Hardware Design

The hardware architecture of the Cheddar Chasers robot is built for modularity and precision. By separating sensing, power management, and logic into distinct sub-systems, we ensured the robot is both resilient to electrical noise and easy to repair during competition.

Main Control Board

The central hub of the robot handles high-level logic and signal routing.

Main Board Schematic Main Board PCB
Figure 1: Full Board Schematic (Left) and Final PCB layout (Right).

Power & Connectivity

Power Source: Fueled by a 3-cell LiPo battery for rapid motor acceleration.

3-cell LiPo Battery
Figure 2: LiPo Power Source and connector interface.

USB-C Connection: Implemented for firmware updates and serial data telemetry.

USB-C Hardware
Figure 3: USB-C port integration for debugging and data transfer.

Actuation

Our drive system consists of precision DC motors equipped with high-resolution encoders.

Drive Motors
Figure 4: High-efficiency motors used for the primary drive train.

Sensor Suite

IR Sensors: Custom array for short-range proximity detection.

IR Sensor Array
Figure 5: Infrared proximity sensor implementation.

Time of Flight (TOF) System: Millimeter-accurate distance readings for obstacles.

TOF Schematic TOF PCB
Figure 6: TOF Module Schematic (Left) and custom PCB layout (Right).
TOF Physical Sensor
Figure 7: Assembled Time of Flight sensor hardware.

Conclusion

The resulting hardware platform provides a stable, low-latency environment for our control algorithms.