Tag Archives: hardware

Laser upgrade for protoFROG

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The guys got together again!

Although they are now all working on different projects, Randy and Jan  keep in  touch with Noé via Skype and Facebook and, sometimes, after office hours they still find time to work together on one of their favourite FROG robots.

1Recently Jan and Randy fitted 2 extra lasers to cover some blind spots at the sides to FROG – this meant they had to make holes in the shell (shhh ….. nobody tell Paulo!).

2The extra lasers allow protoFROG (aka the Campus Robot) to navigate better through spaces and some corners inside its new seasonal home, the DesignLab.

There, HMI Masters‘ students are using FROG as a platform for researching receptionist robots as part of the R3D3 project (part of the Dutch national COMMIT program).

 

FROG Daddy

Meet Carlos Marques, aka FROG Daddy.

 

Carlos Marques - Seville 2014
Carlos Marques – Seville 2014
He built the FROGs.
He built the FROGs…(with help from Paulo Carriço and Mário Inácio).
He spent hours labeling all of the cables.
He spent hours labeling all of the cables.

 

He has tested most of the terrains.
He has tested most of the terrains
...indoors...
…indoors in Lisbon…
...and in Seville...
…and in Seville…

 

...outdoors.
… and outdoors.

 

He has to watch while the researchers put his baby through its paces.
He has to watch while the researchers put his baby through its paces.

 

And what do they do when he does leave early?
And what do they do when he does leave early?

 

He’s always there to help:

After care ...
After care … Carlos on top of the bookcase.
Maybe...
Maybe…

 

Well...
Well…

He assembled baby-FROG and is wizard with the game pad during experiments…

... and is wizard with the game pad during experiments (when he's finished trying out the terrain).
… when he’s finished trying out the terrain. Unfortunately we can’t show the experiment films as they include images of passers-by.

He works all hours…

… an has to catch a power nap.
… and has to catch the occasional power nap.

 

And all too often he has to leave his wife and kids in Lisbon while he attends meetings… Thanks from the FROG consortium to Carlos’ family!

 

 

protoFROG at a standstill at Hannover Messe

photo 1

 

The UT Campus robot is having some problems at the Hannover Messe. On the first day it drove around until lunchtime but now protoFROG is at a standstill. This is an outdoor robot with a lot of traction power and the loose-laid carpet is causing the motors to overheat during rotation. Although, by the look of it there is not always that much room to manoeuvre, anyway.

The FROG robot was defined to run outdoors, specifically for the EU project in the Lisbon Zoo and in the Royal Alcázar in Sevilla. As the robot must not only navigate the various terrains at these sites but also be able to turn on the spot the project has been having some difficulties with their choice of tires. What would you choose for a  100 kilo robot that has to handle clean-swept tarmac and paving, either of which may later be strewn with olive stones from the trees. This is the terrain in the Lisbon zoo – and the robots mission also includes some inclines and ramps. Then move the same robot to Sevilla where it has to go from neat paved courtyards onto tiled or marble floors.

And in the past two weeks, protoFROG has had to cope with gravel strewn tarmac, TV studios, and now, loose-laid carpet. That’s a lot to deal with for a prototype.

photo 2