This project aims to create an autonomous robot capable of playing an intelligent, over-the-board game of chess against a human opponent. The system uses a three-axis, cantilevered, overhead gantry to move parallel to the chess board. Each axis is driven by a stepper motor, the horizontal axes using belts and the vertical axis using a rack and pinion. A crosspoint array of reed switches embedded in the physical chess board allows for piece detection, and with software record of the board state, piece recognition. This system is orchestrated by an MSP432E401Y microcontroller, with chess moves being pulled from the open-source Stockfish chess engine, running on a Raspberry Pi 3A+. All communication between the Raspberry Pi and MSP432 is done through a universal asynchronous receiver-transmitter (UART) serial connection.
This repository contains all mechanical designs for the system, generated in Solidworks.