14. Summer Updates: RAS, ALP, and Zynq

Post date: Jun 14, 2014 4:27:15 AM

It has been way too long since the last entry posted on this blog. In spite of the lack of posts, though, I have been increasing my activity on my YouTube account, where I've been regularly uploading videos, and rigorously working on projects, especially those having to do with my area of research.

RAS Robotics. After several months since the competition's completion, I have finally completed the design page of the Robotics and Automation Society (RAS) Prepared Robotics Competition project! For those who want to know more information on the competition itself and the final results thereof, please check out the project's main page. What I recently added is a page describing the thought-process behind the project, including information such as what hardware is utilized and from what libraries the software is written. I even tried to include links to where some of the hardware is purchased.

ALP. In preparation for the new senior design team to pick up the Autonomous Lawnmower Project (ALP), a few modifications were recently made to the project's hardware and software, some of which include the reconstruction of the model lawnmower's chassis, but much of which include the cleaning of the project's software and writing documentation. The video shown above demonstrates the project's improved performance in its autonomous operation. For comparison, please view the last video which can be found here.

At this point in time, I have made all my direct contributions to the project and I wish the next team all the luck in the world with their new endeavor! I will continue to post updates on my blog when they reach significant milestones (e.g. actually implementing the navigation algorithm onto an actual lawnmower).

With all of that said, I do plan on adding one last page to the ALP project page, explaining some of the thought-process behind the project's latest developments (i.e. the aforementioned modifications to the project's hardware and software). Moreover, I do plan on adding the software having to do with the image processing (i.e. OpenCV libraries) to this site's C++/C page. (EDIT: I recently added the software that performs the image processing to the site's C++/C page!)

Zynq. Last, but certainly not least, is my work regarding Xilinx's Zynq EPP. The video above demonstrates some of the work I have been doing. Unfortunately, it is difficult to create many videos on projects having to do with the Zynq, simply because the projects I've worked on thus far mostly take place within the chip. For instance, the video demonstrates how each of the Zynq's two processing cores can run FreeRTOS and communicate with each other through shared memory in the external DRAM. The LCD (alternatively called the OLED), switches, and LEDs of the ZedBoard, which is the development board that carries the Zynq EPP and other peripherals, are also utilized in order to have a visual aspect to the project.

In spite of the aforementioned difficulties, most of the content that will be added to the site will be in regards to the Zynq EPP. The Zynq's main page will eventually undergo a lot of renovation, even to the point at which the page will be more of a general page where I will post information on pretty much any project regarding the Zynq EPP and Field Programmable Gate Arrays (FPGA).