Alumni Spotlight: Pico Premvuti

For ARUW’s first two-part alumni spotlight, we are pleased to present Pico Premvuti. Pico was one of the founding members of ARUW when it was first started in 2015, and he was an instrumental part to the engineering team as a lead in his second year. Pico studied as an Electrical Engineer, yet he stated that ARUW allowed him to expand his skills in CAD and computer vision. While Pico was a part of the club, his favorite memories revolved around traveling to China for the RoboMaster competition. His favorite part of the trip was staying in the team’s rented apartment that also functioned as a workspace for the robots.

After his studies, Pico's first few jobs were in the Seattle area working on embedded systems, computer vision, and control systems for robotics startups. He is currently in his second year working at a robotics startup in Tokyo. Pico said that one of the most valuable skills that ARUW taught him was giving himself the space to learn, as he believes it is one of the most important skills an engineer can have. At his current position, Pico said that he is constantly going through the process of trying new ideas and prototypes to continue building his skills. The skills Pico learned during his time with ARUW have transferred well into the workforce.

When Pico was asked what he would tell current members, he mentioned to keep trying new things and don’t be afraid to break things. “If you fry a circuit board or break some component, don’t worry about it since breaking things is an important part of the development process” Pico stated.

Pico believes that some of the greatest minds within the University of Washington are a part of the team. All of his opportunities were through connections that he made as a member, and he encourages current members to take advantage of the team’s network. Pico also noted that ARUW members are well prepared to enter the workforce thanks to both the technical and professional skills they learn. ARUW wishes Pico good luck in his endeavors and thanks him for all of the essential work that he did as a founding member.

Engineer Design Introduction

Our last robot introduction is the Engineer. As the only support robot on the field, the Engineer must be versatile enough to perform multiple defensive and offensive tasks. One of the tasks of the Engineer is retrieving 200 mm cubes in the middle of the field that can be redeemed for perks during the game, like a drone launch. This necessitates an efficient lifting and grabbing system.

Another task is reviving defeated robots. A towing system needs to be in place to bring a defeated robot to the regeneration zone where it can be revived. Defensively, the engineer must also be able to move in-game "obstacle blocks" to protect the team’s base and make entry more difficult.

Thanks for reading about ARUW’s robot lineup! If you would like to know more, feel free to contact us as we prepare for this season.

Drone Design Introduction

While ARUW is still operating almost entirely remotely, we are already hard at work designing our robots for the 2021 competition. With the start of the new season, we are excited to introduce our next robot: The Aerial!

The Aerial is a large (10 kg payload) remote controlled drone that provides information and support for the team. The unique rules governing the projectile system of the Aerial allow it to launch projectiles at a higher rate than any other robot in the competition. As the only flying robot, the Aerial’s bird’s-eye-view can be used to provide information to the operators. On the Aerial, stability and reliability are key.

For the upcoming season, the design team is looking to improve both the airframe and projectile storage system by optimizing arm length and weight distribution for stability. A new projectile feed design will improve reliability, reducing breakdowns during matches. With these improvements, we expect this season’s drone will have better accuracy and be much easier to control.