Accomplishments
This week, I worked on the UI that is user-facing when the robot detects a defect in the system. I also continued working on our final demo HVAC duct as well as fine-tuning the issues with our LiDAR for the system. In addition to this, I helped Rayann and Mahati with the testing and the verification of our machine learning model and how it operates when on the robot inside the duct.
I have also sourced some additional corroded materials for our demo which I am excited about because while our machine learning model isn’t perfect, it is looking promising.
Something else I worked on this week was the CAD files to create an encasing for our HVAC robot. We want a case over the robot that protects the different components, especially the Nvidia Jetson Orin Nano. I just created a basic encasing and we sent it to techspark and are waiting for it to be printed.
Lastly, since I will be the presenter for our final presentation, I have been praticing and making the slides along with Rayann and Mahati. Our professor also emphasized how important it is to explain technical concepts in an easier manner. I have spent the second part of the week making sure I fully understand the signals side of our project and if I understand what I am saying, I believe my audience will as well because I have no signals expertise.
My work this week has mainly been on Github and working on the physical robot itself and can be found here: https://github.com/aphadke234/ece_capstone_C7
Schedule
I am on schedule now and currently on track. I am happy with my progress and think that I will be done with my part of the project and able to help my peers with their deliverables after the end of next week.
Next Week
Next week, we will make our product look nice for the demo. Technically speaking, all of our code, testing, and integration has been completed so I am very excited to present our project to everyone!
New Learnings
I have had to learn how to use an Nvidia Jetson Orin Nano, as well as understand how computer vision and LiDAR works. These were new to me and I had never used them before. The way I approached learning was using online tutorials and youtube videos. I also used different textbooks and research papers to guide my learning.
I have also had to understand more about Machine Learning than I ever will learn. The way I approached my learning was to sit in on the introduction to machine learning classes this semester, and talking to my teammates, especially Rayann, who is an expert in signals and systems.
Lastly, I have had to learn how HVAC engineers work, what HVAC technicians usually do to fix commercial HVACs, and what kind of problems they encounter, as well as what working with a robot might look like in their field. I have had many talks with HVAC experts from trade schools in Pittsburgh and they have also allowed me to observe them while giving me some reading and videos to go through to guide my learning.