Multidisciplinary Design Optimization of Robotic Football Players by Undergraduate Students from Multiple Science and Engineering Programs

Adam Said El-Rahaiby; Andres Tovar

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Conference: 2014 ASEE Annual Conference & Exposition
Location: Indianapolis, Indiana
Publication Date: June 15, 2014
Start Date: June 15, 2014
End Date: June 18, 2014
ISSN: 2153-5965
Conference Session: Systems Engineering Division Technical Session 3
Tagged Division: Systems Engineering
Page Count: 9
Page Numbers: 24.924.1 - 24.924.9
DOI: 10.18260/1-2--22857
Permanent URL: https://peer.asee.org/22857
Download Count: 632

Paper Authors

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Adam Said El-Rahaiby Indiana University Purdue University, Indianapolis

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Dr. Andrés Tovar is an Assistant Professor of Mechanical Engineering at Indiana University-Purdue University Indianapolis. Previously, he served as a Research Assistant Professor of Aerospace and Mechanical Engineering at the University of Notre Dame and as an Associate Professor of Mechanical and Mechatronic Engineering at the National University of Colombia, where he also acted as the Department Chair and the University’s Academic Director. He received his B.S. in Mechanical Engineering and M.S. in Industrial Automation from the National University of Colombia in 1995 and 2000, respectively. As part of his early career development in 1995, he started a machine design company in Colombia, but then in 1999, he moved to Spain and worked for Tekniker R&D designing ultraprecision machines. In 2001, Dr. Tovar was selected for the prestigious Fulbright fellowship program and earned his M.S. and Ph.D. in Mechanical Engineering from the University of Notre Dame in 2004 and 2005, respectively. As a graduate student at Notre Dame, while studying bone functional adaptation, Dr. Tovar proposed a structural optimization algorithm known as the hybrid cellular automaton (HCA) method. This method has since been applied to the design of crashworthy structures for Honda R&D Americas, as well as blast mitigating structures and materials for the U.S. Army and the Air Force Office of Scientific Research. Currently, Dr. Tovar is the founding director of the IUPUI Engineering Design Research Laboratory and the author of more than100 technical publications, including 27 journal papers and one book chapter. His research on engineering design addresses fundamental aspects on synthesis and optimization of high-impact energy absorbing materials and structures, particularly for applications in the automotive and aerospace industries. He teaches undergraduate and graduate courses in mechanics and mechanical systems design, and he has been awarded in 2013 and 2014 as IUPUI Department of Athletics Favorite Professor.
Adam El-Rahaiby is currently an undergraduate student attending Indiana University-Purdue University Indianapolis studying Mechanical Engineering.

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Andres Tovar Indiana University Purdue University, Indianapolis

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Andrés Tovar, Ph.D. is an Assistant Professor of Mechanical Engineering at Indiana University-Purdue University Indianapolis (IUPUI). He previously served as a Research Assistant Professor of Aerospace and Mechanical Engineering at the University of Notre Dame and Associate Professor of Mechanical and Mechatronic Engineering at the National University of Colombia. Prof. Tovar received his B.S. in Mechanical Engineering and M.S. in Industrial Automation from the National University in 1995 and 2000, respectively. He earned his M.S. and Ph.D. in Mechanical Engineering from the University of Notre Dame in 2004 and 2005. Currently, Prof. Tovar is the director of the Engineering Design Research Laboratory at IUPUI and the faculty mentor for the IUPUI Robotics Club. His main research areas include biologically inspired optimization and multiscale design methods for materials and mechanical systems.

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Abstract

Multidisciplinary Design Optimization of Robotic Football Players by Undergraduate Students from Multiple Science and Engineering ProgramsThis paper presents the multidisciplinary design optimization (MDO) and fabrication of a teamof robotic football players. The robotic team is composed of two receivers, one center, and onequarterback. Each robot has a footprint of up to 16 square inches and is up to 24 inches high. Thegame of American football is played in an enclosed arena similar to a basketball court and eachrobot is remotely controlled. The design, fabrication, and operation of the robots involvesIndiana University-Purdue University Indianapolis (IUPUI) and Butler Universityundergraduates (freshmen to seniors) majoring in STEM disciplines, including computer scienceand mechanical, electrical, and energy engineering. The students are exposed to numerousengineering design challenges, such as shock absorbent structure design, fast and dexterous robotmaneuvering, development of robust and reliable control hardware and software, and balltransfer between robots in a highly unpredictable game environment. To address thesechallenges, we adopted a collaborative optimization (CO) approach. CO is a multi-level MDOmethod, which incorporates system-level and subsystem-level optimization. Four disciplinesemerged in the course of this project, namely: (i) structures and transmission, (ii) transfermechanisms, (iii) electric boards, sensors, and circuits, and (iv) software and telecommunication.CO’s advantage over other MDO methods is that it allows disciplinary autonomy whileachieving interdisciplinary compatibility. The effectiveness of this experience is demonstratedwith the multidisciplinary design, fabrication, and operation of the IUPUI-Butler robotic footballteam in a game environment.

Citation
Format

El-Rahaiby, A. S., & Tovar, A. (2014, June), Multidisciplinary Design Optimization of Robotic Football Players by Undergraduate Students from Multiple Science and Engineering Programs Paper presented at 2014 ASEE Annual Conference & Exposition, Indianapolis, Indiana. 10.18260/1-2--22857