The original goal of this project was to modify a regular Etch-a-Sketch in a way such that we could draw any picture on a computer screen, and this picture would be replicated on the screen of the Etch-a-Sketch. Originally the task would be achieved by attaching two servos or stepper motors to the two knobs on the Etch-a-Sketch. By controlling each knob separately we would be able to locate and displace the drawing "pen" on the device to any location on the screen.
One of the major challenges that we knew we would face was the lack of "pen-up" functionality, meaning that due to the nature of the Etch-a-Sketch, the drawing must be continuous. In other words, once the computer starts drawing, all the following shapes will be connected by the same line.
Another big challenge was to create an algorithm smart enough to recognize the shapes on the image to be drawn, and based on this decide the optimal route that would minimize the length and amount of connecting lines.