Hive-1 and Hive-2: Autonomous Swarm Robots
2025-01 - 2025-08
Swarm Robotics PCB Design Embedded Systems ESP32-S3 Sensor Fusion Autodesk Fusion 360
Project Overview
Hive-1 and Hive-2 are custom-designed autonomous swarm robots built around a modular, multi-board PCB architecture. Each robot uses a hexagonal PCB stack designed in Autodesk Fusion 360, an ESP32-S3 compute core, omniwheel mobility, and a lightweight sensing pipeline. Both platforms were engineered for synchronized multi-robot experiments, distributed control, and indoor localization.
PCB Architecture
The system is built around three custom 2-layer PCBs, all hexagonal and designed to mechanically stack. Perception sensors (IMU, TOF, OLED, LiDAR) are off-the-shelf breakout modules connected via pin headers.
Board 1: Compute and Power
The central board handles all computation and power distribution for the robot.
| Block | Component |
|---|---|
| MCU | ESP32-S3-WROOM-1-N16R8 |
| USB-C Connector | 12401832E402A |
| Li-Ion Charger | TPB4056B2X-ES1RES1 (ESOP-8-F) |
| Battery Protection | DW01A + FS8205ASOT-23-6L dual MOSFET |
| 3.3V LDO | AP2112K-3.3TRG1SOT |
| 6V Boost Converter | Onboard boost stage |
| Mobility Header | JP1: PINHD-1X15 |
| Perception Header | JP2: PINHD-1X12 (5k I2C pull-ups) |
Power rail distribution:
- 3.3V: ESP32-S3, Motor Shield, Optical Flow Sensor
- 6V: Wheel motors (via motor driver)
- 1.8V (downstream LDO): IMU
- 2.8V x2 (downstream LDOs): TOF ranging sensors
Data interfaces from ESP32-S3:
- GPIO: Wheel motors, optical flow, LiDAR motor, Neopixel, buzzer, 5-way D-pad
- I2C: OLED display, 2x TOF sensor boards, IMU
Board 2: Mobility
A dedicated motor driver board that receives control signals from the Compute board via a 15-pin header.
| Block | Component |
|---|---|
| Motor Driver A (ch. A+B) | TB6612FNG (ELSSOP24) |
| Motor Driver B (ch. C+D) | TB6612FNG (ELSSOP24) |
| Motor Switch MOSFET | NTF6P02T3G (P-channel) |
| Interface | JP1: PINHD-1X15 (GP2/4-11/15-18, 3.3V, GND) |
| Motor Outputs | Screw terminals x3 |
| Decoupling | 100nF + 10uF per driver, 10k STBY pull-ups |
No onboard compute or power management. Fully controlled and powered through the header from Board 1.
Board 3: Perception
Perception interface board hosting breakout modules for all sensors. Connects to the Compute board via the 12-pin Perception header.
- OLED display (I2C)
- 2x TOF ranging boards (I2C)
- IMU (I2C)
- LiDAR motor (GPIO)
Hive-1: Sensor-Rich Swarm Platform
- Custom 3-board PCB stack (Compute and Power + Mobility + Perception)
- LiDAR, 9-axis IMU, TOF ranging via breakout headers
- AprilTag + wheel-odometry localization for coordinated swarm motion
- Firmware for synchronized behaviors, wireless communication, and sensor calibration
- Onboard battery charging and multi-rail power management
Hive-2: Lightweight Micro-Swarm Variant
Hive-2 retained the same motion and communication system as Hive-1 but removed LiDAR and SLAM to create a lighter, lower-cost platform for large-scale deployments.
- Same ESP32-S3 PCB, IMU, and omniwheel system
- No LiDAR / SLAM, reduced power draw and simplified sensing
- Designed for larger swarms and rapid manufacturing
- Full firmware reuse for formation control and multi-robot behaviors
Capabilities
- Coordinated omniwheel motion (holonomic drive)
- Indoor localization via AprilTags
- Wireless inter-robot communication
- Scalable swarm behaviors: leader-follower, formations, synchronized motion
Future Work
- UWB localization integration
- Shared map construction across the swarm
- Improved inter-robot communication layers
- Open-source PCB files and firmware release