UC Davis students Hengjiu Kang, Yi Lu, and Yunan Song, two of them electrical engineers and one, a mechanical engineer, have just designed a robotic ball which rolls about in search of anyone wearing an infrared-powered ankle strap. They call it Project Naughty Ball, and the trio say they wanted to create an intelligent, robotic ball which didn't need a handheld controller. Their device uses a few motor drivers and a novel, 3D printed mount which moves the robot’s “eyes.” Infrared cameras spin around inside the ball, and they're used to track whoever may be wearing the infrared-transmitter equipped ankle bracelet. You can read the whole story here: http://3dprint.com/67681/robotic-naughty-ball-project/


Below is a photo of the Naughty Ball tracking a person's movement: