Technical Requirements
Several constraints were imposed on us during the design of the rover.Size and Weight Limitations
| Specification | Value |
|---|---|
| Maximum width | 80 cm |
| Maximum height (without antenna) | 80 cm |
| Maximum height (including antenna) | 250 cm |
| Maximum weight | 40 kg (excluding equipment in the remote control cabin) |
Rover Specifications
- The rover must be remotely controlled by one or more human operators from the team.
- The rover must be equipped with onboard cameras to transmit live video to the control station.
- Energy autonomy is imperative; the rover must not be connected to a power cable, and the use of a combustion engine is prohibited.
- The rover must be able to cover a distance of up to 100 m from the control station.
Materials
Chassis
Made from 20x20mm square aluminum bars. Joints made of PolyLactic Acid (PLA), a biodegradable plastic material used in 3D printing, form the vertices of a rectangular parallelepiped to join the aluminum bars.
Suspension
Designed using 20mm diameter aluminum tubes and PLA parts to join the tubes into functional groups.
Wheels
Made in two parts. The part in contact with the ground is made of ThermoPlastic Urethane (TPU), a flexible plastic material that allows the wheel to deform when in contact with obstacles like stones to minimize shock effects.
Tools
Our mechanical team used several tools to design our rover:SolidWorks
A Computer-Aided Design (CAD) software widely used in the mechanical engineering community due to its simple interface and range of tools from part design and assembly to simulation.
3D Printer
We use Creality Ender 3 Pro printers that use the Fused Deposition Modeling (FDM) process. The filaments used are either PLA+ or TPU.
Column Drill
Used for precise drilling operations.
Hand Drill
For more flexible drilling needs.
Hand Saw
Needed to cut steel bolts and aluminum tubes.
Standard Parts
Screws, bolts, nuts, bearings, etc.