Our team’s approach is to divide up the tasks of building the AEV evenly in order to produce the best possible result. Our roles have been assigned on the Contact Information/Roles page of our website. We hope to work together efficiently and create a safe and affordable AEV.
For Preliminary R&D, the goal for the team was to learn the basics behind the AEV process in order to help complete future tasks. The team studied Programming Basics, External Sensors, Creative Design Thinking, Design Analysis Tool, Concept Screening and Scoring. From these labs, the team came up with several priorities for future designs. The team placed emphasis on balance, forward/backward efficiency, and safety.The team design implemented all of these priorities, as well as maintaining a simple enough build to minimize cost.
For Advanced R&D, the team’s goal was to learn more advanced information about the AEV. The team studied Battery Testing and Coasting vs Power Braking. With the information from these labs, the team took the approach of utilizing coasting as much as possible in future codes, as it consumed far less energy than power braking. The team realized, however, that power braking must be implemented somewhat to, as it provided the accuracy that was needed to complete the AEV mission. The team also concluded that the draining of Battery voltage does not need to be worried about during the course of a run.
For the Performance Tests, the goal for the team was to create a final code that completed the entire AEV mission in an efficient, fast, and safe way. For the first test, the team used a timing code in order to complete the objective. The team realized this code could be very inconsistent due to inconsistencies in the battery, so the team changed the approach of the code to include absolute and relative position commands. These commands were much more accurate and allowed the team to complete the final test in the first run.