Autonomous Gas Robot

Code at https://github.com/ayushcv/autonomousrobot

Designers of the Toronto Fire Department have told us to create an the FIRST autonomous robot in Peel Region which will detect various types of harmful gases inside confined spaces which are inaccessible to firefighters. This robot is powered by a microcontroller which is an open-source hardware and software made by Arduino. Robot will operate on 2 powerful 5 volt continuous rotation servos. The technical aspects of the robot will operate based on Ultrasonic Sensors (Ping Sensors) which will send ultrasonic signals to objects further away from the robot and based on the input signal back from the signal, distance will be calculated. This ultrasonic sensor will be rotated using a turrent made by micro servos. The robot will work in all conditions are the rubber vex tracks provided exceptional friction and a strong structure is given from 6 tooth gear sprockets.

Ethical Consideration

There is a huge market for these types of products in the human resources/firefighters and etc. Nothing in the market has been made with this simplicity but also with the amount of detail into each phase of the product. There is a need for stuff like this in the market and the excitement level would also be driving this thing forward as this will be a fully autonomous robot. With the app this robot will be going above expectations and providing a more luxurious feeling for the price people will be paying. If this robot is to be mass produced then the cost of building and manufacturing will be very low. Arduino is very accessible and easy to operate and use. The software development cost will be cut down by a lot plus there are various companies who can manufacture the same parts for us.

Safety

The robot is reducing the jobs of many firefighters, gas detecting people, and etc. It is reducing the risk of any type of fatalities that can occur during these jobs. This robot can do the same jobs and even do it better as the computers are made by humans to be smarter than humans. This robot is reducing “the human to dangerous situations” physical contact. There are no sharp edges or any physical objects that hurt someone. All of the wiring has been done in an orderly manner and zip tied down so that no loose wire comes off. The gas sensors are also attached to the breadboard so that they do not fall off.

Conclusions

The robot is able to meet all of the design requirements while keeping the constraints in mind. The BOE Shield robot is able to use ultrasonic range sweeping mechanism inorder to find distance and not crash into anything. It is also able to use the high-end technology of gas sensors to detect different types of gases in hard to reach places. This robot has solved the design problem. The only mishap/unwanted result is that due to the 180 degree rotation of the micro servo, the robot has developed a blindspot which can cause it to bump into unseen place from the perspective of the robot.