SwarMind - Octagonal ESP32 Robot PCB (4 iterations, manufactured)

Double-sided octagonal PCB I designed for SwarMind, a swarm of 10 autonomous robots built as my final-year engineering project. The board went through 4 design iterations and was manufactured and assembled in all 10 units. WHAT THE BOARD DOES It carries an ESP32-WROOM-32 and integrates everything the robot needs on a single board: 8 perimeter infrared sensors for 360-degree obstacle detection, DC motor control through an H-bridge, a calibratable light sensor, an RGB status LED and battery voltage monitoring. DESIGN DECISIONS - Octagonal outline, so each of the 8 faces carries one sensor connector and the geometry itself defines the sensing coverage. - JST connectors throughout, chosen to make reversed polarity physically impossible during assembly of 10 identical units. - Female headers for the ESP32, so the module can be removed for programming or replacement without desoldering. - Wider traces on the motor and power paths than on signal paths. - Ground planes on both layers. - Silkscreen with connector labels and pin names, so the board can be wired without the schematic in hand. WHAT IS IN THE IMAGES Routing view, manufacturing render, the assembled boards, the wiring diagram, and the board installed in the robot chassis. RESULT In a 2x2 m test arena, 7 of the 10 robots converged on the target zone in about one minute. I also ran the experimental validation of the swarm behaviour. Designed in Proteus. Note: the robot chassis was designed by my project teammates - the PCB and the electronics are my work.