon nut M2 (mrm-nut-m2nyl1) | 44 |
| ML-R Power Supply 3x C, voltmeter (mrm-ps3xc) | 1 |
| Nylon spacer M2 5 mm (mrm-spac5m2nyl1) | 42 |
| MRMS Thermal Array Sensor, CAN Bus (mrm-therm-b-can) | 1 |
| ML-R Cable XT60-KK3.96 10 cm (mrm-xt60-kk3.96-10) | 1 |