Abstract
Our project is a driving set that can connect to a remote-controlled car or a computer. Accelerometers on the driver's hands will act as a steering wheel and pressure sensors at the driver's feet will act as pedals. The motion and tilt of the accelerometers would direct the turning of the car while a pressure at the user's feet would direct the forward and backward motion. These actions could also be bound to computer keys to allow the use of STŸR for driving games. STŸR could interact with the cars using Bluetooth modules while data could be transferred to a computer via WiFi.
Design
STŸR includes a glove and pedal set in the apparatus. The pedal set was constructed using MDF with labeled pedals and hinges to allow work under the pedals after they have been placed on a platform. The Arduino Uno and main breadboard is attached to the platform as well, which is used as the central module. Pressure sensors are placed under the pedals, where a wedge provides contact between the pedal and pressure sensors. The steering gloves are attached to the central breadboard with very long wires. On the gloves, there is a very simple and minimal perfboard that only includes an accelerometer connected on the z-axis, the axis that we determined the turning direction from. The final aspect of the apparatus is the HC-05 Bluetooth module. The master module was connected on the central breadboard on the pedal set platform. Information was sent to the slave module connected to the Arduino Leonardo. Keys were mapped to the City Car Driving Simulator game.
Challenges
One of our initial technical challenges was sending data through Bluetooth. We had issues pairing the HC-05 modules at first, but after pairing them, it still didn't seem to send data between the modules once the slave was connected to the Arduino Leonardo. We later discovered that the Arduino Leonardo reads Bluetooth data different from the Arduino Uno. It used the Serial1 function as opposed to the SoftwareSerial library with the BTSerial function and used pins 0, 1 as opposed to pins 2, 3. Another challenge arose in the construction of the pedal set as we did not have the materials, time, or capabilities to construct the pedals with moving springs and tactile feedback. We ended up constructing static wedges that pushed on the pressure sensor while the pedals remained angled. We realized after laser cutting the first set of wedges that we had to incorporate the height of the hinges under the pedals as well when we calculate the height of the wedges. The final design presented the user with visual feedback from the video game rather than a tactile response from pressing down on the pedals.
Future Plans
In the future, STŸR may be mapped to steer remote-controlled vehicles such as a Halbot, a larger toy car, or maybe even an electric vehicle. Beyond video game capabilities, the steering and acceleration functions of STŸR can definitely be applied on a much larger scale.
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