International Journal of Engineering Trends and Technology (IJETT) – Volume 21 Number 5 – March 2015
Android Based Master Slave Robot
Parag Sonawane1, Omkar Nyalpelly2, Mayur Talele3, Riya Modi4, Namrata Lade5(Asst.Professor)
Atharva College Of Engineering
University Of Mumbai, India
Abstract— Our Project topic Android Based Master Slave Robot
is based on Swarm Technology. In this work we investigate
spatial collective decision-making in a swarm of micro robots,
inspired by the thermo tactic aggregation behaviour of
honeybees. The sensing and navigation capabilities of these
robots are intentionally limited; no digital sensor data processing
and no direct communication are allowed. In this way, we can
approximate the features of smaller mesoscopic-scale systems
and demonstrate that even such a limited swarm is nonetheless
able to exhibit simple forms of intelligent and adaptive collective
behaviour[1].
Keywords- adaptive behaviour, stigmergy, collective decision
making , perception, communication in swarm.
some features into a robotic system. The project
includes design, hardware implementation, testing
and use of this type of self-assembling, selforganizing, metamorphic robotic systems. An
important part of the project consists of the physical
construction of at least one SWARM-BOT, that is,
a self-assembling and self-organizing robot and a
colony composing of a number (30-35) of smaller
devices, called s-bots physically interconnected
[15].
Taxonomy[11]
Aim -The main aim of this project is to build large
number of simple robots that can perform complex
tasks in a more efficient way than a single robot,
giving robustness and flexibility to the group.
INTRODUCTION
Android based Master Slave Robot is based on
“Swarm Intelligence”. The term “Swarm
Intelligence” refers to sophisticated collective
behaviour
that
can
emerge
from
the
combination of many simple individuals, each
operating autonomously [10].
I.
Swarm intelligence is “a property of systems of
non-intelligent robots exhibiting collectively
intelligent behaviour”. Nonetheless, based on the
definitions, we can see that the essential
characteristics of swarm intelligence consist of a
biologically inspired emphasis on decentralized
local control and local communication, and on the
emergence of global behaviour as the result of selforganization. The application of swarm intelligence
principles to collective robotics can be termed
“Swarm Robotics”[10].
The goal of the SWARM-BOTS project (Master
& Slave) is to take inspiration from ant selfassembling mechanisms and structures and translate
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Figure 1.1: Taxonomy of Swarm Robots.
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International Journal of Engineering Trends and Technology (IJETT) – Volume 21 Number 5 – March 2015
Swarm Communication
Communication works different in most robotic
swarms, depending mostly on factors like the
environment, the size of the robots, the budget of
the project and on the limitations set by creators or
other instances. The larger number of the robots is,
the more is the possibility of building up a properly
working communication system between the robots.
Some ways of communication are Bluetooth,
wireless LAN, communication via the environment
(stigmergy) or via infrared LEDs[14].
most common technologies for sending messages
from robot to robot in swarms are Bluetooth,
wireless LAN or infrared[14].
Important points of Communication
There
are
some
parameters
regarding
communication that are very important and have a
great effect on how the communication works and
should be carefully chosen by the developer:
Communication Range
The
robots
can’t
communicate
if
the
communication range is too small or if they are
The single individuals of the swarms don't nearby. If the communication range is big, this
communicate via messages. But they show some means that communication can jam, because every
collective behaviour. The members must exchange robot has to listen to every message that was
information in some way. This is done by a sent[14].
phenomenon called stigmergy, which means
communicating
by
changing
the Communication Area
environment[14][2].
In ideal case, the robot covers an area of 360°. If
only one communication unit at the top exists, this
can be achieved. But if communication is splitted to
different units a 360° communication area can only
be guaranteed for about half of the communication
range. This causes great constraints in the regularity
of communication and can thereby cause problems
in realization of swarm behaviour[14].
Stigmergy
Length of Messages
Large message tend to fail more often than short
ones[14].
Perception
Figure: 1.2 : Stigmergy
Communication via messages
Perception means recognition of the object
properties like colour, geometries and so on.
