Casual Robotics Group

Faculty of Information Technology
Monash University

About:

We are a group of Monash University students and staff that mess around, building and programming robots made from LEGO® MINDSTORMS® NXT kits for fun.

The robots are built from LEGO® pieces and include a programmable block, that can drive several motors and receive input from a variety of sensors, such as touch, light, sound and distance. This allows fast prototyping and the ability to create a wide variety of robots with different functions.

We program the robots with the NXT-G software (included with the MINDSTORMS® kits), as well using the Not eXactly C (NXC) programming language.

Robots: Maze Navigator and Feeding Automaton
Maze Navigator robot in action!

Current projects:

Here are some of the things we've been working on recently.

Feeding Automaton

This robot, based on the tribot chassis, simulates the behaviour of a fierce animal wandering the savannah. Once it gets hungry, it'll look for food, feed itself and then wander around. If it gets lost (nothing happens for some time) it will ask to be guided back home—not a very fierce behaviour!

Catapult

The Catapult robot can be led by hand using the ultrasonic distance sensor. It will then drive forward until reaching a boundary drawn on the floor. At which point it will launch a ball towards a target, before reloading and repositioning itself to begin again.

Maze Navigator

This maze navigation robot is a tribot-based design with two light sensors at its front. If started in the centre of any square of a maze made up of 30cm squares, with walls marked with tape (of a contrasting colour to the floor colour), the robot will find its way to an exit. It will then use its built up memory of the portion of the maze it has discovered to return to its starting position via the shortest path.

Kerri Morgan, Julie Bernal and Michael Wybrow

People:

Current members of the Casual Robotics Group at Monash include:

Past members include:

Contact:

For more information, please contact Michael Wybrow.


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