Introduction ¶

Prior to attending UCSC, I wasn’t very knowledgeable or even interested in the world of battlebots. After being introduced to it through my friend Jacob Mills, I’ve become very interested. There is an important distinction to make between battlebots and real robots. Battlebots are not (generally) autonomous. Most battlebots are controlled using remote control. Mine will also not be autonomous, however, I will create an ESP8266 based board that allows me control of the robot over wifi. The ESP8266 will also be driving the 128x64 SSD1306 OLED display for the robot’s face. Another important aspect of battlebots is obviously, the battling. This battlebot would probably not fare well in a real competitive setting, and it’s not intended to. This is simply my first attempt at an ESP8266 motor related project. This battlebot does have a weapon, a horizontal bar spinner, as it’s called.

The design process for the battlebot takes place in Fusion 360. Initially I designed the bot with a 3rd wheel in mind, however this was not necessary due to how small the robot is. The idea to add the screen was honestly an afterthought, I only starting adding the screen after finishing the main body of the robot. The whole robot is held together with M3 hex screws. The motors used are standard 130 DC motors, however after speaking with some members of Slugbotics, they have mentioned that using geared DC motors for the drive base and a brushless motor for the weapon is standard when building a battlebot. I also regrettably did not use heat set threaded inserts, so all the screws are tapped into the 3D printed plastic. I will redesign the motor mounts to accomadate the geared DC motors. The weapon, a bar blade, rotates smoothly with the help of a bearing, which I am currently waiting to get shipped to me from China.

Design ¶

My plans for the control PCB are not as set in stone. I know I want to make it a single board that contains the receiver, bms, and esc all in one unit. Whether I choose to use an ESP32 or ESP8266 is a decision that I will make later during the actualy board design. Currently, the main thing preventing me from beginning the board design is my lack of knowledge in controlling DC motors with a microcontroller. After doing some experimenting, I will be more confident to design and then fabricate control PCBs. The following images show the evolution of the robots design.