Whereas sensing (e.g. proximity sensing) is more of
a general capability to perceive the environment. In
particular proximity sensing means obstacle
detection[2][14].
At the moment, due to the inapplicability of Requirements
stigmergy in an efficient way, we have to find an
alternative of intra-swarm and inter-robot
We expect to have proximity sensors in each
communication. This can be done by the sending of of the directions that can estimate a distance to an
messages, if the robots have this capability. The
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International Journal of Engineering Trends and Technology (IJETT) – Volume 21 Number 5 – March 2015
obstacle as far, near and close. In most scenarios
imposed on a micro robotic swarm, robots have to
perform different spatial operations like building
spatial formation, recognition of object's size and so
on. For these tasks robots need a sensor that can
measure the distance between itself and an obstacle.
Measuring distances, geometrical features and
visible size of surfaces are expected to be obtained.
Based on them the robot can perform first the
individual surface recognition that can later be
expanded on collective perception of larger
objects[2][14].
II.
ANDROID INTERFACE
The main modification to this project is the
interfacing of Swarm robot i.e. (Mater Slave) with
an Android application making it flexible in nature.
There are two android applications namelyA.
Bluebots V1.0
The Bluebots app sends out 4-byte data packets
to indicate tilt angle, button presses etc. When you
start the Bluebots app it will show you any
bluetooth devices you have already paired with and
also any newly discovered devices. Either select the
already paired device if you have already set one up,
or go ahead and pair with a new device. Bluebots
Joystick interface also includes a slider and 5
buttons that can be used to control other features of
your vehicle. Controlling the Magician chassis is
simple just tilt the screen forward ,backward, left
and right.
Figure 1.3(a): Bluebots joystick panel.
Figure 1.3(a): The range of different Sensor used
in swarm bots.
B.
Blue term
Blueterm is an android application used to write
programs, codes and send these codes to the main
controller using a local communication medium
namely BLUETOOTH . A Bluetooth module is
used to establish such a communication. Common
commands like set passwords, set username etc. can
be used to change configuration if the Bluetooth
module used. The RFCOMM/SPP protocol
emulates serial communication over Bluetooth.
Figure 1.3(b) :
specifications.
Different
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IR devices
with
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International Journal of Engineering Trends and Technology (IJETT) – Volume 21 Number 5 – March 2015
To establish communication between the
robots i.e. the master and different slaves we use IR
sensors or RF module or Ultra sonic Sensors as per
the case. The main objective is to transmit the data
from a far distance without errors.
Working
The android application used as the modification
to add flexibility to the system, is used to control
the swarm robots. The Master robot is given codes
or set of programming instructions through the
android application in two ways:
Figure 1.3(b) – Blue term Panel.
III. IMPLEMENTATION
Android based master slave robot i.e. Swarm
robots mainly consists of a master robot and some
n- number of slaves. The project is divided into
sections like making of PCB, software supporting
(coding and programming) and constructing several
robots.
We have used an android application i.e.
Blueterm or Bluebots. These applications work
totally on Bluetooth. To interface the android
application and the master robot we require a
Bluetooth module.
Implementation of Master / Slave Robot
The robot is made using chassis, motors,
controller, motor driver and wheels. Additionally
we have interfaced the Bluetooth module at the
input of the controller. The Android application and
the module are then paired. We have used
additional Sensors to sense colours, temperature,
distance and objects to avoid collision. Also we
have used the ultrasonic sensors.
1. The application Blueterm is used for coding
and writing programming instructions and this
programming data is sent via Bluetooth to the
paired Bluetooth module. This application acts like
an emulator which then is given as the input to the
microcontroller Atmega8. This set of codes is then
given to the input of the motor driver which is
responsible for the movement of the robot. As a
result of which the Robot will either perform some
task such as picking up an object, moving front,
backwards, left or right. The same codes are
simultaneously sent to the output pin of the
microcontroller. IR sensors, RF modules or
Ultrasonic Sensors are added to this system through
which communication is possible. These sensors are
connected at the output of the controller. The codes
are then sent via RF modules to the Slave robots.
