Robot Competition- DFRobot Maqueen Football Game

Dribbling, passing, and shooting… come to play the world’s most popular sport! This project turns DFRobot Maqueen Cars into cool football players, and a dazzling football pitch is set up to simulate a real football field.

DFRobot Maqueen is an easy-to-use micro:bit programming robot for STEAM education, which inherits the playability and simple operation of micro:bit. With a mini body, plug-and-play, it allows children to quickly learn graphical programming in an entertaining way while nurturing their interests in science and logical thinking. Maqueen is accessible to Mind+ Programming platform now. Mind+ is a graphical programming platform from DFRobot, supporting Python, Arduino, and other programming platforms.

DFRobot Maqueen Football Game teaches children the design, analysis, application and operation of robots, focusing on the achievements of basic knowledge and skills in robotics, and learning the development of robotics theory such as line-tracking principle and practice through hands-on operation in a fun way.

micro:bit is a single-chip credit card-sized microcomputer with ARM architecture designed by BBC. The built-in 5x5 LED display, accelerometer, magnetometer, programmable buttons, and Bluetooth module are very suitable for programming learning for children.

GamePad is a micro: bit-controlled joystick. It is a high-precision three-axis analog amount joystick. Children can use the joystick through coding to control the direction and speed of Maqueen at the same time. Moreover, there are up to 7 programmable buttons (A, B, C, D, E, F, Z), they can use these buttons to achieve some interesting function control or directly use the simplest switch control.

This Digital RGB Strip is an intelligent control LED light source. The control circuit and RGB chip are integrated into a package of 5050 components. Its internal includes intelligent digital port data latch and signal reshaping amplification drive circuit. It also contains a precision internal oscillator and a 12V programmable constant current control part, effectively ensuring the consistency of pixel point light color. In the Digital RGB Strip, an IC controls an LED to form a loop, and the controller controls the circuit in the FPCB by controlling the IC, while controlling the changes of the LED light strip, such as flashing, simulated lightning, etc.

DFRobot FireBeetle series is the low-power consumption microcontroller intentionally designed for Internet of Things (IoT) projects. FireBeetle Board - ESP32 integrates a Dual-Core ESP-WROOM-32 module, which supports MCU and Wi-Fi &Bluetooth dual-mode communication.

Project Procedures

In our Maqueen football project, first of all, we need to equip Maqueen with a mechanic push, and establish the wireless connection between Maqueen and GamePad remote control via the “Radio” service of the mirco:bit. Then we make the GamePad control Maqueen forward, backward, turn right or turn left through programming. In order to better distinguish and protect the Maqueen robots from the red and blue teams, we designed and 3D-printed the shell with two colors for Maqueen, one is red and the other is blue. After that, we designed a football field map with a red and blue digital LED strip. We use FireBeetle board-ESP32 to control two light strips via programming. The red and blue lights flowed in two directions from the middle to guide the attack direction of the red and blue sides. The red and blue buttons are pressed respectively to achieve the effect of all red or all blue, indicating the goal of the red and blue squares. Finally, we put in our timer, scoreboard, ball, and other items, and the whole project scene is set up.