Robot design and construction

The image shows an educational wheeled robot with its parts numbered. Identify each part and explain what function it serves within the robot (structure, movement, control or perception).

Name the basic parts of a simple mobile robot and state which element of a control system (sensor, controller or actuator) each one corresponds to.

Explain the difference between a robot and a simple automatic machine such as a washing machine: what capabilities make a system "deserve" to be called a robot?

What is a robot chassis and what qualities must it possess (lightweight, rigid, with space for electronics)? Relate this to materials you know from the workshop.

Design the weight distribution of a mobile robot: where would you place the battery (the heaviest component) and why does its position affect stability and drive-wheel traction?

Explain what a servomotor is and how it differs from a standard DC motor. Give a suitable use for each one inside a robot.

Many two-wheel drive robots feature a third, unpowered caster wheel. Explain its purpose and what support and balance issue it solves.

A robot has two drive wheels, one on each side. Explain what each wheel must do (spin forwards, backwards, or stop) for the robot to move forward in a straight line, reverse, and spin on the spot to the right.

Your robot must follow a black line painted on the white classroom floor. Reason what sensor it needs, where you would place it, and what the program should do every time the sensor strays from the line.

Explain what sensor calibration is and write a short procedure to calibrate a robot's light sensor in your classroom (which two reference readings to take and how to use them).

You must select the drive system for an inspection robot in a greenhouse with 60 cm wide aisles, zero-radius turns on its own axis, and damp soil with irrigation pipes protruding up to 3 cm. The robot has a fixed 12 V and 7 Ah battery and must guarantee 4 h of continuous runtime. Analyze the physical behavior of three options: 1) Two drive wheels with a caster wheel, 2) Fixed 4WD (skid-steering), and 3) Continuous tracks. Predict which critical failure rules out two of them (in terms of traction, maneuverability, or consumption due to lateral friction) and justify what the optimal configuration is to meet all constraints.

A robot moves forward in a straight line for only a few metres and then gradually veers to the left. Analyse at least three possible causes (mechanical, electrical, or software-related) and explain what test you would carry out to rule out each one.

Design the "safe mode" for a school robot: what should the program do upon detecting low battery, a persistent obstacle, or loss of communication? Write the rules and reason why safety comes before the mission.

In a search and rescue trial in a collapsed environment, a robot must locate and shut off a gas valve. The team debates whether to use RF teleoperated control with a camera or 100% autonomous control with sensors. The environment presents two critical problems: blind spots with link losses of up to 1,5 s and unforeseen obstacles that require braking in less than 0,3 s while moving at 0,4 m/s. Predict the failures that the exclusively teleoperated robot will suffer in the face of these limitations and justify why a hybrid architecture (teleoperation assisted by local safety routines on the microcontroller) is technically superior to both options, detailing what decisions the robot must make on its own without waiting for the pilot.