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Project DeskBot — June 17, 2024


PROJECT DESKBOT

June 17, 2024/Tanmay

Ah where to start this. It would be very boring if this would start with When
some time back I got this idea of having a cute little robot on my desk,
roboting around, doing its roboty things, and How I really wanted to do it
myself, not that I dont like the looks of that makeBlock toys, But I wanted
something og my own. Something that grows in capability as my Codewriting and
Designing skills improve.









Certainly! Here’s the continuation with a detailed technical description of
DeskBot’s construction:

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Ah, where to start this journey? It might seem mundane if I began with “Once
upon a time,” so let’s dive into the spark that ignited this idea. It wasn’t
long ago when the notion of having a small, charming robot on my desk captured
my imagination. I envisioned it buzzing around, performing its mechanical tasks
with a quirky personality, much like the ones I’d admired from MakeBlock and
other similar toys. Yet, deep down, I craved something more personal, something
uniquely mine — a creation that would evolve in complexity as my coding and
design skills improved.

The desire to embark on this venture stemmed from more than just a fascination
with robotics; it was a challenge I eagerly accepted. I wanted to blend
craftsmanship with technology, to infuse lines of code with a physical form that
I could hold, tweak, and refine over time. It wasn’t enough to passively admire
off-the-shelf models; I yearned to immerse myself in the iterative process of
creation, to witness firsthand how each improvement in my programming
proficiency could enhance the capabilities of my robotic companion.

Armed with determination and a beginner’s zeal, I set out on this quest to craft
my own robotic marvel. The journey would undoubtedly be filled with learning
curves and moments of frustration, but each obstacle would serve as a stepping
stone toward a more profound understanding of both software and hardware. From
basic circuits to sophisticated algorithms, every component would be a testament
to my growth as a coder and designer.

But perhaps the most intriguing aspect lay in the robot itself — not just as a
sum of its mechanical parts, but as a manifestation of my technical skills. It
would embody hours of trial and error, late-night debugging sessions, and the
satisfaction of seeing an idea materialize into a tangible, functioning entity.
More than a mere desk ornament, it would be a testament to what one can achieve
with dedication and patience.


DESKBOT CONSTRUCTION

The construction of DeskBot began with a clear plan and a set of requirements. I
started by listing out the functionalities I wanted it to have: basic movement,
obstacle detection, and a simple interaction mechanism, like responding to touch
or light. With these goals in mind, I broke down the project into several key
components: the chassis, motors, sensors, microcontroller, and power supply.

CHASSIS

The chassis forms the backbone of DeskBot, housing all the essential components.
I opted for a compact, lightweight design using acrylic sheets. Acrylic is easy
to cut and drill, making it ideal for prototyping. I designed the chassis in
CATIA, ensuring precise dimensions to accommodate all parts so i can ignore them
later. The chassis features slots and mounting points for the motors, wheels,
and sensor modules. (subject to change)

MOTORS AND WHEELS

For mobility, I selected two Servos modified for continuous rotation. then
forced some wheels on the output shaft. These Coreless motors are small but
provide enough torque for a lightweight robot like this. and It ain’t going to
any races, aswell. I had some JB-Weld lying around, it was an imported stuff
from Germany, and it has a nice smell, almost like some extremely delicious
chemical fruit. So i cold-welded it in place securely to the chassis. The wheels
were chosen for their rubber tires, which provide good traction on a variety of
surfaces. To ensure smooth and controlled movement, I had some micro drive motor
driver module again salvaged from some bigger Sized servos. I have experience of
this Servo driver chip failing under continuous usage, like I am intending to.
This module allows me to control the speed and direction of each motor
independently through PWM (Pulse Width Modulation) signals. 1000us is reverse,
1500 is hold. 2000 is forward. everything in-between is the fractional speeds.

SENSORS

To give DeskBot the ability to interact with its environment, I equipped it with
a set of sensors. For obstacle detection, I used ultrasonic sensors (HC-SR04),
which can measure distances by sending out sound waves and measuring the time it
takes for the echo to return. and then since the ESP32S3 isn t ay normal one, it
was the ESP32 Sense by Seeed Studio XIAO. Those ultrasonics were mounted at the
front of the robot using custom-designed brackets to ensure they had an
unobstructed view. and the CAM was centrally located on top, aft Bow.

