“If you build it, they will come.” – Field of Dreams, 1989
The mechanical team is responsible for giving our robot a body, encasing and protecting its vital components and making sure it can interact with its environment. But where do we start? From the beginning of course.
Meet Alpha, our proof-of-concept remote controlled robot made from PVC pipe, pool floaties and a few Blue Robotics T100 thrusters. This little guy was controlled using an Arduino Uno and an Xbox controller. Alpha was really created to prove we could use simple components and basic programs to control something underwater. It worked, so we moved on and got a little more in depth with our design. Thus Beta was born. Beta is really just a supped up version of Alpha, still made from PVC, but bigger and much more useful in understanding how placement of thrusters and other components can affect movement, balance, and buoyancy.
Then came Beta, a larger, but equally simple PVC frame that had a chassis and an added thruster for testing.
Now we’re cooking with gas and it’s time to step up the development. A full scale prototype is called for and PACO has answered that call. PACO is made from custom-cut extruded aluminum, fixed with 8 Blue Robotics T100 thrusters and will be carrying prototype servo-controlled grabbers, droppers, and self-propelled torpedoes. PACO will also be our primary testing platform for the programming team to get a better handle on underwater control and movement. This version is also the exact size of our final design, so parts placement and control will be directly applicable to our final competition ready robot.