Yolo: Holonomic Robot

Yolo is a robot whose design elements are being studied to determine whether robots can increase the development of creativity in children. In a story formation exercise intended for children, Yolo acts as the guiding character in a group of movable toys. It responds to a child’s manipulation with minimalistic behaviors that spark a social connection while leaving room for imagination and creativity. This robot was created in Guy Hoffman's Human-Robot Collaboration and Companionship Lab at Cornell University and has been accepted to the 2018 ACM/IEEE International Conference on Human-Robot Interaction Student Design Competition. This robot was given a full redesign during the Fall 2017 semester. I was responsible for designing the base platform, which included a holonomic drive system, Raspberry Pi Zero W, power system, motion sensing, and support structure. I specified the motors and omni wheels and designed the base components that created the foundation for the robot. This was manufactured with 3D printing and laser cutting. I then created 5 unique behaviors for the robot by controlling the motors via a Raspberry Pi Zero W (programmed in Python) and motor drivers. To detect how the robot is manipulated by children, I integrated an optical sensor into the base design and obtained data feedback via USB connection and Python functions. To power the robot’s elements, I designed, built, and tested a rechargeable Li-Po battery system.