ECE 477 Digital Systems Senior Design Project Spring 2007
Homework 2: Design Project Proposal
Due: Friday, January 19, at NOON
Team Code Name: Smart Shopper Group No. 2
Team Members (#1 is Team Leader):
#1: John Sweeney Areas of Expertise: Electrical Engineering
#2: Tera Wong Areas of Expertise: Computer Engineer
#3: Stevi Wood Areas of Expertise: Computer Engineer
#4: Jeff Richards Areas of Expertise: Computer Engineer
Project Abstract:
Our project is an automated shopping system. It consists of a shopping cart and a user interface system loaded onto a computer. It takes a shopping list from the computer and “finds” all of the items on the list.
Design/Functionality Overview:
Our team proposes to design an automated shopping system. This system, with primary focus being the “cart,” could be used by traditional commercial stores to supplement their shopping experience or could easily be used in industrial applications such as warehousing or manufacturing. Any scenario involved with item location and retrieval from a storage space could be a chance for our system to improve efficiency and customer satisfaction.
Presently, our chosen application is in a commercial supermarket setting where an autonomous shopping cart would navigate the store searching for a customer-selected list of items. Due to the indoor environment, GPS will not be a possible means of navigation monitoring. Instead, the cart will use a static map and will utilize RFID tags located at every isle to ensure it is staying on path. Once reaching the isle of choice, it will continue along the static path until it locates the item. The list of items will be received via Bluetooth from the customer through a user interface system. Once the location and loading of all of the items on the shopping list is completed, the cart would meet the customer at checkout or their vehicle where the customer would receive their purchases. The cart would help speed the shopping experience or, in some cases, replace the need for the customer to leave their vehicle entirely.
For the scope of this project, the cart will not actually have a mechanical arm to remove the items from the shelves. Instead, there will be an audible or visual notification that the item has been found.
Our estimates of cost for the project prototype are approximately $300. This estimate is based upon the cost of previous team projects performed at Purdue. We estimate that the motors may cost approximately $30 a piece. The cart cost $15 and has already been purchased. Depending on the availability of samples for the RFID components these parts may cost approximately $30 along with additional costs for the tags themselves, $5 a piece. Other passive components and transistors will cost approximately $25 in total. More expensive ICs such as H-bridges, power conversion parts and Bluetooth receiver may cost $40. Allowing for additional costs for mechanical parts the total for the project comes close to $300
John will perform much of the organizational functions of a team leader by keeping information, materials and documentation ordered. John will also handle primary hardware design for the project, especially power and motor control systems. Tera will also support in a leadership function because of her interest in systems engineering. She will help to oversee subsystems from a project level and manage the interface between systems. Jeff brings to the table extensive software experience and as such will be leading the team’s design of its software systems, both for the user interface and for the cart controls. Stevi has previous experience with PCB layout and schematic design that will be very valuable to the team. Furthermore, both Stevi and Tera have the skills necessary to design both hardware and software and will support both aspects of the design where needed. With this combination of skills and previous design experience, our team is confident of having a well rounded design, with responsibility shared by all its members.
Project-Specific Success Criteria:
1. An ability to…interface effectively with customer
2. An ability to…determine an efficient path to a random sample of locations
3. An ability to…autonomously navigate indoor terrain
4. An ability to…locate and interface with specified items
5. An ability to…compile information on the items transported
Block Diagram:
Figure 1: Smart Shopper Block Diagram
Division of Labor:
Design Component Homework / Professional Component HomeworkPackaging Design and Specs / Tera / Design Constraint Analysis/Parts List / Jeff
Circuit Schematic and Narrative / John / Patent Liability Analysis / Stevi
Printed Circuit Board Layout / Stevi / Reliability and Safety Analysis / Tera
Software Narrative and Listing / Jeff / Social/Political/Environmental Analysis / John