Using online program ROBOTC our team built a virtual maze that represented a collapsed building in an earthquake. The robot traverses the maze autonomously, avoiding obstacles while traveling from the start position to the ending target. Programmed in the language C, our virtual robot was able to successfully make it through the maze using a bumper sensor to navigate. An obstacle we had to overcome was our robot hitting a corner and getting stuck. At first, the right bumper would get triggered, causing it to turn left, but then the left bumper would get triggered, causing it to turn right. To solve this issue, we incorporated an algorithm that would track how many times the robot goes back and forth between the two sensors. If the robot moved back and forth more than four times, the robot would make a larger turn to leave the corner. This simple yet effective algorithm allowed our Virtualbot to successfully navigate through the maze of obstacles.

For the Arduino robot, we wrote two separate programs, one for line tracking and one that finds a way to escape a building in a disaster (very similar to the virtual robot). The construction of the robot was quite simple, as we attached batteries, motors, and the Arduino Board. Afterwards, we connected the wires necessary to allow access to our sensors. This provided the resources necessary to successfully run and complete the task of saving a human in a time of natural disaster. This was demonstrated through the robot's ability to drive to the person, despite the other paths.

The Tamiya robot measures the temperature of surrounding objects in order to find humans who may be stuck in a building.

We were unable to successfully test and finalize the Tamiya robot due to difficulties regarding construction, wiring, and the Arduino Board shorting out. The structure of the Tamiya bot was successfully assembled, however attaching the batteries, breadboard, and Arduino board were structurally unstable on the bot. This could be fixed by taking out and rearranging the pieces, as well as utilizing space more efficiently while using tape and cardboard to help provide more structural support for the robot. Wiring was the biggest concern as to why the Tamiya bot failed, for we were unable to wire the sensors to the breadboard successfully. The wires were placed in the wrong section on the breadboard, creating difficulty within the program and resulting in a bot that either didn't work at all or performed tasks incorrectly.

Each sensor served an integral part in the robot's functionality. The ultrasonic sensor allowed the robot to sense its distance from an object. This would allow it to stop moving if it sensed an object in close proximity. The bumper sensor allowed the robot to receive data upon tactile touch. If the robot hit a wall, it would be able to stop moving and turn in the opposite direction. The motor drivers were connected to the breadboard and allowed the bot to change speed and direction. The infrared sensor allowed the robot to detect heat signatures, which would be useful for finding mammals and other living organisms. Finally, the breadboard's purpose was to create multiple connections that lead back to the Arduino kit in order to overcome the limitations of having few ports. We will be able to fix this through taking out all of the wires and completely rewiring the breadboard and the Arduino board. Now that we understand where these wires go and what they do, this will allow us to successfully complete building the Tamiya bot.