Robotic Artificial Intelligence Toy (R.A.T.) Presented by Shane R. Bright, Erik R. Brown, Wing-Seng Kuan, Micheal T. Singleton April 24, 2001

Project Objectives The main objective of the R.A.T. is to entertain a pet for an extended period of time without causing injury to the pet, humans, or the surfaces and objects in the area where the toy might be used. Secondary Objectives— Healthy Exercise for Pet Durability Customer Satisfaction

Contributions Shane Bright — Web page development, final design report, sonar and servo interfacing, motor controller design Erik Brown — Web page development, technical writing, GUIDE control program, motor controller design Wing-Seng Kuan — Robotic/Circuitry design, motor controller design, voltage doubler Micheal T. Singleton — Chassis design, motor design, voltage doubler, final integration and assembly

Specifications Dimensions (max):5.5 x 2.5” x 2.75” Weight (max):9.1 oz. Materials:plastic, rubber Power Requirement:4 AAA batteries, 9 V battery Features:obstacle avoidance and memory in a small, fast package Performance Specs Speed:10 ft/s Sight:reacts to objects within three feet of sensor Battery Life:standard life of alkaline batteries Surfaces:smooth floors Cost of prototype:$ Cost (production):$29.99 Operation costs:price of batteries

Design Considerations 1. GUIDE program is easily modified 2. Safety of R.A.T. in presence of humans and pets 3. Easy to manufacture 4. Ethical question—will the R.A.T. replace other pets? 5. The R.A.T. should be reasonably priced for the pet owner. 6. Will the R.A.T. affect the relationships between people and pets?

Timeline 1/10/01 – First meeting, established boundaries, outline for the semester 1/22/01 – Adopted OOPic as microcontroller for project, first chassis design failure 2/14/01 – MiniZ Race Car chassis adopted as RAT body 2/27/01 – Critical Design Review 3/24/01 – OOPic and sonar interfaced, sonar program implemented, chassis assembled

Timeline 4/21/01 – OOPic program GUIDE v1.1 implemented, correcting flaws in guidance system 4/22/01 – Motor Controller for chassis completed, initial tests show voltage to be too low to power motors 4/23/01 – Chassis modifications are made to mount sonar and OOPic devices. Motor Controller prototyping and Voltage Doubler failed in implementation. 4/07/01 – OOPic interfaced with servo, GUIDE v1.0 was coded implementing servo, motors, and sonar.

Design Requirements The R.A.T. must… Avoid becoming trapped by obstacles or the pet. Move in a way that interests the pet. Be durable enough to endure the contact that might occur with obstacles and/or the pet. Avoid displeasing sounds and visual features. Meet minimum requirements for battery life, safety, and functional lifetime.