Southeast Con

Southeast Con is a student conference hosted yearly by the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE). Included is a hardware competition where teams work to design, build, and program an autonomous robot. Each year the competition changes, so the tasks and theme of the field change. For the 2025 competition, the game field measured 4’ x 8’ and had an asteroid theme. Scattered around the field are magnetic and non-magnetic materials. The fields had an outdoor section and an indoor cave area. The cave had a camera that emitted infrared waves which interfered with the robot’s sensors. The primary goal is to sort the different materials into their matching bins. However, students must decide how they want to earn points based on the list of tasks provided by the competition.

The Mechanical Engineering team worked alongside Electrical and Computer Engineering (ECE) students to create a robot. The robot efficiently collects and deposits materials into bins called Cosmic Shipping Containers (CSC). The ECE team equipped the robot with a camera to help it navigate the game field. The predetermined path made aids in navigating the field. After picking up the CSC the path has the robot go into the cave, goes back and forth inside, then exits. A similar path was used outside the cave to gather those astral materials. The team tested different designs and selected the most effective solution. A final design was chosen that had a ramp with rubber band rollers placed above it. A claw on the back of the robot gripped and dragged the CSC. Materials are moved up the ramp due to the rubber band rollers then dropped into the CSC. The focus was on collecting as many materials as possible within the competition’s time limit, prioritizing speed over sorting. The three-minute limit influenced this decision for simplicity while aiming to earn as many points as possible.