5.1 Hardware Architecture

The hardware architecture is composed by a wheeled robotic base (insert precise name and details here) which sustains the skeleton of the robot and hosts a fair part of the electronic components. Attached to the skeleton and base, Puffy will feature Hue Go/LED lights, a video projector, a minicomputer as well as the audio systems. Encased in the head, which is modeled after the famous cartoon character, a kinect system will be performing all the gestures and expressions recognition activities. The body, which surrounds the skeleton, will be made of white, semi-transparent, soft-plastic material, which will be both functional for image projecting and pleasant to touch. The body will also feature and a number of Neopixels touch sensors which will be the main method of interaction with Puffy during its activities.

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5.2 Software Architecture

The main programming languages used in this project will be Arduino for the hardware configuration and programming as well as some code written using Microsoft API for facial expression recognition. It will also be necessary to program the robot controller using C Sharp, in order to ensure the devices’ compatibility and interoperability.