Commercial Hoverboard Reverse Engineering and Repurposing for a Stabilized Platform: A Recyclable Solution for Modular Robotic Bases
Sustainability and resource optimization have spurred interest in giving a second life to used equipment, often discarded after limited use. Within this framework, we conducted a multidisciplinary, final-year engineering project to explore the reverse engineering and repurposing of commercial hoverb...
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| Format: | Article |
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MDPI AG
2025-06-01
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| Series: | Sensors |
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| Online Access: | https://www.mdpi.com/1424-8220/25/12/3833 |
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| author | Antoine Leblanc Lùka Tricot Duncan Briquet Mohamed Aziz Slama Christophe Delebarre |
| author_facet | Antoine Leblanc Lùka Tricot Duncan Briquet Mohamed Aziz Slama Christophe Delebarre |
| author_sort | Antoine Leblanc |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Sustainability and resource optimization have spurred interest in giving a second life to used equipment, often discarded after limited use. Within this framework, we conducted a multidisciplinary, final-year engineering project to explore the reverse engineering and repurposing of commercial hoverboards for an auto-stabilizing, modular robotic platform, with emphasis on medical applications such as transporting medication. The innovation lies in recycling hoverboards to develop a teleoperated, stabilized base that can accommodate additional modules—for instance, a multifunctional arm or a transport shelf—akin to existing commercial robots. Our methodology involves disassembling and reprogramming the hoverboard’s motor controllers and sensors to maintain horizontal stability. Control is realized through the sensor fusion of accelerometer and gyroscope data, processed by a Kalman filter and implemented in a Proportional-Integral-Derivative (PID) loop. A user-friendly Human-Machine Interface (HMI), hosted on an ESP32 microcontroller, enables remote operation and monitoring. Experimental results show that the platform autonomously balances, carries payloads, and achieves high energy efficiency, highlighting its potential as a sustainable and versatile solution in modular robotic applications. |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj-art-4b8df858b3c143dfb23c8e415e211164 |
| institution | Kabale University |
| issn | 1424-8220 |
| language | English |
| publishDate | 2025-06-01 |
| publisher | MDPI AG |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Sensors |
| spelling | doaj-art-4b8df858b3c143dfb23c8e415e2111642025-08-20T03:27:26ZengMDPI AGSensors1424-82202025-06-012512383310.3390/s25123833Commercial Hoverboard Reverse Engineering and Repurposing for a Stabilized Platform: A Recyclable Solution for Modular Robotic BasesAntoine Leblanc0Lùka Tricot1Duncan Briquet2Mohamed Aziz Slama3Christophe Delebarre4School of National Institute of Applied Sciences—INSA Hauts-de-France, Campus Mont Houy, 59313 Valenciennes, FranceSchool of National Institute of Applied Sciences—INSA Hauts-de-France, Campus Mont Houy, 59313 Valenciennes, FranceSchool of National Institute of Applied Sciences—INSA Hauts-de-France, Campus Mont Houy, 59313 Valenciennes, FranceSchool of National Institute of Applied Sciences—INSA Hauts-de-France, Campus Mont Houy, 59313 Valenciennes, FranceSchool of National Institute of Applied Sciences—INSA Hauts-de-France, Campus Mont Houy, 59313 Valenciennes, FranceSustainability and resource optimization have spurred interest in giving a second life to used equipment, often discarded after limited use. Within this framework, we conducted a multidisciplinary, final-year engineering project to explore the reverse engineering and repurposing of commercial hoverboards for an auto-stabilizing, modular robotic platform, with emphasis on medical applications such as transporting medication. The innovation lies in recycling hoverboards to develop a teleoperated, stabilized base that can accommodate additional modules—for instance, a multifunctional arm or a transport shelf—akin to existing commercial robots. Our methodology involves disassembling and reprogramming the hoverboard’s motor controllers and sensors to maintain horizontal stability. Control is realized through the sensor fusion of accelerometer and gyroscope data, processed by a Kalman filter and implemented in a Proportional-Integral-Derivative (PID) loop. A user-friendly Human-Machine Interface (HMI), hosted on an ESP32 microcontroller, enables remote operation and monitoring. Experimental results show that the platform autonomously balances, carries payloads, and achieves high energy efficiency, highlighting its potential as a sustainable and versatile solution in modular robotic applications.https://www.mdpi.com/1424-8220/25/12/3833inverted pendulumtwo-wheeled robothoverboardcontrol systemreverse engineeringrobotics |
| spellingShingle | Antoine Leblanc Lùka Tricot Duncan Briquet Mohamed Aziz Slama Christophe Delebarre Commercial Hoverboard Reverse Engineering and Repurposing for a Stabilized Platform: A Recyclable Solution for Modular Robotic Bases Sensors inverted pendulum two-wheeled robot hoverboard control system reverse engineering robotics |
| title | Commercial Hoverboard Reverse Engineering and Repurposing for a Stabilized Platform: A Recyclable Solution for Modular Robotic Bases |
| title_full | Commercial Hoverboard Reverse Engineering and Repurposing for a Stabilized Platform: A Recyclable Solution for Modular Robotic Bases |
| title_fullStr | Commercial Hoverboard Reverse Engineering and Repurposing for a Stabilized Platform: A Recyclable Solution for Modular Robotic Bases |
| title_full_unstemmed | Commercial Hoverboard Reverse Engineering and Repurposing for a Stabilized Platform: A Recyclable Solution for Modular Robotic Bases |
| title_short | Commercial Hoverboard Reverse Engineering and Repurposing for a Stabilized Platform: A Recyclable Solution for Modular Robotic Bases |
| title_sort | commercial hoverboard reverse engineering and repurposing for a stabilized platform a recyclable solution for modular robotic bases |
| topic | inverted pendulum two-wheeled robot hoverboard control system reverse engineering robotics |
| url | https://www.mdpi.com/1424-8220/25/12/3833 |
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