Introduction to the Competition | MathWorks Minidrone Competition
From the series: MathWorks Minidrone Competition
Get a quick introduction to the MathWorks Minidrone Competition in terms of the competition problem statement, rounds, and participation details for the in-person as well as the virtual competition.
Published: 6 Mar 2019
Hello, everyone. My name is Maitreyee, and I welcome you all to this video series on the MathWorks Minidrone Competition. This video series will provide a quick introduction to the competition and a few tips and tricks that will guide you through different stages of this competition.
But what exactly is the MathWorks Minidrone Competition? It is a competition organized by MathWorks, who are the makers of MATLAB and Simulink. Let us have a look at this video. This is the autonomous test flight of Aurora Centaur, which used MATLAB and Simulink to develop its flight control, vehicle, mission, and flight management software. You will be designing something similar but on a very small scale, using minidrones.
The MathWorks Minidrone Competition can be in one of the two formats, virtual or in-person. For both the formats, the first round of the competition will be a simulation round. Here we build our algorithm and test them in simulations using Simulink. The best-performing teams from round one will get shortlisted for round two.
And the second round would depend on the format of the competition. If it is a virtual competition, the second round would be a virtual showcase, where the shortlisted teams showcase their approach to the problem statement through a video and a question-answer session. However, if the competition is an in-person event, the top individual teams will be called to a venue to deploy the algorithms on the hardware to check for its performance in a live environment.
The problem statement that every team is going to work on is a minidrone line follower. And when they reach the in-person finals, the teams will deploy the algorithm on the hardware. Through this competition, we would like to introduce the participants to model-based design, where we design the system, simulate its behavior, and then deploy the algorithm onto the hardware. Talking about hardware, you can directly deploy an algorithm designed in Simulink on different hardware-- an Arduino, a Raspberry Pi, a LEGO, and that too with just a click of a button. As mentioned previously, we will be using the Parrot Mambo minidrone for this competition.
So if I'm a participant of the MathWorks Minidrone Competition and I have a team of two to four people, what will be the workflow that I would have to follow? First, you will have to select the competition that you would want to be a part of and check if it is an in-person competition or a virtual competition. You will then have to fill out an application form for that specific competition. Once done, the team captain will receive a complimentary license from MathWorks to work on the problem statement, and the team captain can share this license with their team members.
Then we'll install MATLAB Simulink and the necessary products on the system and work on the problem statement to submit my solution for the simulation round, which is round one. If my team gets shortlisted for round two, I will have to submit a short 5 to 7-minute video of my approach to the problem statement, if the competition is virtual. These winners will be decided on their round one performance. However, if the competition is an in-person event, my team will be called to a venue where we will be given a minidrone and will deploy their design algorithm on the hardware. Whichever team performs the best, decided based on the rules, will win the competition.
The next question is, where will the competition be held? The MathWorks Minidrone Competition is a worldwide competition that is hosted at multiple locations across the world. You can visit the MathWorks Minidrone Competition web page to get all the details. In case you need any help or if your teacher or professor wants to host this competition on their campus, please write to us at minidronecompetition@mathworks.com.
Thank you, and see you all in the next video.