Machine Control Design

The objective of this project was to design, program, test, and build a testbed for a start and finish sensor setup out of Fischertechnik and VEX parts with a VEX Cortex to track and automatically record the running times of the first three runners to cross the start/finish line for track and field running events for the Olympic committee. I was the main engineer and programmer for this project, so I built most of the device and programmed most of its code. Through this project, I learned how to how to use a VEX Cortex with VEX parts to create a prototype. I also learned how to effectively debug a program as well as how to troubleshoot issues with the VEX cortex and VEX parts. Some challenges I faced in this project included modifying the program to accomodate for fluctuations in the device's ultrasonic sensor values and ensuring that each runner was counted once by the program.

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