A Mini-Robot Sumo Competition to Teach Mechatronics to Engineering Undergraduates

摘要

This paper describes the guidelines and results of a mini robot sumo competition used in a juniorlevel engineering class at Texas A&M University. The course uses a BASIC Stamp (BS2, Parallax Inc.) microcontrol unit and commercial robots using the BASIC stamp (BOEBOT, Parallax, Inc.) for laboratory exercises.The final exam consists of a totally autonomous mini sumo robot competition between the students held duringthe final exam period. The students compete in teams of two and submit a design report in addition to thecompetition. Sumo robot tournaments originated in Japan and have been held in various countries, includingseveral locations within the United States. Japanese rules have only one weight class, 3 kg, but internationallyseveral other classes have been created. The most common in North America is the mini class with a weightlimit of 500 g. A widely accepted set of rules has been published by the Northwest Robot Sumo Associationwhich differs from the Japanese rules only in adding weight classes and modifying RC frequencies. Because ofthe time restrictions in a 3 credit semester class, the footprint dimensions in the Northwest mini-robot sumorules have been modified slightly to allow students to use the BOEBOT chassis, but they may use other MCUs and create their own chassis if they desire. Student responses have been enthusiastic and the class learningobjectives have been achieved.