ME C95- Mechatronics

The Roulette Wheel
by Jed Brewer, Kerry Shiels, and Dustin Cook



Our illustrious group members, Jed, Dustin and Kerry

    When three young engineering students have a burning desire to gamble, but no casino, there is but one answer: the construction of an interactive mechatronic roulette table.  While anyone can play cards, roulette possesses that certain je ne sais quoi that can lift the spirits of even the most beleaguered engineering student.   Of course, for the experience to be genuine, one must have both a roulette table and a skilled dealer.  Our final project is a roulette table upon which four people play together- all under the direction of a skilled, computerized dealer!

Basic Operation:
Each player is asked in turn how much they want to bet and where they want to place their bets.  This is done with the table acting as an oversized keyboard.  Squares that have been bet on then light up with an LED.

The round is initiated after all players have made their bets.  The roulette wheel, initiated by a stepper motor, begins to turn counterclockwise.  To increase the interaction of the game, a player throws the ball into the wheel.  The roulette table has been modeled after the appearance of a standard roulette wheel.

The position of the ball  (e.g. the slot on the wheel in which the ball resides at rest) is communicated to the handyboard because the metal ball completes a circuit, with voltage depending on the position of the ball.  The handyboard then calculates the winnings (or tragic losses!) of each player.  This information is then printed to the display so that they know their total winnings/losses.

After each round, the game resets itself for another turn.

To continue into "The making of a roulette wheel," click below:

Results and Reflections
Circuits
Mechanical Design
Code
Parts List
Watch it work!