Project P2I - Talkative

About the Project

As part of my second-year engineering studies at INSA, I had the opportunity to join P2I (Projets Pluridisciplinaires d’Initiation à l’Ingénierie) — a multidisciplinary project that blends technical challenges with real-world creativity.

Our team was assigned to P2I6, a track focused on Computer Science, Telecommunications, and Electrical Engineering. The mission? Build a robotic theater head that can "talk" and "react" — and thus, Talkative was born.

Meet Talkative

Talkative is a robotic head that responds to sound and visual cues. With an Arduino-based core, it uses two motors:

• One to move the mouth in sync with speech,
• And another to turn its head toward pre-selected objects detected by a camera.

The project combined both hardware and software, with real-time interactions that gave our little robot a personality of its own.

Technologies and Tools

• Hardware: Arduino, PixyCam
• Software:
• C++ for Arduino firmware
• Python (Flask) to create a web interface for controlling the robot
• Solid Edge for 3D modeling and robot design

How It Works

Talkative functions thanks to a two-part system:

Vision System

Using a PixyCam, Talkative detects colors and tracks their positions. This data is used to control the neck motor, enabling the robot to turn its head toward specific objects.

Sound Reaction System

A Flask-based web interface analyzes sound inputs and sends signals to the Arduino. The robot then opens and closes its mouth based on the audio length and pauses — making it appear like it's "talking."

Both systems run simultaneously, giving Talkative its responsive, life-like behavior.

👨‍💻 My Contribution

I was responsible for the entire Arduino firmware development. Despite having no prior experience with C++ or Arduino, I took on the challenge — researching, testing, and debugging throughout the process.

Additionally, I participated in the mechanical design and robot assembly, collaborating with teammates to bring our concept to life.

Project Outcome

In just 12 weeks, we were able to:

• Design and assemble a functional robot head,
• Program its interactions across two simultaneous systems,
• Present the project to faculty — earning positive feedback and high praise.

Limitations like PixyCam’s color recognition accuracy were noted, but considering our starting point, the outcome exceeded expectations.

Final Thoughts

Talkative is more than a robot — it's an example of what happens when engineering meets storytelling.
This project taught me how hardware, software, and creativity can merge to build expressive, interactive systems.

I’m proud of what our team achieved and excited for future opportunities to build more engaging, cross-disciplinary tech.