Project Pancake - Unmanned Ground Vehicle (UGV)
Overview
The scope of project Pancake is to build an unmanned ground vehicle or UGV, discover the basic of electronics and edge devices from both a software and hardware perspective, andwork through an iterative design based on flaws discovered at each iteration.
During this process, we will be demonstrating:
- the Internet of Things (IoT) objects
- the usage of of a microcontroller and basic electronic
- the Python programming language; and the more specific MicroPython flavor
- containerizing applications
- refactoring in phases a monolithic application into microservices
- deploying containers on a Kubernetes container platform
Milestones
Phase 0: build the UGV
Discover the Internet of Things (IoT) objects and the basics of electronic to build the UGV.
The hardware is composed of:
- a Raspberry Pico Wireless
- a breakout board for easy prototyping (optional)
- a L298N motor controller with 2 DC engines
- a 4-battery holder pack
- a NC522 NFC interface (optional)
Phase 1: Minimal Viable Product
Discover the basics of software architecture on a microcontroller compared to a single-board computer or standard computer. This phase will introduce a first software iteration to remotely control the UGV from a simple web page.
The code provides the following features:
- connection to a pre-defined wireless network
- serve a web page to drive the rover (forward, backward, left, right, stop)
- detecting minerals of interests (optional)
This first phase will provide an usable UGV and exposing a series of flaws.
Phase 2
Discover the basics of edge gateway from a hardware and software perspective.
Phase 2 is addressing these 2 key elements by:
- refactoring the application into microservices
- containerizing the microservices
- leveraging the concept of Edge gateway
Phase 3
Discover the basics of IoT fleet management and Edge-as-Service.
Phase 3 is addressing the followings:
- securing the Edge connectivity using cloud native solutions
- applying GitOps principle to deploy and maintain the rover solution
- leveraging a hybrid cloud deployment for increased resilience
Bill of Material (BoM)
Software
Hardware
The below table shows a set of required and optional components. The optional components are to extend the learning and experience of the robot.
| QTY | Article | Price |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Rapsberry Pi PICO Wireless with header | $10 |
| 1 | KeeYees L298N Motor Kit with Jump Wires | $4 |
| 1 | HiLetGo 4xAA or 9V Battery Clip | $2 |
| 1 | USB to micro USB cable 1-meter | $3 |
| 1 | Paper box / food container | $2 |
| TOTAL | $21 |
| QTY | Optional Article | Price |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Freenove Breakout board Raspberry Pi Pico | $13 |
| 1 | HiLetGo Mifare RC522 RF + S50 Blank Card | $6 |
| TOTAL | $62 |
Note
When working in a workshop style, some of the above items are available in bulk with a interesting discount.