Team Status Report for 03/21/2026

The ability of the UWB anchors to work continuously over the duration of the play is something we have to test thoroughly; during our Saturday work session, we’ve had problems with the anchors turning off due to slightly incorrect resistor values. Although we’ve now gotten them all to run properly, we’ll have to do more stress testing to ensure that they are capable of recording a full play with no problems. Another risk that we have regarding the audio portion of the project is the presence of multiple instruments and the operatic dialogue that could cause interference with the piano music that is necessary for the Matchmaker library. We’ll have to discuss the scope of the project with Dr. Dueck and understand the exact use case, ensuring that we’re using the right tools. The plan to mitigate this is to use a powerful Samson microphone solely for the piano, as opposed to the Lavalier microphones we initially were using for each actor’s dialogue. Another risk we have is the motor VESC wiring. We’re currently connecting the motor phase wires to the VESC through just solder and e tape, and we run the risk of the connections breaking/shorting if they become a stress point during rail movement. We’re planning to mitigate these risks by later replacing the E tape with heat shrink for a more secure connection. In terms of schedule, we’re working on most systems concurrently. The UWB sensors/anchors should be up and running very soon, and once the ECE pick-up center is open, every part needed will be in our possession.