Automated Bulldozer 

Brian Pietras and April Ucci

The bulldozer uses light sensors to follow reflective tape. It is also equipped with a sonic range finder that prevents it from colliding with objects. The user interfaces with the bulldozer through the UART and can select manual or automatic mode. In automatic mode the bulldozer has the ability to execute four consecutive turns when encountering forks in the tape. If any objects are encountered along the way, the bulldozer will stop and wait for the object to move before continuing along its path. When it reaches its destination, the user can enter manual mode, or have the bulldozer return to its point of origin

The original goal of the project was to have two bulldozers operating in tandem, each controlled by a separate MPC823. The leader would transmit instructions to the follower through an infrared transmitter. We got both the bulldozers and the IR communications working properly, but did not have enough time to write the software.

Each bulldozer required the following to function: one 3.3V voltage regulator, two EE-SPZ401 photo-reflective sensors, two SN754410 H-bridges, one SRF04 Ultrasonic Range Finder, miles of wires, and a lot of pleading and cajoling. The infrared communications system that was not in use at the time of demonstration included an infrared LED, a phototransistor and a few resistors.