Pepper, the parrot, has been a part of our family for over a decade. However, Pepper produces terrible shrieks when left alone. To combat the shrieks an automated sound triggered squirt gun was created to deter the bird from shrieking. At first, the squirt gun proved effective. The bird’s screaming would cease after the squirt gun would fire. However, the effectiveness of the water gun did not last. Pepper started utilizing the water as a bird bath and continued to shriek. Next, a remote controlled noise maker was placed near the bird’s cage (fig 2). Whenever the bird shrieked, a user could press a button to activate the noise maker startling the bird. This too did not last as the bird became adjusted to the rattling of the noise maker.
Instead of startling the bird into muteness, allowing the bird to roam around the house may be a better option. However, because of the messes the bird leaves behind and the possibility of the bird getting stepped on, roaming the house un-attended is not an option. If he could be placed on a mobile platform that could move about the house, hopefully he would stop screaming. Thus the idea for the “Bird Buggy” was born.
The original Bird Buggy is an open-loop, two wheel drive, tri-cycle platform powered by a 12v battery and controlled by a microcontroller. The parrot is placed on the perch and interacts with the buggy through a joystick. The movement of the joystick corresponds to movement of the cart. Because of the open loop feedback, the cart has several deficiencies: it is unable to drive in a straight line, and it cannot avoid obstacles. The goal of the new “Bird Buggy” is to solve the previous problems and to add some additional functionality to the platform.
Andrew Gray
Degree Pursuing: Masters (2014)
Concentration: Electrical and Computer Engineering
Andrew Graduated from the United States Naval Academy in 2007 with a BS in Systems Engineering. After being commissioned in May 2007, he reported to USS CAPE ST GEORGE (CG 71) as the Auxiliaries officer. While on board USS CAPE ST GEORGE he qualified as a Surface Warfare Officer and completed a six month deployment in the Persian Gulf while leading a division of 13 sailors. Following his first tour, in July 2009 Andrew reported to NSWC Dahlgren for training on the Aegis Weapons System. His next command was USS JASON DUNHAM (DDG 109) where he became the ship's first Fire Control Officer. Leading a division of 20 sailors, Andrew oversaw the installation and testing of the Aegis Weapons System on the ship. During his tour, he was responsible for the organization of several live fire missile exercises certifying the ship for deployment in 2012.
After serving his five year commitment to the Navy, Andrew started working on his Masters degree at the University of Florida. While taking classes, Andrew became heavily involved in the Machine Intelligence Lab under Dr. Schwartz and Dr. Arroyo (http://www.mil.ufl.edu/). He participated in the 2012 ION Robomow Autonomous Lawn Mower Competition. Currently, he is the team leader for PropaGator the autonomous boat.
0 comments:
Post a Comment
Thank for your comment which will help make this blog better.