UNL students design road construction robots

Road construction crews may be thanking UNL students in the future.

Two robots developed at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln may make road repair easier and more efficient.

UNL Mechanical Engineering Professor Shane Farritor has been guiding students in his mechatronics class as they build and program robotic highway repair machines. Mechatronics is an interdisciplinary area that combines mechanical engineering with electrical engineering, computer science and information systems.

"Mechatronics is a new field. But it has really taken off in the last two years," Farritor said.

On the second floor of Nebraska Hall, UNL senior Mark Rentschler guides his waist-high creation, known as the barrel robot, through the engineering building. Rentschler took an orange and white safety barrel, the kind motorists see in construction zones, and placed the barrel on top of a robot body he created.

Rentschler's robot can be controlled by a wireless link or programmed to follow an audio signal. Farritor said in the future it is conceivable a whole army of barrel robots could move themselves up and down construction zones. The barrel robot could help highway crews work more efficiently because it takes time to gather and move safety barrels.

"It would be nice to have some barrels that were smart enough to move themselves," he said.

Farritor and Rentschler presented the robot design to the Nebraska Department of Roads last month. Rentschler said the robot was well received and a second meeting has been scheduled. There is a possibility the Department of Roads could use a model of Rentschler's robot in the future.

In Farritor's mechatronics class, the barrel robot was not the only smart machine. Another robot known as "Companion" is UNL senior Jason Dumpert's project.

"Companion" was first built by Farritor when he was a student at MIT. Farritor brought the robot with him when he accepted a teaching position at UNL. Dumpert, a senior electrical engineering major, adopted the "Companion" model and used the robot for his undergraduate research project.

"Companion was originally built for the Department of Defense. It was first conceived as a machine for urban warfare," Farritor said.

With Dumpert's modifications, the machine may have many nonmilitary applications.

The robot, which is based on an electric wheelchair, is equipped with a laser range finder, optical sensors, bump sensors and two video cameras. Farritor said the video cameras give the robot stereo vision, as well as depth perception. When fully functional the machine can explore on its own, as well as follow commands.

"You can tell it to go to the elevator, and it will go down the hall and find the elevator," Dumpert said.

As part of his research project, Dumpert was responsible for mechanical additions to the robot as well as the computer program.

"When I started it was really overwhelming. But I went a little bit at a time and eventually the pieces came together," he said.

In the future the "Companion" may be used to paint lines or seal cracks in a road. Farritor said the machine could also function as a "general" to an "army" of barrel robots.

While Dumpert has been able to talk about his robot, Rentschler, until recently, was asked by the university's lawyers to keep quiet about his project.

While the university was filing for a patent on the barrel robots, Rentschler had to avoid publicity. But last week, Farritor said the patent application was filed and Rentschler now has more freedom to inform others of his creation.

Rentschler, who was demonstrating his robot Friday during the engineering department's open house, said it felt good to have his name on a patent application. He also said he was glad he could finally talk about his work.

"It was hard to keep it under wraps," he said.