The UCSB Hover Hand Team’s goal is to control a quadcopter drone using the Hover Hand. Recording of the hand may result in a more intuitive and precise method of control over the common RC controller. The glove will act as the transmitter to the drone’s receiver, relaying the chief flight controls. Recording hand movement in a way that allows the position and orientation to be accurately and meaningfully described is another important aspect of the glove’s operation.

The advent of drones has brought innovation to many markets. Agriculture, online retail, and a variety of other spaces are now looking to drones to solve many of the problems they have struggled with for decades. We are expanding upon the existing PixHawk microcontroller by adding a number of state-of-art sensors onto a much more powerful microcontroller. In addition to this, we will improve the PX4 autopilot software so that a drone can be piloted with this new system.

Detecting and tracking objects is a popular technology used on drones. Our Deep Vision project identifies and then tracks certain targets, such as dogs and people, in real time by analyzing the video recorded by the drone’s camera. Conventional tracking algorithms can be very limited in accuracy and capability. With the recent development of AI and deep learning technology, team Deep Vision aims to implement an algorithm on an embedded system that features neural networks-based target tracking for drones.

Ostracam is an underwater stereo imaging instrument that will be used by UCSB's Marine Biology Department. Using two ultra-low-light cameras mounted in waterproof casing, OstraCam is built to be deployed on the ocean floor in the pitch darkness with the objective of observing small bioluminescent signals. The targets of these observations are Ostracod, crustaceans about the size of a grain of rice, which emit flares of bioluminescent material when under threat, or when trying to attract a mate. OstraCam's job is to not only record these flar

IR Hub was born out of utility to solve a problem each member of the IR Hub team faced in their own home. The problem: too many infrared remotes cluttering the living room. The solution: a device with an array of IR transmitters that can broadcast remote signals with 360° room coverage. Simply leave IR Hub in a central location of a room, and take control of devices in that room with the help of an Android application that communicates with the Hub over Bluetooth. 

With the releases of the Oculus Rift, HTC Vive, Microsoft Hololens, and Google Daydream, virtual reality is rapidly evolving from an awkward, emerging concept into an industry in and of itself. Advances in VR hardware come out on a near monthly basis, and the virtual environments users interact with seem to be matching pace with improvements in both their expansiveness and overall interactability. Unfortunately, existing hardware peripherals for VR lack key features needed to fully leverage what these environments have to offer.

Automation is growing around the world, from household to heavy industry. One area that has so far made superficial use of this technology is the research space. These institutions generally work with too low a volume of material to justify investing in expensive automated systems, and when they do it is often reserved for procedures involving hazardous or delicate materials. Researchers in the High Explosives Applications Facility at Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory are currently looking to perform density tests on hundreds of small test samples.

Stress can negatively affect both the physical and mental well-being of an individual. However, current methods of stress detection require extensive medical procedures and the use of multiple sensors, which can be inconvenient and time-consuming. StressNet is a groundbreaking system that addresses these challenges by leveraging the latest technologies in computer vision, artificial intelligence, and thermal imaging.

SnaCoil aims to revolutionize the world of pulsed electro-magnetic field therapy, (PEMF) which has the potential to treat a variety of conditions, such as muscle and joint pain. Traditionally, this field is dominated by pseudoscience and inflated marketing claims. However, SnaCoil changes that by bringing extreme configurability, intensity, and affordability to researchers and users alike. By allowing for verification and reproducibility in PEMF therapy results, this device will allow for its normalization and widespread use, allowing all to reap its benefits.

Marine researchers and other environmentalists suffer from difficult data acquisition, leading to a general lack of data for their research and often hindering impactful studies. In solution, OceanPulse gathers and delivers real-time marine data through a proprietary network of solar powered, self-sustaining oceanographic buoys. These buoys are able to directly measure and upload current ocean conditions to a web-based user interface using our custom turbidity sensor as well as any other sensors of the user’s choosing.