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Research

Background Information

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  • All around the world, schools are pushing for STEM programs for their students. At the same time, the popularity of STEM careers are growing and it is becoming more appealing to students.

  • There are many benefits to STEM programs in schools because it will mainly prepare them for their future, considering the number of STEM jobs in the United States has skyrocketed.

  • One of the areas where STEM is primarily focused on and pushed for, especially by schools, is the technology and engineering aspect. As a result, many schools are looking for programs that can support their requests.

  • The most popular option amongst these students and schools are robotics. This is because they are appealing to all ages, which makes it easier on the school, both in terms of funding and education.

  • There are many factors that go into a school’s pick for a robotics program/project.

  1. Funding

    1. If a robotics kit is too expensive or outside of the school budget, this is 1- disentive schools from pursuing a robotics STEM program or 2- make the school buy a cheaper, lower quality robotics program that does not make sense in the long term.

  2. Availability

    1. Sometimes, a certain robotics kit is not available to the school due to either funding or the manufacturing company.

    2. This can cause a disincentive amongst the students that are interested in pursuing a robotics program, and will impact future students in the long term.

  3. Not enough support

    1. Schools may be forced to end a robotics program if there are not enough students interested in STEM.

  4. Maintenance

    1. Many robotic kits have complex and delicate parts that need to be regulated and watched a number of times. A student would not be suitable for this role, and if there is a shortage of adults and a multitude of kits, schools will be forced to cut down the number of students able to participate in the STEM program.


 

The Problem

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  • Schools around the world do not have sufficient funds to pay for stem equipment.

  • Schools are faced with a lack or certified adults to monitor a robotics program.

  • There is a lack of students who would be interested to participate in a STEM program.

  • Various schools do not teach STEM.

  • Some STEM equipment is not easily accessible to schools.

  • Some STEM equipment is not intended for all age groups, thus, limiting the amount of students who can participate.

 

Our Solution

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  • A kit which contains materials for students to construct their own robot using mechanical and electronic components at an affordable price of $55 for schools in lower income communities.

  • The components will include supplies such as an Arduino controller, bluetooth modules, and other materials which will allow students to further immerse and learn about STEM and related fields.

  • We aim to supply each school with one box for every 3 students per classroom.

* The YoUnity Bot is a robot kit created by Gforce STEM club. This is a modification of the original robot created by Gforce STEM club.

 

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  • At the moment, our robot kits have not faced many issues; however, we did face some as we were building and assembling our robot. For example:

  • While modeling the body of our robot in Blender, we found that intricate areas such as small engraved letters on the body would add to the time of 3D printing, therefore we removed these parts to expedite the process.

  • Furthermore, as we were about to print our body, we found that exporting the body of our robot from Blender to the new software caused some issues in scaling, therefore we had to calculate proper dimensions which would accommodate all components of the robot.

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How it Works

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  • The Younity bot is a bot that was a kit that was designed to help teach kids about robots and other places such as programming and electrical and to spark and to interest in a new career.

  • The electrical part of the unity bot uses a breadboard that is used to communicate with the Arduino Uno.

  • This is used to turn the electronics on the breadboard on and off.

  • The breadboard was used on the prototype and final version of the Younity bot. It is triggered by using the app on your phone and communicating with the Arduino and starting it. This would result in the breadboard giving power to anything plugged into it.

  • The Unity bot used LED’s in the testing phase to make sure every components works.

  • The younity bot kit is a bot that can be bought for the price of $55.

  • In this kit are various parts that make of different engineering aspects such as mechanical, programming, and electrical.

  • The mechanical components of the younity bot include the tools for building, the steps needed for building, and the building pieces.

  • The pieces include the ABS plastic sheets. These sheets can be cut to create various shapes and structures. It can have holes drilled in to connect pieces.

  • Nylon rods will connect ABS plastic sheets to each other.

  • When working in groups, the mechanical engineer has to create a blueprint for the bot.

  • The blueprint can differ between groups building the bot.

  • The blueprint has to be revised to make sure that it can be supported by the electrical and programing components.

  • The blueprints can include the pieces used for building, the tools used to create the bot, and the building process.

  • The electrical components of the younity bot includes finding out what batteries and Bluetooth device system to use.

  • Previous teams have checked which ones they have used for previous bot models to find out which one would work now.

  • The electrical components also include learning how to draw wire models and anything dealing with the motors.

  • The motors should be able to control the wheels speed and direction.

  • The microcontroller called the arduino uno r3. It holds all the codes written for the bot. The motor controller gets signals from the arduino board and powers the motor.

  • The wires include three types called male to female, female to female, and male to male.

  • It is possible to use a 3D printed base. This would put cost more than using the ABS plastic sheets.




 

Part Descriptions

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  • The Elegoo UNO R3 (microcontroller) is needed to program and transmit code to the robot. This will give the robot instructions so it knows how to operate.

  • The motor controller is needed to control and communicate with the motors. This sector essentially manages the motors.

  • The female and male wires will be used to create electrical connections between components. For example, connections between the Arduino and the breadboard or connections between the motor controller and the breadboard.

  • Batteries will be used to power the bot and its components. Without this, the robot would not have any power to function.

  • The nylon caster will be used as a front wheel for the robot. This way, the robot will have a non-motorized wheel which can be driven by the motorized wheels.

  • The DC motors w/wheels will be used to allow the robot to move and maneuver. It will also grant the robot the ability to move autonomously.

  • The ABS plastic will be used as a frame for the bot. We will drill holes into it so that we can put wooden rods to connect the pieces.

  • The bluetooth module will be used to wirelessly connect the bot to the remote controller. The remote controller will be an app used on phones.

  • The wooden rods will be used to interconnect pieces of ABS plastic together. This will ultimately form the frame/structure of the robot.

  • The battery carrier will be used to hold the batteries. It is designed for a 9V battery.

  • The ultrasonic module will be used to work with the Arduino. We can use this sensor so that the robot can detect oncoming objects or for instance a wall to prevent crashing.

  • The box/packaging will be used to contain the whole robot and other components. This will be used as a storage for the robot so we have a safe area to store it.

  • LED’S are used to test the Uno r3 board. It makes sure that the arduino board is functioning properly before using it.

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