Simple. Intuitive. Powerful.

With the rising popularity of drones and robotics, both for professional and recreational use, came a myriad of control methods. Whether it's a custom controller or a mobile app, there's always a learning curve and things never feel quite natural, resulting in a barrier of adoption and errors while operating.

Wouldn't it be great if there was a way to just operate giant robot arms and drones without even thinking about it?

The result: a robotic arm anyone can use

After many iterations with different hardware and software, our final prototype used a Leap Motion sensor connected to a laptop, which then interfaced with an old robotic arm we had in our college lab. The robotic arm will follow the position of your hand as you move in real-time, and also mirror grasping motion, so you can remotely control it to move around, pick stuff up, and drop it off.

Humble beginning

Big ideas had to start small. I built this 3D capacitive sensor out of cardboard and aluminum foil, and used an Arduino to interface it to a PC. 

Fun fact: if you don't have proper grounding on your computer, the sensor goes nuts!

Gaining Traction

As I recruited a very talented team of students and secured funding, the project took off and became a top attraction for ASME, inspiring more students to join and tinker.