Do It Yourself : PID
The simplest example to understand PID is a Line Follower, which we shall consider here. At slower speeds, line following is pretty simple - if the sensors say it is going left, steer right and if going right, steer left. This process has its limitations though, mainly when the speed is increased. This is when a PID controller starts to shin... continue reading
Do It Yourself : Robotic Arms
Jacob took that coke in his hand, the Herald919, what he named his other “arm”, made of tinker and junk mimicked the same. As he undid the wrapping, Herald broke the other one.” Take a look at your hand and now replace (mentally) every moving part of it with metal segments and joints and there you go! you have your very own robotic arm. Usual... continue reading
Introductory Robotics Workshop – The Journey Begins
30th July saw throngs of curious first years fill up Kalidas Auditorium as Technology Robotix Society unveiled its action packed schedule for 2012, along with a showcase of the pathbreaking ventures into robotics at Kharagpur and around the world. With new frontiers opening up including aerial robotics, underwater robotics, machine learning etc.... continue reading
(Do It Yourself) The Starting Line : Making a Differential Drive
In the first issue of the new session, we dedicate a special section to all the new entrants into the robotics bandwagon as we race into what will be another glorious year of robotic achievement. The starting point is fairly basic : Build a manual robot which moves forward, backward, left and right according to your instruction. So, here’s what ... continue reading
Robotix 2011 : Reload
The trademark of Technology Robotix Society has always been the promotion of robotics as a hobby, whilst also providing avenues for serious research in Automation, Image Processing, Artificial Intelligence etc. Members of TRS work over the year to bring to you and other robotics enthusiasts all over India our annual fest ROBOTIX, that is at once... continue reading
NEGOTIATORS: Backwards, Codewise.
Negotiators the online coding event of Robotix 2011 was an original design which went on to be largely successful. The participant’s program was pitched against that of two others in order to negotiate a pattern on a grid with blocks. Trivia: Some participants submitted multiple entries hoping that their dummy entries would be pitted against th... continue reading
FUGITIVES: Recapturing Moments
Fugitives the autonomous event that looked simple but turned out to be the hardest nut to crack. Robotix 2011 saw some mind-boggling alorithms to corner the fixed fugitives which emitted infrared radiations. The problem statements were based on artificial intelligence used for guarding prisoners. Trivia: Fugitives was initially titled ‘Chicken ... continue reading
BALLISTA: Blast into the Past
Ballista, an autonomous events of Robotix 2011 was a night event with a rotating light source. This event enjoyed its status as belonging to the action-adventure genre in terms of robots. The problem statement was derived from robot snipers on enemy territory . Robots were to detect walls and shoot at the light source from behind the walls. Lig... continue reading
ROBOCOP: Back to the Future
Robocop, the Image Processing (IP) category event of Robotix 2011 was the first of its kind ever. The robots were required to be the judges of colour coded character, marked to be good (green)and bad (red). It required intricate programming and some teams even used stereovision camera feeds. Trivia: One of the participating ‘robocops’ was so ac... continue reading
R.A.F.T : A Revisit
RAFT was one of the most successful mechanical events in Robotix 2011. Receiving participation from robot lovers all over the country, this event was one of a kind. Based on a practical and industry derived problem statement, the simplicity yet the unique nature of the event received wide acceptance. First years from IIT Kharagpur also showed de... continue reading