Balancing-Platform Battery Collector
1st of 20 teams — McMaster Engineering Competition 2025, Senior Design.
In a four-person team at the McMaster Engineering Competition 2025 (Senior Design), we designed, built, and validated a battery-collecting robot that had to work on an unstable self-balancing platform — a board pivoting on a hemisphere — solving a previously undisclosed problem within 12 hours and a $50 material budget. We placed 1st of 20 teams and represented McMaster at the Ontario Engineering Competition (OEC) 2025.
- Role
- Motor-control firmware (team of 4)
- Timeline
- 2025 · 12-hour build
- Status
- Shipped
- Stack
- ESP32ArduinoC++Motor control
Collect batteries without tipping the platform
The robot had to drive and place batteries on a board balanced on a hemisphere. Every move shifts the load on the platform, so a robot that moves too aggressively drives the board out of balance and loses it.
Remote motor control in C++ on ESP32 / Arduino
I co-developed the remote-controlled motor-control system that drove the drivetrain and collection mechanism. The key decision was a software speed-control mode that halved motor speed for finer control — letting the robot stay balanced and place batteries precisely while faster-running competitors overshot and lost the platform.
1st of 20 teams · OEC 2025
We defended the design and results to a panel of industry judges, placed 1st of 20 teams, and went on to represent McMaster at the Ontario Engineering Competition 2025.