Mecabot Autonomous Mobile Robot Platform for Indoor
User Manual
Mecabot Autonomous Mobile Robot Platform for Indoor
Summary
Mecabot is an educational and research robot based on ROS (Robot Operating System) for robotic researchers, educators, students and developers.
Mecabot is equipped with builtin ROS Controller, LiDAR, Depth Camera, STM32 Motor/Power/IMU Controller and metal chassis with omnidirectional mecanum wheels.
Mecabot is ideal for ROS beginners with affordable price, compact design and ready-to-go package. Mecabot is also a solid Autonomous Mobile Robot (AMR) platform for robotic education and research projects.
Mecabot comes with four varieties:
Mecabot – Suitable for ROS beginners and low budget projects.
Mecabot Pro – An ideal Autonomous Mobile Robot (AMR) platform for robotic education, R&D projects and rapid prototyping.
Mecabot Plus – An ideal Autonomous Mobile Robot (AMR) platform for indoor service robot applications. This category is serious enough to be considered for industrial and commercial development.
Mecabot X – An ideal Autonomous Mobile Robot (AMR) platform for indoor service robot applications with full metallic enclosure.
Mecabot comes with popular ROS controllers such as:
- Jetson Nano
- Jetson TX
- Xavier
- X86 Industrial PC (Built-to-Order Option)
Key Components
| Variation | Image |
| Mecabot |  |
| Mecabot Pro |  |
| Mecabot Plus |  |
| Mecabot X |  |
Product Specifications
| Mecabot | Mecabot Pro | Mecabot Plus | Mecabot X | |
| Photo | |
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| Independent Suspension | No | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Dimension | 407×410.5×153 mm | 541×225.5×581 mm | 636x554x248 mm | 60x581x203 mm |
| Weight | 6.1kg | 10.8kg | 19kg | 20.5kg |
| Payload | 15kg | 20kg | 60kg | 60kg |
| Wheel Size (Diameter) | 100mm | 152mm | ||
| Max Speed | 1.2m/s | 1.83m/s | 1.39m/s | |
| Power Supply | 22.2V, 5000 mAh battery, 2A charger | |||
| Battery Life | 6.5 hours without loading 5.5 hours with 3kg loading |
3.5 hours without loading 2.8 hours with 3kg loading |
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| Motor and Reduction Ratio | MD36N 35W DC Brushed Motor 1:27 Reduction Ratio | MD60 100W DC Brushed Motor 1:18 Reduction Ratio | ||
| Encoder | 500-line giant magnetoresistance effect AB phase high-precision encoder | |||
| I/O Interface | CAN, Serial Ports, USB, HDMI | |||
| Remote Control | iOS/Android Apps (default) PS2, Model Aircraft Remote Control (optional and payable) | |||
Introduction of ROS Controllers
There are 3 types of ROS Controllers available for use with the Mecabot based on Nvidia Jetson platform. Jetson nano is suited more towards research and development. Jetson TX is ideal for product prototyping. Jetson Xavier is used more often in research and commercial applications. X86 Industrial PC is designed for robust commercial applications and it is only available for Built-to-Order configurations.
The following table illustrates the main technical differences between the various controllers available from Roboworks. Both boards allow high level computation and are suited towards advanced robotic applications such as computer vision, deep learning and motion planning.
| Jetson Nano | Jetson TX1 | Xavier Nx | |
| Users | Edu/R&D | R&D/Commercial | R&D/Commercial |
| CPU | ARM Cortex-A57 64bit@1.43GHz Quad Core |
ARM Cortex-A57 MPCore 64bit@1.73GHz Quad Core |
6 Core Nvidia Camel ARM v8.2 64bit, 6MB L2 +4MB L3 |
| GPU | 128-core Nvidia Maxwell |
256-core Nvidia Maxwell |
384-core Nvidia Volta |
| RAM | 4GB 64 bit LPDDR4 |
4GB 64 bit LPDDR4 |
8GB 128 bit LPDDR4 |
| Storage | 64G MicroSD | 16G eMMC 5.1 +64G Hard Drive |
16G eMMC 5.1 +64G Hard Drive |
| USB | USB3x4 | USB3x1 +MicroUSBx1 |
USB3.1×4 |
Sensing System: LiDAR & Depth Camera
A Leishen LSLiDAR is installed on all Mecabot variations with either the N10 or M10 model being used. These LiDAR’s offer a 360 degree scanning range and surroundings perception and boast a compact and light design. They have a high Signal Noise Ratio and excellent detection performance on high/low reflectivity objects and perform well in strong light conditions. They have a detection range of 30 metres and a scan frequency of 12Hz. This LiDAR integrates seamlessly into the Mecabots, ensuring all mapping and navigational uses can be easily achieved in your project.
