Cueball: A Life-Sized Pool Playing Robot

I have just been informed that Google Code is closing. As a result, the code will be moved and hosted from Github. I will update the link for the most recent version of the code as soon as I have ported and updated the repository and license.

Over the last few months I have been working on new ways to detect objects in an image. I have recently created a software agent that applies bio-inspired search algorithms to identify subsets of images that contain contrast values of a pre-specified utility. The program works, and was written in Python, however it contains a major bug. Details will be released in the near future. Plans to release this agent will be delayed and are contingent upon the status of the bug(s). The idea of translating the software end of this project into a "crowd developed" project are under consideration.

The majority of work is in research and development of this robot. Most of my efforts are in developing a novel game agent, and developing a highly functional object recognition suite.

I just wanted to quickly let everyone know that this project is still in development. Things have been slow because of school responsibilities (finals for the current college semester are coming up in a few weeks). In the interest of finishing a major part of the project, a hard deadline has been set for the vision code. My current goal is to have it completed by December 20th of this year. After which I will begin the process of translating it from Python to C++/In-line NASM so that I can improve performance by working closer to the hardware level.

Anyway, I just wanted to mention that this project has not ended, but rather has been delayed in development over a protracted period of time.

Here is a screenshot of the output of the edge (line and rectangle) detector which was mentioned in the last update. I took a screenshot because the output is a video feed.

As one can see, it is detecting a majority of the rectangles (and some lines) on my shirt and on the railing beside me. The code for this was part of the old code that has been revised.

Last year, part of our work group began to code a vision program that targets retroreflective tape. While the program was never finished, we managed to detect and output a contrast map with lines (and their slopes) to the evaluator program (which is the part that was not constructed). Recently, we have been mixing the old vision program with the new circle detection program to detect both circles and rectangles in a field of view. While the evaluator is still being designed and coded, work is underway to finalize these vision programs. I will be posting screenshots of the program working when we are closer to finalizing the code. 

After performing several more tests with the current vision software, it is now ready to be converted from operating on sample images to a live video feed. Designs of the next update on vision will be posted here soon. On a related but different note, we have decided to use HSV for determining the color of the pool balls. More on HSV can be found here: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/HSL_and_HSV

Hello all, despite the fact that we have not been selected to continue in The HaD Prize, our team will still be working on this project. As we are interested in publicly showcasing this robot, we are currently discussing where to showcase the robot, and what changes will need to be made (if any) to showcase at the selected venue. We have also added a new team member recently, she will be working (for the most part) on constructing, testing, and maintaining the electronic control system.  I would also like to add that as we are students (some college, others high school) and the school year has started, actual work and postings will be drawn out over a protracted period of time. 

Today the shift register needed for the control system has been shipped and received. In addition, work on the drivetrain has progressed significantly. The current focus is in strengthening it to hold the weight of the rest of the robot. The current drivetrain  (without gears) is pictured below:

I would like to add that the components required for the project are being updated as they are consumed (used in creating the robot). Also, for reference sake, the picture below is our original concept art for what the robot will look like (more or less - excusing poor drawing skills). 

Here is our first video log:

The image pictured in the video is of all of the subsystems of the robot and is there for reference sake.