Summer 2021

Project Description

In this project, we explored the realm of Autonomous Surface Vehicles (ASVs), ranging from miniature models to larger Unmanned Surface Vehicles (USVs), employing software tools such as ROS, Arduino IDE, PyGame, and Pymunk to design and simulate various autonomous behaviors. Additionally, we developed a custom printed circuit board (PCB) using KiCad, enhancing the hardware capabilities of the Clearpath Heron USV. Through meticulous experimentation and application of PID controllers, we successfully orchestrated behaviors like object pushing and precise riverbed mapping, contributing to advancements in autonomous robotics.

Main Software Used

1. ROS: Orchestrates communication between hardware and software in robotics experiments, crucial for autonomous surface vehicle control.

2. Arduino IDE: Enables programming of Arduino microcontrollers, controlling motors on miniature Autonomous Surface Vehicles (mASVs).

3. PyGame: Creates a Python-based simulation framework for visualizing and testing point robot behaviors.

4. Pymunk: Utilized for physics simulations, models object movement based on collisions in mASVs pushing behavior simulation.

5. GitHub: Serves as a version control platform, storing code and facilitating collaborative development for autonomous surface vehicle experiments.

6. KiCad: Open-source EDA software used to design a printed circuit board (PCB) for converting RS232 signals to USB in the project.

7. Motive: Interfaces with Optitrack motion capture system, providing data on mASV orientation and position in experiments.

Links

• Project Report
• Project Presentation