Servo - June 2008

language is largely responsible for the success of the NXT in the non-engineering market. My only complaint with the language — which I’ve used for years — is that it really demands a lot of screen real estate. A 20” LCD screen can display only so many icons without scrolling or collapsing some. As a testament to the capabilities of the hardware and software, Virginia Tech used the LabVIEW-programmed CompactRIO for a third-place showing in the DARPA Urban Challenge ( www.me.vt.edu/ urbanchallenge). Virginia Tech’s

2005 Ford Hybrid Escape won

$500,000 for autonomously navigating the 60 mile urban course, behind Carnegie Mellon University and second-place finisher Stanford

University.

What this means is that students in the FIRST competition will no longer be limited to a clumsy, hopeless showing in the autonomous component of the competition. Armed with the new software and hardware, they’ll be able to use sophisticated, real-time image processing. Furthermore, because teams can use the high-level, graphical LabVIEW programming environment, they should be able to achieve more in less time. Again, referencing the Virginia Tech experience, the team was able to come in only seven minutes behind Stanford University’s

FIGURE 2. Controller on chassis.

entry in the DARPA Challenge, even though there were no programmers on the Virginia Tech team.

So, what’s the cost for this new push? The CompactRIO controller is a standard product available from National Instruments for about $1,500 retail. However, because of the generosity of National Instruments and the suppliers of components for the CompactRIO, the cost for teams will be significantly less. Still too steep for your high school? If so,

FIRST competitors will also have a new platform based on the LEGO Mindstorm NXT and a ruggedized metal platform.

The technological push behind FIRST will likely have repercussions beyond the mentors and students involved in the competition. With thousands of students developing LabVIEW routines and sensor assemblies, Darwinian selection will identify what works and what

doesn’t. Whether this move by the industry is equivalent to the introduction of the Macintosh in a PC-dominated market remains to be seen. However, I’d say the chances are good that you’ll be seeing numerous how-to articles in SERVO on how to best take advantage of this next generation of hardware and software platform available to the robotics community. SV

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