I also added a touch sensor (capacitive type) on the top of DeskBot, allowing it
to detect when it’s being touched. This sensor is connected to one of the
digital input pins on the microcontroller. For light sensitivity, I used a
simple photoresistor. The photoresistor is connected in a voltage divider
configuration, providing an analog input to the microcontroller that varies with
the light intensity.

MICROCONTROLLER

The brain of DeskBot is an ESP32S3. It was cheap, compact yet powerful enough to
handle all the BS tasks people could throw at it. It features multiple digital
and analog I/O pins, which are necessary for interfacing with the sensors and
motor driver. The S3 is mounted on a small breadboard, which also houses some of
the sensor connections and resistors. I programmed the microcontroller using the
platformIO, writing scripts to control the motors based on sensor inputs and to
manage the robot’s behaviour.

POWER SUPPLY

To power DeskBot, I used a rechargeable Li-Po battery cell with a 4,2v output.
This pack provides a good balance between capacity and size, ensuring that
DeskBot can operate for a reasonable amount of time without skipping on Zoomies
or straight dashes. I included a voltage regulator module (MC29xx) to step down
the voltage to 3v3, which is suitable for the ESP and other Logic stuff the rest
of MOSFETs got the Vbatt RAW. The battery is securely attached to the underside
of what seems like a chassis, using the most secure method I could think of,
Rubber Bamds.


ASSEMBLY AND TESTING

With all components ready, the assembly process began. I carelessly mounted the
motors and wheels onto the chassis, ensuring they were aligned good-enough for
straight movement, and even if they weren’t, ill handle in the nav code, Next, I
attached the sensors, and by sensors, I mean SensOR. Thtat right, I just one
camera, and that was ESP-cAM. Next, I route all the wires, and intelligently
enough I used the same color wire for every fucking thing. for Power, its White,
for Servos it is White, and then for the Control radio, guess what (white). The
ESP was connected to the MOSFET’s motor drive, with all connections
double-checked for accuracy.(I lied, I didn’t check even once)

After assembly, I uploaded the initial test code to the ESP. This code included
basic routines to check motor functionality, sensor readings(takes a photo and
uploads it to apre hosted HTML page, it looks absolutely trash, but does the
job, and overall system stability checks. I placed DeskBot on a flat surface and
powered it on, observing its behavior. The motors responded correctly, and the
CCD sensor provided the crappy 600*800 photo on 192.168.0.4.
I had to fiddle with this part, because My PC kept having issues while the
router was on, perhaps the WIFI channels were overlapping or something,

From there, I iteratively refined the code, adding more complex behaviors and
fine-tuning the sensor thresholds. I implemented basic obstacle avoidance, where
DeskBot would change direction upon detecting an obstacle within a certain
range. and then Re-Assess the secondary route, if it passes the basic
route_chk() and returns a path threshold longer than primary_thershold, it
pivots. The touch sensor was programmed to toggle DeskBot’s activity, allowing
me to start and stop its movements with a simple tap. Why, one may ask, because
ESP could. It was a useless feature, but I thought it could use it as a
secondary obstacle avoidance as I still had 4 pins left.


CONCLUSION

DeskBot was a challenging yet not-much-rewarding process. From designing the
chassis to programming the microcontroller, each step required ordering some
sort of raw material and lots of epoxy. Through this project, I not only created
a functional robot but also deepened my understanding of robotics and
electronics and Finance. Now I have a very Deep Respect for the money I earned
to spend it on a dumb tracked co ntraption that does little else than to wreak
chaos on my work. DeskBot now sits on my desk, a reminder of what can be
achieved through patience, perseverance, and a lots of code.

note to self: do not repeat.






Hummingbird: the VTOL —


HUMMINGBIRD: THE VTOL

June 17, 2024June 17, 2024/Tanmay/Leave a comment

This was(is) a long-term envisionment, rather than a mere College Project.
I always had a thing for FIxed-Wings, but after making, flying, and crashing
some, It became clear that a big plane isn’t always the answer to a Big Task. at
least not completely. And the project was born.

Seeing a bunch of examples in my circle [Team RC India], I started finding pros
in many configurations, as well as flaws.

