UBC Thunderbots is an engineering student design team that designs and creates competitive robots to compete in the Small Size League of the international RoboCup competition and conference. So far, our team has achieved 1st position in 2019, 2021 and 2nd in 2024! Our aim is to use the publicly appealing platform of robot soccer to generate interest and enthusiasm for robotics within the UBC and BC communities. We also strive to enhance the educational experience of UBC students by providing an inclusive environment with emphasis on teaching, mentoring, and challenging members to seek out, implement, and create novel solutions to complex, multidisciplinary engineering problems. Our members, through their experience on Thunderbots, develop skills needed to quickly integrate into any team and make meaningful contributions.
From robots racing around the field and kicking the ball, to interfacing sensors and ICs with our onboard computers, our Electrical Subteam tackles a wide and important set of challenges that bridge together hardware and software. We work on a range of projects from PCB design and assembly using Altium, to firmware development, to creating modular test jigs. The electronics we work with include examples such as high voltage (Solenoids) and motor control (Field Oriented Control) using high speed communication (Serial Peripheral Interface). Electrical Subteam members work on many different design and hands-on projects that enable the robots to be controlled effectively.
The team’s primary goals are summarized below:
- Improve the current skill set of the robots to enable them to perform their tasks with greater accuracy and precision
- Research and develop new systems to enable the robots to gain new skills and gain a competitive edge, including:
- Variable-distance chip passes and shots
- Modularized motor control systems
- Radio communication
- Collaborate with the software team to ensure robot capabilities and characteristics enable maximum effectiveness of their game strategies.
