Tri axis accelerometer

nisbus

Hi,

I just received my tri axis accelerometer that I bought from Parallax and I already have the Propeller starter kit.
I'm a real noob when it comes to electronics and I have no idea on how to use the sensor with my kit.

Is this something that I should be able to plug right into the breadboard or is there some soldering involved?

Any help would be greatly appreciated.

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Thanks,
nisbus

SRLM

You can plug it right into the solderless breadboard. There is some sample code in the obex to get you up and running.

dandreae

Here is a link for the H48C Tri-Axis Accelerometer for the Propeller:

http://obex.parallax.com/objects/category/8/?page=4



Dave

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Dave Andreae

Parallax Tech Support·

nisbus

Thanks for that, I already downloaded the demo and loaded it into the eeprom.
The problem is that i don't know where to plug it into the breadboard.
I tried to just plug it in anywhere on the board but the VGA output doesn't register any movement at all.

Are there any specific holes I should plug it into?

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Thanks,
nisbus

SRLM

Look at the pin definitions. It should be 2 or 3 contiguous pins (I forget the amount) that are required. I think there is also a inline circuit diagram. You may have to hunt through a couple of files the find the relevant one.

nisbus

Ahh, so when you say I should be able to plug it in directly, that probably means that I need wires so that each pin can get to the right hole?

According to the demo on obex the pins on the accelerometer are as follows:

P2 -- 1 6 -- +5v
P1 -- 2 5 -- P0
VSS -- 3 4 -- Zero-G

where P0 = CS
P1 = DIO
P2 = CLK

looking at the board there is a row of black holes labeled:

5v
VDD VSS
VDD
P0
P1
..
P7
VSS
VSS

There is one above the 5v plug that looks quite different and is marked as VDD.

There is no way the pins on the accelerometer matches any of those and I can't see any markings on the white holes on the breadboard.

I'm guessing I would need wires that lead from the marked black holes to the respective pins on the accelerometer chip, is that right?

I'm really sorry for the stupid questions but as you might have guessed I have no clue as to what I'm doing here.

Also, since I've plugged the accelerometer into the breadboard several times at different locations, is there a chance I might have destroyed it?

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Thanks,
nisbus

SRLM

{{
*********************************************
* H48C Tri-Axis Accelerometer VGA_DEMO V1.1 *
* Author: Beau Schwabe                      *
* Copyright (c) 2008 Parallax               *               
* See end of file for terms of use.         *               
*********************************************

Revision History: 

Version 1.0 - (Sept. 2006) - Initial release with a TV mode 3D-graphics cube
Version 1.1 - (March 2008) - 3D-graphics cube removed  
                           - Basic VGA mode display used instead of TV
                           - Added 600nS padding delay around Clock rise and fall times
}}
{

     220Ω  ┌──────────┐
  P2 ──│1 ‣‣••6│── +5V       P0 = CS
     220Ω  │  ┌°───┐  │ 220Ω          P1 = DIO
  P1 ──│2 │ /\ │ 5│── P0      P2 = CLK
           │  └────┘  │ 220Ω
   VSS ──│3  4│── Zero-G
           └──────────┘

It gets a little garbled when it doesn't use the parallax font, but you can reference the original file. You'll have to put the module into the white part of the breadboard, across the center divider. Then, you'll have to use appropriate wires and resistors to make the connections. What I meant by plug it in is just that. As a general rule of thumb, you'll never plug a chip into the I/O pins directly. Some boards are set up to receive a specific chip, but the demo board is designed (at least on the bottom 8 I/O) to be generic. I'd suggest looking at the various stamps in class books Parallax has for download. Although the uC is different, the electrical engineering principles are the same. You'll have to change a couple of things to interface a 5V peripheral to the 3.3v Propeller, though. Specifically, take a look at the Advanced Sensors text and their accelerometer setup. Although yours will be different, it will be similar.

It's possible. I've hooked up a compass chip with the power reversed, hit the switch, and poof! A little cloud of smoke rose up. It didn't work anymore...