Each slave robot has sets of IR sensors and RF
module which receive the codes and then decodes
them and the motor driver controls the motors
which are connected to the output of the controller.
Thus a swarm Mechanism is achieved in this way.
To make it more advanced we can interface
cameras or robotic arms so that it can be used to do
labour work and for surveillance.
The Slave robot is also made using the same
components i.e. Chassis, motors, wheels, motor
2. The second method also uses an android
driver and additional sensors like the ultra-sonic application Bluebot. This application is a graphical
sensors and the RF module.
interface. It consists of accelerometer, sliders,
touchscreen pad, joystick or the 5- key remote
Communication
control. The user input is then transferred using
Bluetooth to the paired module. (Rest is the same.)
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International Journal of Engineering Trends and Technology (IJETT) – Volume 21 Number 5 – March 2015
the results of a comprehensive investigation of the
current state of swarm robotics research, organizing
and classifying that research into a preliminary
taxonomy. They aimed to provide an analysis of
existing swarm systems in an attempt to define the
starting point of potential algorithms leading to the
development of a new swarm system platform and
software design.
Figure 1.5: Block Diagram of Swarm
Mechanism
IV. FUTURE SCOPE
The next stage in the evolution of weapons
technology is now arriving: swarm robotics.
Military analysts identify several advantages
that robotic swarms, particularly those
deployed in the air and sea, will possess over
manned weapons systems.
Video streaming: We will implement the data
communication and video rendering modules
to enable video streaming from any robot to the
server. To improve the quality, peer to peer
techniques will be used.
Robot movement guidance: Based on the
location of the robots, the server can quickly
look up the geographical infonnation from the
database and provide certain guidance on
moving around the specific areas.
2. ETSI Industrials, Universidad Politécnica de
Madrid, c/José Gutiérrez Abascal, 2, 28006 Madrid,
Spain. Academic Editors: C. A. G. Soerensen and A.
Zavala-Rio. They claimed that large number of
simple robots can perform complex tasks in a more
efficient way than a single robot, giving robustness
and flexibility to the group. In this article, an
overview of swarm robotics is given, describing its
main properties and characteristics and comparing
it to general multi-robotic systems.
3. Frederick Ducatelle, Gianni A. Di Caro,
Carlo Pinciroli, Francesco Mondada and Luca
Gambardella.
We study the use of this algorithm in two
different scenarios. In the first scenario, the swarm
guides a single robot to a target, while in the second,
all robots of the swarm navigate back and forth
between two targets. In both cases, the algorithm
provides efficient navigation, while being robust to
failures of robots in the swarm. Moreover, we show
that in the latter case, the system lets the swarm
self-organize into a robust dynamic structure. This
self-organization further improves navigation
efficiency, and is able to find shortest paths in
cluttered environments.
4. Ming Li- Department of Computer Science,
California State University, Fresno Fresno, CA
93740, USA. Kejie Lu - Department of ECE,
V. LITERATURE REVIEW
University of Puerto Rico at Mayagiiez, Mayagiiez,
1. Tamer Abukhalil, Madhav Patil & Tarek Puerto Rico. HuaZhu - San Diego Research Center,
Sobh International Journal of Engineering (IJE), San Diego, CA 92121 USA. B. Prabhakaran Volume (7) : Issue (2) : 2013 44 Survey on Department of Computer Science, the University of
Decentralized Modular Swarm Robots and Control Texas at Dallas Richardson, TX 7~080, USA.
These people propose to build a wireless mesh
Interfaces Tamer Abukhalil Department of
network
as the wireless backbone within the areas
Computer Science and Engineering University
University of Bridgeport, 06604, Bridgeport, USA of special interest. One or more robots can get
Madhav Patil Department of Computer Science and connected with a nearby mesh router and access the
Engineering University , USA. This paper presents remote server. Within each swarm, a self-
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International Journal of Engineering Trends and Technology (IJETT) – Volume 21 Number 5 – March 2015
organizing mobile ad hoc network is formed. With
this type of robot swarm communication network,
there are many important open issues to be
addressed.
foraging scenario are toxic waste clean-up,
search and rescue (SAR) and collection of terrain
samples[1].
