SEC Mechanical team
Competitive Robotics team
The Virginia Tech Competitive Robotics Organization (VT CRO) competes in many different nationally recognized competitions, such as the Southeastern Conference Robotics Competition hosted by the IEEE. VT CRO's 2025 SEC team was supported by the Mechanical, Software, and Electrical sub-teams. I was onboarded into the Mechanical sub-team during winter break of 2024.
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Since then, I gained experience in problem identification, mechanical design, rapid prototyping, and testing, all while considering the constraints and timelines of other teams. I have built confidence in On Shape's CAD and version control capabilities. Additionally, I developed a strong understanding of key robotic systems through close collaboration with other sub-teams. These include Dead Wheel Odometry, AprilTag recognition, SLAM mapping software, and ROS-based communication between our onboard Teensy microcontroller and Nvidia Jetson.
Technical details and personal involvement
The robot was required to pick up, sort, and dispense two different types of particles: Icosahedrons (20-sided dice). These particles differed in weight, with "Geodinium" being significantly heavier and "Nebulite" being lighter. Once collected and sorted, the robot needed to identify storage bins and place them in designated locations on the map.
To achieve this, the robot follows a structured process consisting of:
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Particle Intake – Collecting the icosahedral particles.
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Particle Transportation – Moving the particles within the robot.
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Particle Sorting – Differentiating between Geodinium and Nebulite.
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Particle Storage – Storing sorted particles appropriately.
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Bin Intake – Managing storage bins for collected particles.
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Particle and Bin Delivery – Placing filled bins in specific map locations.
Above: Dimensions of the game field. Below: Example of a game "Ore" (particle).
Finalized flip-out intake "comb" ramp with blockers fitting size constraints and protecting wheel path.
Above is a better look at the iterated "comb" ramp with slots to decrease torque on the central intake axils.
My personal contributions included creating, testing, and refining mechanisms that interact with the particles before and after the elevator transports the particles vertically.
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These pre and post elevator process supports included designing and redesigning the particle intake "comb" ramp with flip out dead zone blockers, a diagonal hopper sorter, storage bin, the delivery "flap" system, and a vibration module to stop any particle cloggage.
Additionally, I finalized several separate on-robot features being a computer vision camera mount, robotic draw bridge arm payload system labeled "beacon," and central battery mount.
Early agitator motor proof of concept demo.
Above is the mechanisms that were outside of the overall system including an adjustable camera mount, battery mount, and beacon design.
Below: First working version of the intake.
Beyond my direct design work, I have contributed to planning and strategizing various subsystems, including different elevator head designs, particle intake mechanisms, component positioning, and team assignments. I emphasized modularity to enable faster prototyping and testing, and I actively promoted effective communication within the team to ensure smooth collaboration.
When I was On-Boarded
A month out from Competion (2/25/2025)
Physical robot a week before competition (3/25/2025)