Swheel | Devpost

Inspiration

Inspired to reduce the cost of driving components and to experiment with feature detection, we set out to make Swheel, a desktop tool that makes a steering wheel out of a plate.

What it does

Swheel tracks markers on a paper plate, piece of paper, or any other clear surface to estimate the fictitious steering wheel's rotation. It emulates an XBox 360 controller on the device for maximal compatibility with games, tools and any other software tha may require analog steering inputs.

How we built it

We began trying to integrate with QNX, using their RPi camera, then pivoted to having it fully on the computer using built-in cameras for easeof use and reduced costs for end-users. We use OpenCV python library to mask and track coloured points, VGamepad for controller emulation. We utilize Google's generative AI is facilitate detection of drunk drivers in real-time.

Challenges we ran into

We struggled to extract useful data from the RPi's Camera Module 3 on QNX's operating system. As a result, we made the decision to pivot towards solely using the laptop's camera. This has the added benifit of being more accessible to the general public, not requiring dedicated hardware.

Accomplishments that we're proud of

We are proud to have at least developed an MVP. While it may not match out initial expectations, we managed scope creep and we know several avenues to improve this input method in an eventual V2.

What we learned

We learned a lot about QNX, it's various challenges and how it can be especially useful. While we may not have been fully able to utilize it, it is evident that with more experience it would be wonderful to use. We also improved our skills in use of version control, documentation and the importance of backup plans.