The below table summaries the technical specifications of the LSLiDARs:
| LS LiDAR | N10 | M10 | C16 (3D) |
| Detection Range | 25m | 30m | 70/120/150 m |
| Scan Frequency | 10Hz | 12Hz | 5/10/20Hz |
| Samples Frequency | 4,500Hz | 20,000Hz | 240,000Hz |
| Output Contents | Angular, Distant and Light Intensity Data | Angular and Distant Data | Angular, Distant, Time Stamp and Light Intensity Data |
| Angular Resolution | 0,8 | 0,22 | 1-2 |
| Interface Type | Serial Port | Ethernet Port | Ethernet Port |
Additionally, all Mecabots are equipped with an Orbbec Astra Depth Camera, which is an RGBD camera. This camera is optimized for a rage of uses including gesture control, skeleton tracking, 3D scanning and point cloud development. The following table summarizes the technical features of the depth camera.
| Orbbec Astra Depth Camera |
Specs |
| Depth Resolution | 640×480 |
| RBG Resolution | 640×480 |
| RGB Sensing Angle | 63.1×49.4 degree |
| Depth Sensing Angle | 58.4×45.5 degree |
| Monocular/Binocular Structural Light | Monocular Structural Light + Monocular RGB |
| Depth Frame per Second | 640×480@30fps |
| RGB Frame per Second | 640×480@30fps |
| Depth Range | 0.6-4m |
| Data Transfer Interface | USB2.0 or above |
STM32 Board (Motor Control, Power Management & IMU)
The STM32F103RC Board is the micro-controller used in all Mecabots. It has a high performance ARM Cortex -M3 32-bit RISC core operating at a 72MHz frequency along with high-speed embedded memories. It operates in -40°C to +105°C temperature range, suiting all robotic applications in worldwide climates. There are power-saving modes which allow the design of low-power applications. Some of the applications of this micro-controller include: motor drives, application control, robotic application, medical and handheld equipment, PC and gaming peripherals, GPS platforms, industrial applications, alarm system video intercom and scanners.
| STM32F103RC | Features |
| Core | ARM32-bit Cortex –M3 CPU Max speed of 72 MHz |
| Memories | 512 KB of Flash memory 64kB of SRAM |
| Clock, Reset and Supply Management | 2.0 to 3.6 V application supply and I/Os |
| Power | Sleep, Stop and Standby modes V BAT supply for RTC and backup registers |
| DMA | 12-channel DMA controller |
| Debug Mode | SWD and JTAG interfaces Cortex-M3 Embedded Trace Macrocell |
| I/O ports | 51 I/O ports (mappable on 16 external interrupt vectors and 5V tolerant) |
| Timers | 4×16-bit timers 2 x 16-bit motor control PWM timers (with emergency stop) 2 x watchdog timers (independent and Window) SysTick timer (24-bit downcounter) 2 x 16-bit basic timers to drive the DAC |
| Communication Interface | USB 2.0 full speed interface SDIO interface CAN interface (2.0B Active) |
Steering & Driving System
The Steering and Driving system is integrated with the design and build of the Mecabot. Depending on the model purchased it will be either a 2 wheel or 4 wheel drive, with both options being suitable to a variety of research and development purposes. The wheels on all Mecabots are omnidirectional mecanum wheels with all varieties besides the standard Mecabot inclusive of an independent suspension system. The Mecabot family of robots are ideal for a wide variety of research and commercial applications making it the perfect robot for your next project.
Mecabot Chassis Design Diagram:
Battery Technical Specifications
All Mecabot come with a 5000 mAh battery and a Power Charger. Customers can upgrade the battery to 10000 mAh or 20000 mAh with additional cost. The 20000 mAh battery is too large to house within the enclosure of any Mecabots. It can only be installed on the top of the Robot chassis.
| Battery parameter | Features | ||
| 5000mAh | 10000mAh | 20000mAh | |
| Battery Voltage | 22.2V | 22.2V | 22.2V |
| Size | 124*71*42mm | 124*71*71mm | 156`12211 mm |
| Power Charger | DC 5.5 Charging plug T-shaped discharge plug |
DC 5.5 Charging plug T-shaped discharge plug |
DC 5.5 Charging plug T-shaped discharge plug |
| Performance | 15A continuous discharge | 30A continuous discharge | 60A continuous discharge |
| Weight | 0.66kg | 1.25kg | 2.4kg |
Copyright © 2023 Roboworks. All rights reserved.
www.roboworks.net
Authors: Tara Hercz & Wayne Liu
25 February 2023
Documents / Resources
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ROBOWORKS Mecabot Autonomous Mobile Robot [pdf] User Manual Mecabot Autonomous Mobile Robot, Mecabot, Autonomous Mobile Robot, Mobile Robot, Robot |
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ROBOWORKS Mecabot Autonomous Mobile Robot Platform [pdf] User Manual Mecabot, Mecabot Autonomous Mobile Robot Platform, Autonomous Mobile Robot Platform, Mobile Robot Platform, Robot Platform, Platform |
