CeilBot - Sports HallGuillaume MERCIERMassinissa AIT-GHERBI

Plan• Intro• Ceilbot in Sports Hall

▫ Environment▫ Tasks and characteritics▫ Obstacles▫ Challenges

• Ceilbot qualitative concept▫ Structure▫ Fonction▫ User interface▫ Modelisation

• Conclusion

Intro• What the ceilbot robot could do in different environments

• Focus the ideas into Sports Halls.

• First, identify qualitatively all the requirements, the challenges and the obstacles that the robot is going to face.

• In the second step, the basic function and definition of the structure and the conceptual user interface of the robot has been thought.

• In the third step, 3D drawing and model.

EnvironmentTasks and characteriticsObstaclesChallenges

Definition of the environment• Large space, and a big height.• Full of pipes, wires, light sources.• Width of the room is at least 15 to 20 m• Length of such room is usually 35 to 40m• There is at least one basketball playground in sport hall

• The main requirement for the robot is that it has to move on the ceiling, so one of the first questions to face is:

How is the robot going to be attached to the ceiling in order to provide a good motion and safety for people?

Dimension of different playground

Definition of the environment

How can we fix the robot on the ceiling ?

The environment is now defined, our robot will have to move along a ceiling approximately 12m high avoiding, wires pipes light sources and sports goods. It is needed now to think about the robot task and then think about the robot itself.

Rail

• The grid is very large so the robot is not going everywhere.• It can be a problem when it will have to record a game, if it

can’t “see” from everywhere.• The advantages of the solution, is that we are very close to a

source of power. Indeed, it would be possible to plug the robot onto the electric network of the light system

Cable system - Bi cables in cross

Ceilbot Robot

Cables

Actuators

Ceilbot Robot

Cables

Actuators

Using two cables stretched from one side to the other of the hall both equipped with actuator would permit to move the robot wherever it is needed.That system is not enough faster and the control is not easy to do.

Cable system - Bi cables in parallel

System very fast and easy to control.

Ceilbot

Cables

Actuators

Ceilbot task and characteristics• Play real time record (follow the target like a ball)

▫ The system must be very fast.• User interface / manual mode

▫ Someone can use the robot manually to get one video or to prepare an action.

• Interactive coach: We can use sticker on players and the Ceilbot can analyze the game play and give a real-time position of each player to the coach or give strategies.

• Camcorder: Vision 360°▫ The camcorder have to record every from anywhere.

• Arm: height depending of the Sport Hall size. 1° of liberty.

ObstaclesObstacles Requirements Robot design

Basket-ball Detection of sport goodsSensors on the top close to the

ceiling

Light gridMaybe get the power from here

Power socket capable of connection to the light network

Ceiling not flatNecessity to add a grid for the

robotGrip and holder to maintain

the robot on the ceiling

Sudden obstacle (volley or basket ball ...)

‣ No breaking, robot has to be able to find its way

even if it has been move by the collision

Powerful and fast mission planner and navigator

‣ Avoiding the sudden obstacle as much as

possible

Reflexive architecture needed to be quick enough to avoid

the obstacle.

Ropes and cables Detection and avoidance Efficient vision detection

Challenges• PRICE

Sports hall, are equipped with valuable goods so the price of the Robot doesn’t have to be too low comparing to a robot built for public customers.

• EASY INSTALLATIONThe installation must not conflict with the light system or with the sports goods

• SHOCK RESISTANTIndeed if balls (e.g. basketball, handball, football) appear and bump into it.

• EASY TO ACCESSThe system must be easy to access for maintenance or to remove something on the rail.

StructureFonctionUser interfaceModelisation

StructureType

Number of items

Description

Metal shaped beam 2

Used as rails to make the robot move on the length of the hall. But also as a support to maintain the

robot in the air

Electric motor (step motor or DC motor) +

wheel2

Those motors coupled with wheels permits the motion of the robot

along the beam rails.

Metal cable with stretching system

2Those cable are used as rails by

the base of the robot. They permits it to move on the width of the room

Based motor + wheel 1It permits the motion of the base

along the cables

Fordable and removable arm

1This arm could be use to play

tennis and be remove then when the robot is only filming

Camera tracking 2 Vision recognition

Base of the robot 1

It makes the connexion between the motion on the different rails

and the active part (filming and/or playing)

Rack rail 4

It permits the entire structure to go up or done in order to make the necessarily maintenance on the

robot

Functions• Play real time record (follow the target like a ball)

The system must be very fast. Link:

http://www.skycam.tv/folders.asp?action=display&record=3

• Interactive coach: We can use sticker on players and the Ceilbot can analyze the game play and give a real-time position of each player to the coach or give strategies.

• Robot player: the robot can be your opponent. It can play tennis with you by using a tennis racket and it can follow the ball with the video camera.Link: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TXJYz5G-AlQ&feature=player_embedded

User interface

• The user interface could be some remote device equipped with a multi-touch screen.

• When the robot is used as an opponent is would be a good idea to have several different mode of difficulty (beginner, medium, master).

• Think about an easy system to fold and remove, or add the arm to the main body (system has to be save for users).

• The main advantage of this solution compare to a usual joystick is that it is portable and maybe easier to control.

Model

Camera

Cable

Arm

MODELISATION ADAMS

Conclusion

• The Ceilbot robot project is very interesting because it demands lots of imagination ingenuity. Besides we think that a robot which moves under the ceiling could be a enormous market, and we are not the only one.

• For the moment our robot is still a concept, but we are working on the simulation and what could be the real structures using standard components.

Thank You