The options In my mind were one of these



 * Quadplane
   A VTOL quadplane drone looks and flies like a conventional plane, and has an
   unconventional vertical takeoff and landing ability. Much like a Quadcopter
   strapped to a Plane, just that. In my perspective it was the simplest of all,
   Fundamentally. Although it has much much more working part count and higher
   weight penalty of all.



 * Tailsitters
   A tailsitter drone like the VTOL lands and takes off from its tail, and tilts
   in the air to enter forward flight mode. It is actually a genius of an idea,
   mechanically they are the simplest, at least in theory.
   But I always felt uncomfortable with the logic and code design of this
   configuration of aircraft, they have complex control mechanism, and
   non-conventional handling. Specially coming from a traditional fixed-wing
   piloting experience.





 * Y3 with tilt-rotors
   I hate this type, mostly because of how it looks(sorry).
   

My interest was the tailsitter because a quadplane has 3x more points of failure
(actuators) than a tailsitter drone. To achieve transition, the tailsitter drone
tilts in the air while using the same rotors for both hover and forward flight
modes. Such design simplicity doesn’t require additional parts and saves a lot
of weight, allowing tailsitters to carry a heavy payload with the same stability
and coverage of a fixed-wing aircraft.

The process started with the airframe. Picture this: a humble wooden desk,
cluttered with sheets of foamboard, balsa wood, a hot glue gun, and a mind
brimming with ideas. I knew that the airframe needed to be robust yet
lightweight, aerodynamic yet practical. Countless hours were spent sketching
designs, cutting out foamboard templates, and piecing them together like a giant
3D puzzle.

My first prototype looked like something from a sci-fi movie—a sleek, elongated
body with large, vertical stabilizers. It wasn’t perfect, but it was a start.
The next step was to equip it with the necessary electronics. Motors, ESCs
(Electronic Speed Controllers), a flight controller, and, of course, a reliable
battery. Wiring it all together was a bit like defusing a bomb: one wrong
connection, and it could all go up in smoke. Literally.

The initial test flights were… let’s say, eventful. The first time I powered up
the motors and saw it lift off the ground was a moment of pure joy. But that joy
was short-lived when, a few seconds later, it veered wildly to one side and
crash-landed into a nearby bush. Back to the drawing board.

What I learned from each crash was invaluable. I adjusted the thrust vectoring,
fine-tuned the flight controller settings, and rebalanced the weight
distribution. Slowly but surely, the tailsitter started behaving more
predictably. One major breakthrough came when I discovered a small online forum
of VTOL enthusiasts who shared their tips and tricks. Their collective wisdom
was a treasure trove of knowledge that I eagerly mined.

Transitioning from hover to forward flight was the next big challenge. The first
few attempts were like watching a drunken bird trying to figure out which way is
up. But with perseverance and a bit of creative problem-solving (thank you, duct
tape and zip ties!), the transition became smoother. It was all about finding
that sweet spot where the lift from the wings took over from the rotors, a
delicate dance of aerodynamics and physics.

The biggest hurdle came one sunny afternoon when I decided it was time for a
full flight test. Everything was set up perfectly. The sky was clear, the winds
were calm, and my confidence was high. As I powered up the drone and it ascended
gracefully, I initiated the transition to forward flight. It glided nicely,
cutting through the air with ease. for once I was comfortable with what I had
build.

But then, Murphys slap. A sudden gust of wind threw the drone off balance, and
the poorly guessed PIDs didn’t help, and the disbalance just got bigger and the
algorithm amplified the jeerks until it spiraled downward, crashing hard onto
the ground. I collected the vtol or what was left of it in the Polybag, I always
carry as a joke to myself. I was not as sad as I thought I should’ve been. I
considered giving up, not only because of the loss of investments, but the whole
point of making these airborne objects wasn’t making a lot sense. Like
envisioning something bold, and mentally detailing each aspect of it, putting in
immense efforts to realize that, Just to mimic a part of nature. Quite honestly
I was mad at myself for even lack of thinking about why I do this, cause there
is no reason, Its just a fools errand at times, and a pastime otherwise. It
wasn’t just about building a drone; it was about keeping imagination in check. A
reality check to my otherwise daydreaming tendency.