Dangerous tasks - Demining can be cheaply
accomplishedby a swarm of robots[1].
Exploration and mapping- The inspection of all
kinds of engineered structures can be carried out
using swarms of robots, where process is usually
time consuming and cost intensive[1].
Medical Cure -Use of nanorobots moving
through human veins and arteries for medical
purposes (e.g. to figh certain types of cancer)[1].
VI. COMPONENTS USED
Bluetooth Module( HC 05).
Batteries.
DC Motors.
Atmega8 Microcontroller.
Infrared Sensors.
Radio Frequency Module (RS 232 ).
Development Kit.
SRF04 Ultrasonic ranging sensor.
Encoder and Decoder.
VII.
ADVANTAGES
Advantages of multi-robotic approaches are the
following:[6]
Improved performance: if tasks can be
decomposable then by using parallelism, groups
can make tasks to be performed more efficiently.
Task enablement: groups of robots can do certain
tasks that are impossible for a single robot.
Distributed sensing: the range of sensing of a
group of robots is wider than the range of a
single robot.
Distributed action: a group a robots can actuate
in different places at the same time.
Fault tolerance: under certain conditions, the
failure of a single robot within a group does not
imply that the given task cannot be accomplished,
thanks to the redundancy of the system.
VIII.
APPLICATION
Foraging – This has many different applications
and demands several fundamental skills from a
group of robots, such as collective exploration,
shortest path finding and efficient task allocation.
It also includes the transport sub-task, which
covers the important issue of collective
transport .Some examples of applications of
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Construction is a complex task that requires the
combinationof several collective behaviors, such
as object clustering and assembling to assemble
material, collective transport to carry material,
and collective decision-making to allocate
therobots to the different sub-tasks of the
construction process[1].
Swarm robots can be used for security
surveillance.
IX. CONCLUSION.
Swarm robotics is an interesting alternative to
classical approaches to robotics because of some
properties of problem solving by social insects,
which is flexible, robust, decentralized and selforganized. Advantages of swarm-based robotics are
numerous. Some tasks may be too complex for a
single robot to perform. The speed is increased
when using several robots and it is easier to design
a robot due to its simplicity. Rapid progress of
hardware brings innovations in robot design
allowing further minimization. The communication
between robots is reduced, because of the
interactions through the environment.
X. REFERENCES.
[1]
Jevtić, Aleksandar, and Diego Andina de la Fuente. "Swarm
intelligence and its applications in swarm robotics." (2007).
[2]
S.Kernbach, O.Kernbach, "IR-based Communication and Perception in
Microrobotic Swarms", IROS 2005, WS on Task-oriented Mobile
Actuator and Sensor Networks, Edmonton, Canada. 2005 (Extended
version appeared on the 7th Workshop on Collective & Swarm
Robotics)
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International Journal of Engineering Trends and Technology (IJETT) – Volume 21 Number 5 – March 2015
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S.Kornienko, O.Kornienko, "New Principles of Coordination in Largescale Micro- and Molecular-Robotic Groups", IARP - IEEE/RAS EURON Joint Workshop on MICRO & NANO ROBOTICS, Paris, 23
- 24 October, 2006
[9]
Mohan, Yogeswaran, and S. G. Ponnambalam. "An Extensive Review
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[10]
Ducatelle, Frederick, et al. "Communication assisted navigation in
robotic swarms: self-organization and cooperation."
Serge Kernbach, "Encoder-free odometric system for autonomous
microrobots", Mechatronics, 22 (6), 870–88, 2012
[11]
Dorigo, Marco, Mauro Birattari, and Manuele Brambilla. "Swarm
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Jasmine robot (http://www.swarmrobot.org/) [15], developed under the
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Francesco Mondada, Andr´e Guignard, Michael Bonani, Daniel B¨ar,
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