SPARTAN Superway Week 12

This week, I have begun learning the "Processing" language in order to research how to make a better user interface for our controls system. The legacy UI uses a mobile phone app to order the pod and give directions. However, this system is confusing both for the user and for the developer. In addition, it rarely works and needs a great deal of instruction before it is up and running. Our goal is to create a UI that is user friendly and easy to pick up.

In the coming week, I will be getting ready for our third and final presentation for the Fall semester. My part is to to the Gantt chart and milestones as well as the dependencies and contingencies.

SPARTAN Superway Week 11

This week, we got the Xbee modules to communicate with the Arduino in a range of data types. With this new breakthrough, we have a fully working prototype, with the exception of the mobile app. With this prototype, we are able to send an instruction from a computer and wirelessly receive it on the Arduino, then execute the correct tasks to travel to the destination. In order to get the mobile app to work, we have enlisted new help from a computer engineering major that is interested in our project.

SPARTAN Superway Week 10

This week, I changed the pseudo code to write directions to motors and servos instead of just saying "forward" or "backward". We are now only two steps away from having a working prototype controls system. Next week, I will focus on getting the Xbees to communicate in arrays instead of communicating in characters as we have it now. The following week, we will be concentrating on getting the mobile app up and working with our new system

SPARTAN Superway Week 9

This week, the majority of our prototype parts came in. I was able to use all of our new RFID tags to create a prototype controls code that reads the tags and navigates to a position on the track. Right now, the code only allows the user to input a destination via a corded connection, but in the coming weeks we will implement the Xbee module into our code to pick a destination via wireless communication. Currently, the code relies on functions to control the motors and servos, but I just made it say "print to serial". In the next week, I will code actual voltage commands to run the motors. The RFID tag layout can be seen below.