Semi-autonomous Line Following Domino Dispensor

Open Access
- Author:
- Shipley, Jenny Lynn
- Area of Honors:
- Mechanical Engineering
- Degree:
- Bachelor of Science
- Document Type:
- Thesis
- Thesis Supervisors:
- Dr. Sean N Brennan, Thesis Supervisor
Henry Joseph Sommer III, Thesis Honors Advisor - Keywords:
- Arduino
robot
toy
domino
line follower
automation
microcontroller - Abstract:
- Ever since the 18th century, dominoes have been a prevalent pastime. Commonly, they were used in a similar manner as cards; games were played based on the value of the dots on the domino's face. In addition to these value-based games, domino toppling – standing dominoes on end in long lines so that they topple over sequentially when knocked over - has grown to become a popular way to use dominoes. Toppling has become so common that when one small event causes a long string of larger events, the phenomenon could be commonly called the “domino effect.” As prevalent as domino toppling is, there is a limitation put on the audience who can enjoy the hobby: the children who most enjoy setting up long lines of dominoes typically do not have the coordination to actually set up a domino chain. Setting up dominoes in preparation of toppling takes a great deal of concentration and dexterity to achieve both uniform spacing and not topple the chain over. This thesis seeks to develop a robotic device to automatically arrange the dominoes for a person to knock over later along a user-drawn line or curve, such that domino toppling can become a more accessible amusement. Upon studying the current devices available, there are very few existing designs – and even less working prototypes – for an automated domino dispensing device. This thesis explains several design iterations of an Arduino-based robotic domino dispensing robot and resulting performance improvements for each iteration.