TurboTrac

My name is Jarne Baert, and I study Multimedia and Creative Technologies (MCT) at Howest in Kortrijk. For one of my projects, I created "TurboTrac"—a remote-controlled tractor.

The project consists of two separate components: the remote control and the tractor itself. Although they are built independently, they work seamlessly together through a Bluetooth connection, allowing for wireless control and communication.

Electronics:

Microcontrollers:

1. ESP32 NodeMCU
2. Raspberry Pi 4 or 5
3. SD card

Power:

1. Power Raspberry Pi (5V 3A)
2. Power supply Tractor (12V 2.0Ah)
3. Step down (5V tot 3V3), 2 times
4. Step down (12V to 5V)

Sensors:

1. Buttons, 8 times
2. Distance sensor, 6 times
3. Hall sensor, 2 times
4. LDR
5. Potentiometer 5k 3turns
6. Switches with Led, 3 times
7. Slide potentiometer 10k

Actuators:

1. Led:
2. white, 10 times
3. hot white, 4 times
4. red, 4 times
5. orange, 4 times
6. LCD 2x16
7. Motor 12V
8. Servo motor 5V

Other electronics:

1. ADC
2. Capacitors
3. I2C Expander
4. Resistors
5. T-Cobbler Raspberry Pi
6. Wires

Mechanics:

Wood:

1. Batten
2. Planks
3. Wood glue

Wheels:

1. 18cm diameter, 2 times
2. 10cm diameter, 2 times

other mechanics:

1. Cogs
2. Threaded rod and nut, 10, 8 and 4

Softwares:

1. Inventor (optional, only for viewing the 3d-designs)
2. MySQL
3. Raspberry Pi Imager
4. Visual Studio Code

Total cost: around €350

To begin, I needed a remote control. I built the casing using wooden planks and wood glue. The design included holes for push buttons, switches, an LCD screen, a potentiometer, and a slide potentiometer. The interior was left hollow to provide space for the electronic components.

I opted for a cube-shaped design with a skewed surface, as seen in the file "design remote.ipt". After measuring and sawing the wooden planks, I drilled the necessary holes and tested them to ensure the sizes were accurate. Once all the planks were ready, I glued them together and allowed the glue to dry completely.

Afterward, I painted the remote grey and mounted all the components. For the potentiometer, I attached a 3D-printed steering wheel, which is shown in the file "steering wheel.stl".

After completing the remote, I moved on to building the tractor itself. The tractor need some lights, motors and wheels.

I began with a wooden baseplate and attached four long battens at the back and two shorter ones at the front. These vertical battens were then connected using horizontal battens to form the frame of the tractor. On the roof, I mounted a flashing light.

The hood (capo) of the tractor is made from papier-mâché and is attached with a hinge, allowing it to open easily for access.

For the drivetrain, the rear wheels are mounted on a single axle, which includes a gear connected to the motor for propulsion. The front wheels are attached to a servo motor, enabling steering functionality.

As finishing touches, I painted the tractor, added plastic windows, and included rear-view mirrors made from aluminum foil.

I soldered everything together, but it is possible to make it with breadboards.

For data capturing, I created a database to keep track of all components used in the project. Each component is stored in a dedicated table, and any changes made to a component are logged in the tblHistoryComponent table. This allows me to track the history of every component over time.

Additionally, I record the start and end times of each session, which enables me to calculate the total play time of the tractor.

The sql for the data base can be found on my github (see step 4), in the folder "Data".

If you run the app.py in folder backend everything works.

For the code of the tractor I use Platform io in Visual Studio Code. The code for the tractor can be found in the folder "Code ESP32".

https://github.com/howest-mct/2024-2025-projectone-mct-BaertJarne