The Poacher Brief

Cruz Crawford

The Poacher is a machine that apprehends invasive species of flora and disposes of them. It operates with a main flat body with electrical components on top, four spiked wheels for traction on all terrain, and pinchers in the front to extract and uproot unwanted plants. The robot is remote control operated much like a remote control car and works to make work easier for the human controlling it.

The Poacher is able to help get rid of unwanted growth in any environment. It was created specifically for the LSU lakes to clear out the invasive species of Elephant Ear plants that line the banks but could be used in a number of different environments for many plants with the proper modifications.

The project helps functionally clean up the areas surrounding lakes, while also helping make them look nicer so as to make the lakes an attraction for people who live both in and out of Baton Rouge. The Poacher helps make the Baton Rouge community happier and helps the environment healthier. It could inspire projects all over the United States to clean up cities’ natural features to make them more attractive destinations.

The technology behind The Poacher is all based in Arduino. It is a system of servo motors that allow different parts of the robot to move. The technology created for this design is not anything new electronically, but the design is revolutionary. Where other machines have wheels or treads, The Poacher has throwing star-like wheels to cover all terrain and innovative pinchers to pull up roots of plants instead of cutting them down.