So, I picked up the pieces, quite literally, and rebuilt. By the time I had put
the pieces to drying, It was more glue than Foam and Balsa. Atleast epoxy is
stronger than them both, combined. Each setback was a stepping stone, each
failure a lesson learned. like a nice apprentice, I soldered all the broken
wires, there were many, and obviously some connectors were also replaced with
more solder because too impatient to wait for specific spres from overseas. one
glorious day, I found all the pieces are dry and sanded, the wires are wired,
and the Autopilot configured, with better PID, (Lower P, Same I, Much higher D)
and a failsafe. I decided to calibrate the compass and I thought it can take one
more crash. So charged my last set of poorly balanced Li-Ion, and went to the
field. It was almost morning. Upon a basic pre-flight checklist, I armed
throttle and gave it 40%, The tailsitter lifted off, hovered smoothly, and I
took it to 120-150ft AGL, and flipped the transition toggle. With the grace and
stability of a bird of prey it became a Plane. It was a sight to behold.

Today, my VTOL drone(or the pieces of it) stand as a testament to perseverance
and the relentless pursuit of a dream. What started as a college project evolved
into a full-fledged trophy, a journey filled with ups and downs, trials,
triumphs and 20 minute epoxy. And as I watch it soar through the skies, I can’t
help but feel that this is just the beginning of something truly remarkable,
cool shit.


Project Pastry Bomber — January 16, 2023


PROJECT PASTRY BOMBER

January 16, 2023February 3, 2024/Tanmay

I always found myself scribbling on the backsides of my notebook, sketches of
some airplane and it almost invariably was a Pusher Fixed-Wing Airplane. I was
mentally occupied with it, the construction, Internal Ribbing, Sheets of
Corroplast, COmposite Booms, and pretty much everything about it, I was
Obsessed.

Obsessed with the idea that something can crash Nose FIrst at WOT, and not take
damage to electronics. You see, I was short on funds, and electronics were
expensive, They were my #1 priority for protection in the case of Design and
Construction Techniques.

Imagine giving your plane a Toss and it turns out Nose Heavy, You take off kinda
alright, and just when you Bank 20º and Suddenly your control sticks aren’t able
to counteract the nose-down moment, and Sure Enough it is a Tip Stall.

you remember the code,

– Pitch nose-down to decrease the angle of attack

– Reduce the bank by leveling the wings.

– Punch throttle to power out of the Dive

– Level out and …..

alas there isn’t a

Glider that Flew, fr. — January 5, 2023


GLIDER THAT FLEW, FR.

January 5, 2023February 3, 2024/Tanmay/Leave a comment

Well, some great news is here, We have just bought some wood and it came
designed with the intention to fly.

So far in life, Cardboard is my dearest material of work, as it was the only
stiff material I had in X and Y. Simply said, I had it in bulk. So naturally all
the small wing like objects, Airplane snippets and tine laughable attempts to
make something fly, at least glide, were in that. heavy cladded Cardboard.
needless to say, they did not flew well, if at all. So after enough headbanging
and googling on our little Nokia C5, we got to know about this stuff called Wood
and we searched what kind, and Balsa came up.

SO off we went to another Tab in browser looking for Balsa in Our state, and as
lucky as 15 yr old could possibly get, the only source in the whole northwest,
lies in our hometown Jodhpur. THeir name is Sharma Model Aero and Engines.
somewhere around Ratanada Circle.

Fast forward to this moment, what we have in Hand is called Seagull Glider and
it flies like its on Invisible rails in air! we took a really long time in
figuring out how a small unpowered airplane is made, and somehow these folks at
SHarma Models have already made so much that a kid like me could only wonder
how.

This little plane that they gave us at discount, is almost like a present on
birthday, except I usually did not celebrated after 5th, and did not got any
presents afterwards. Nevermind, the kit, as it is given to me, is consisting of
all the materials that is needed to make and Tune it, save for the Feviquick, I
have never been experienced to this kind of luxury, where there is no cutting or
sanding or figuring out best glue to keep things together.



The little KIT was having the 4 piece Wing, 3 piece of Fuselage, Two Tail
sections and a little Ribbon of Nylon, which I knew the use far too late.
Altough it came with a printed planwork, but we realized it wasn’t needed at
all, as it jigsaw was painfully simple.



It was obvious how to make, so we got onto it, and immediately realized it was
almost impossible to make mistakes, so we basically cake-walked the whole build.





The year: one — October 23, 2018


THE YEAR: ONE

October 23, 2018May 22, 2023/Tanmay/Leave a comment

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