Jessica Borer,
Senior, Electrical Engineering
Athens, OH 31 October 2012 – Every senior engineering student must complete a capstone project and for electrical engineering we get to choose which project we want to work on. I chose the Robotic Bobcat and am working on a team of four undergrad students and two graduate students. One of the interesting things about my project is that it is a continuing project, so this is the third or fourth year for this specific project.
Robots are being greatly researched by the military so they can be sent into dangerous areas and spare human lives. The end goal for the robotic bobcat is to create an autonomous quadruped robot with ‘intelligence’. This ‘intelligence’ would come from integrated external sensors. For example, one of the graduate students’ assignments is to integrate video processing so the bobcat will be able to avoid upcoming obstacles when walking. This way it would not need to be controlled but would be completely autonomous.
Senior design is a great way to get engineering students to start thinking about planning a project from start to finish. It is also a way to get students used to planning software that they will surely use in jobs after college. We also have to research possible products we will need for project. I look forward to seeing how much we can accomplish by the end of the year!
