Inverted Pendulum / Cart Project: Name:__________________________________

1) Using what you have learned throughout the MEEN475 course, you will need to design and build an inverted pendulum cart. This is a classical example of a system that is in unstable equilibrium.

Naturally, this is an unstable system since the inverted pendulum will want to fall. You will need to design the cart so that it can balance the inverted pendulum. The cart does not need to turn. The cart is just rolling back and forth in order to balance the pendulum.

This project will be done in teams of 4 students per team. You will drive your cart using the Pololu gear motors and wheels that have encoder feedback. For feedback on pendulum, you will use the potentiometer. (You will need to eliminate some of the friction that is in this potentiometer for the pendulum to freely rotate.) You are responsible for the design and fabrication of your cart and pendulum. This means that each team will have a unique solution since the mass and inertia will be different. Your pendulum length should be 36”. It is recommended that you use either a wooden dowel rod or a wooden yard/meter stick for the pendulum. Adding an appropriate amount of weight at the top of the pendulum can change your rotational inertia, which can help in balancing.

Design Project / Lab 6 – 15%Memo You will work in teams of 4 for this assignment. Make sure that each of your names are on the assignment. You will need to write a short memo that provides:

- schematic of your wiring- picture of your setup- the code that you wrote to run the program- lessons learned / improvements- You will also need to provide a video that shows the system working. This can be done by uploading a video or providing a link to a video you have posted online.

Function

Function Stages Max Points Possible (15%)

Stage 1: 8Build a cart has controlled movement from driving the motors (no turns)Stage 2: 12Cart has controlled movement and feedback is provided from systemYou should be able to put down a tape measure and show how your cart can go to a distance, stop, then go to another distance. At least 3 distances should be used (example: 24”,48”,36”). Demonstrate how you are using the encoders to do this.Stage 3: 14Cart attempts to balance the inverted pendulumState 4: 17Cart uses PID control to balance the inverted pendulumBonus Stage: 20Cart uses PID control to balance the inverted pendulum and can correct for small disturbance inputs