The project is a climbing photography robot, which can take pictures on posts in the stadiums.
The benchmarkk is the rocker arm camera. They are often used in the filming of large sports events. But it has many problems. Its rocker arm’s length is fixed, lacking flexibility. Its installation and calibration process is complex. And it requires manual operation.
Our project aims at building a climbing photography robot, whose two wheels can hold the post tightly to prevent it from dropping. As two wheels spins, the robot can go freely up and down the post and stop at a certain height. This can serve as a convenient substitute to take photographs at different heights in sports events.
The system with post climbing and photo taking function is our final solution. The post climbing part contains a pair of step motors that can make the wheels hold tightly to the post. Then, the wheels with emery paper wrapped around will spin to enable the robot go up and down and stop at a certain height, which is monitored by the infrared sensors. After that, the robot will take pictures at the given height with the camera on it.
The way to realize our project is mainly divided into three parts. Firstly, to lay the foundation for post climbing, we wrap emery paper around the wheels to provide enough friction force between the wheels and the post. Then we test the stability of the robot by putting it motionlessly on the post to see whether or not it can actually hold itself. Secondly, to ensure the accuracy of the infrared sensor, we read the distance detected by the sensor using the Arduino serial monitor and compare the result with the actual distance. Finally, the post climbing part, infrared sensor and the camera are coordinated.
The project solves the problems by providing a more convenient and flexible way to move up and down as a moving camera without the need for manual operation. It is an alternative solution to capture athlete movements, especially for use in situations when it requires quick captures at different camera positions. One possible improvement is to increase the friction between the wheels and surface of post by using tires of different materials. The robot provides a cost-efficient and unmanned way to photograph in the stadiums
