BB4All-v2

BB4All

According to UNICEF, in the world, 1 out of every 3 students between the ages of 13 and 15 face bullying, and the same number of students are also involved in physical fights. BB4All is a social aid robot that can help students, teachers, and staff with the primary aim of preventing bullying in schools.

BB4All-v2

The upgraded version of BB4All introduces several upgrades, such as transitioning from the Raspberry Pi 4B+ to the Nvidia Jetson Nano microprocessor and upgrading the camera from the Logitech webcam to a ZED 3D camera. These modifications aim to enhance the student-robot interaction and indoor navigation capabilities. However, this version is still in the conceptual stage and has not been built or undergone full testing.

Background

Why a school aid robot for a new project? I’ve always hated bullying or anything related to bullying. I’ve never been bullied, but some of my close friends have. To see my close friends struggling with bullying and how it affected them mentally got me searching for a solution.

I started thinking of different ways to develop something that could at least try to prevent bullying. After searching online, I found smartwatches that can activate and notify the school staff. I loved the idea, and I decided to combine this with my passion for building robots.

Hardware

Head: Toaster + Component and Base 3D Printed. (STLs - GitHub)
Note: I borrowed a toaster from our kitchen. It never returned.

Body: Plyboard + 3D Printed (STLs - GitHub)

Legs: PCB rainwater pipes + 3D Printed Connection parts (STL - GitHub)

Feet: 3D Printed (STLs - GitHub)
Inspired by Office Chairs

Scenarios (Software)

Scenario 1 - Student Recognition, Asking Questions and Providing Guidance

BB4ALL will walk around in the school corridors. When it sees a student, it will recognize them by their faces and use their name to greet them and ask them how they feel.

Code Link NVIDIA Jetson Nano (GitHub)
Code Link Arduino (GitHub)

Scenario 2 - Anti-Bullying Mode

Every student will have a smartwatch. BB4All will be effective in preventing bullying by being equipped with face recognition, audio recording, and the ability to ask students questions that will analyze the situation.

I first decided to design a watch for each student. The watch has a pulse sensor, a panic button, and an i-beacon (long-distance Bluetooth). I then searched for a way for the robot to find the student’s location and respond, so if there is a sudden increase in the student’s heartbeat or the student presses the panic button, it can go to the student to help. I learned I could do this by adding a “beacon” system where I could give the coordinates directly to both the robot and the school staff. I also learned that I would have to add a triangulation system to do so, but as it is a little too advanced for me, I decided to do it with an i-beacon on the watch, gateways, and indoor navigation supported by a 3D Camera.

Code for Robot NVIDIA Jetson Nano (In Process, Not Completed)
Code Link for Watch Arduino (GitHub)