On the rather chilly morning of the 12th of December 2006, the final of the lamp post climbing robot competition was to commence.
Just twelve weeks previous to the event, 18 members of the unsuspecting design world joined into the fast track system to begin understanding more about becoming a design engineer through an MSc Design Engineering postgraduate degree at Middlesex University in North London.
The degree’s main aim is to take designers and convert them to “the way of the engineer.” Not so much as to create an engineer, but a hybrid between desgners and engineers… the Design Engineer.
Three weeks into the course the major group based design project was set. The brief:
Each team will design, manufacture and demonstrate an easy-to-use device capable of climbing a 12 m lamp post as located in the Long Garden car park. Mounted to the system will be a miniature digital camera device capable of wireless transmission and recording of images. The system must be self-contained and capable of semi-autonomous operation.
After nine weeks of blood, sweat, tears, sleepless nights and too many Lucozade bottles to count, the final day of presentations were upon us.
The MSc Design Engineering (3rd) Cohort
All in all, 18 Students, 2 Tutors, 1 Phd student, 1 BAE Systems representative and 6 Robots were all ready to venture into the unknown, pitting their knowledge and skill up against the challenge of climbing a vertical pole structure. One by one, the teams took turns in attempting to climb the post.
Team Thunder
Up first was my team (Thunder) and our robot (Lightening). Our robot managed to stick to the lamp post and made every effort to climb. All systems were working, but traction, grip and poor axel friction limited the climbing distance… that combined with limited arms reach and the fear of losing our robot.
Team Eurostars
Next up were the Eurostars with their cantilever robot, probably the only robot whch benifited from more weight. Still attached by cables, the robot managed to climb a fair way up before losing power, showcasing a creative design response to the problem.
Team Bravo
Third up were team Bravo. Bravo’s robot out performed the other robots on the day and managed to climb the majority of the post. Unfortunately a gust of wind blew a lever around and caused the robot to become unbalanced. It got stuck for a little while but after some good string throwing action the lever was pulled and it returned to earth safely. A well designed clamping system.
Team Evo
The fourth team to showcase their abilities was team Evo. Their robot, also known as the ‘very loud one’ managed to cling to the post but with weight to power ratio issues it struggled to move up the post. Small, compact and light.
Team Ekko
Fifth to present were team Ekko. One of the heaviest and most likely indestructable robots, but unfortunately there was no movement. Gearing issues meant their robot didn’t leave the starting line, but a fully remote control system.
Team Altchemists
Last (but not least) to showcase their efforts were The Alchemists. Power problems let this team down with motor - magnet clashing causing the rapid de-powering of a power cell. This meant only one side of the robot could function. Although a non-mover their use of magnets was clever.
The day was filled with a showcase of designs and engineered prototypes each with it’s own perspective on tackling the solution. The project brought forth the need to learn and understand a whole host of problems and povide a solution to the problem. Each team demonstrated a capability to tackle the problem and develop a solution.
The project definately brought into the foreground many of the areas of knowledge which one needs to know in order to complete the task. Almost every engineering skill within the project was learnt throughout the project, along with acquiring an in-depth knowledge of the subject area, various ways to clarify the design and provide possible solutions to various problems along the way.
What is the next step i hear you ask!! Well, the next trimester takes place within a placement situation, where I will be working on a real project for a real company. On-the-job learning at it’s best. As for the robot, there are key issues which need to be addressed if the design is to be sucessful.
On the whole the project was extemely benifitial, exciting and challenging.
Photos from the day can be found within my flickr Lamp Post Climbing Robots set. And please stay tuned for more videos of the robot day action!
