FPGA Robot Platform
We are developing an omni-directional FPGA-based robot platform. The main advantage of an FPGA as control unit in a robot system is the possibility of parallelization of tasks and the development of optimized circuits.
There are three step motors integrated to drive the Omni-wheels. Distance measurement is realized through integrated ultrasonic sensors (not mounted on the robot in the image above). Via a radio module a user can send commands to the robot and get some debug or status information from the robot. A miniaturized camera system should also be integrated.
The main goal is to realize a very compact mobile robot system with the ability to perform complex operations in real-time.
All components are controlled by a Suzaku-V board from the Fa. Atmark Techno with a Virtex-4 FPGA integrated. The FPGA contains a PowerPC which is the head of the system. Sensors and actuators a controlled in parallel by additional optimized IPs in the FPGA. The next step is to run a Linux system on the PowerPC which builds an easy to use interface for the user to control the robot.
Completed
"Design und Realisierung eines omnidirektionalen mobilen Robotersystems mit einer FPGA-Steuereinheit", Diplomarbeit, Kay Schieck, FSU Jena, 2009
"Konzeptionelle Entwicklung einer mobilen Roboterplattform auf FPGA-Basis", Studienarbeit, Kay Schieck, FSU Jena, 2008
Dipl.-Inf. Michael Schmidt
