Jason’s Status Report for 10/5/24

WORK ACCOMPLISHED:

Part list changes: We elected to convert from our existing GPS IMU selection here: https://www.sparkfun.com/products/16329 to this one: https://www.sparkfun.com/products/22693.  The course staff chose to buy this and it outperforms our old pick significantly. The last option provided 2.5 meter accuracy and the new one is 0.01 meter accuracy, which allows us to meet our user requirements. The only consideration here is that the data output is slightly different so we will have to adjust our method of processing. This also frees up more budget to allow us to get closer to the $600 mark. We also swapped to a new LiDAR that the course staff provides. The new LiDAR does not connect directly to our Qwiic parts so we will be swapping to a USB-C to connect.  This also saves us significant budget.

We also solidified a number of connections and finished ordering parts. Once the parts arrive, we will be able to further solidify the designs. I plan on tinkering with all the parts in the lab to get a better understanding of how each one works and the data output we can expect from each one. The finalized parts list is here: https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1ouYsHj6s2zO1oddGNwvI4KCI4vJLrQ7ma_3bCsAnZ94/edit?gid=0#gid=0

The last major design change was a transition to a external battery pack to power the Raspberry Pi. We are concerned about splitting power from the huge pack so we are using an external pack. We could not find a 5v/5a external pack so we converted to a Raspberry Pi 4 instead of 5 to make it more accessible for common power packs. The only concern here is we will have to drill an additional hole in the enclosure to allow for charging. In addition, having 2 chargers is a little bit of an inconvenience.

I also did a preemptive diagram of all of our connections and the ports to ensure each one is compatible and able to transfer the data and power that we need.

PROGRESS:

I am on track on progress despite taking longer than expected to finalize the parts list. We went through a number of iterations including frequent group meetings, a meeting with Joshna, and frequent discussions with professors after class.

 

NEXT WEEK’S DELIVERABLES:
The next step for me is to receive the parts and start piecing things together to get closer to the final product. I will continue to help my team with app design, LiDAR sensing, and GPS mapping. The biggest task next is to figure out the autonomous steering mechanism and the communication method between the RbPi and the VESC. Before the parts arrive, I will familiarize myself with the open source VESC software to be prepared to jump in when all parts are here.