Switch to Propeller

NWCCTV

So, I am considering making the switch from BS2 chips to the propeller. What should I start with that would actually be usable in my larger robot project that I am working on? Also, Has anyone done work with the Prop and MS Robotics Studio 4.0 or even in C# 2010? This is pretty much a must for my project and I have a portion of the concept down in PBasic. If I decide to make the transition I need it to be fairly smooth. One of the reasons I am considering the change is the power of the Prop would keep me from having to use multiple BS2 chips.

davejames

NWCCTV wrote: »

One of the reasons I am considering the change is the power of the Prop would keep me from having to use multiple BS2 chips.

...but...but...that's where the FUN is!!!

NWCCTV

Oh yea, I have loads of fun with the BS2's. My issue is that with 3 or 4 of them power consumption will come in to play. Also, I think it is time to get to know the propeller as I hear great things about it on the threads here.

photomankc

What's your robot project? I'm using a QuickStart board to run this guy:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fkAkSHBwWQA

Main things that I can see missing off the bat are analog inputs and some of the handy basic commandds for PWM, pulse timing, and those sorts of things. The Object Exchange has some good stuff in there but finding it all can be a challenge. You can start in SPIN which is pretty easy and will blow away the BS2 in speed then move on to other languages like PASM/C/C++. I'm rewritting my robot code now for Martin Hodge's Propeller DNA board. It gives me 1MB of FLASH for the code. 32KB for instruction cache and data, an RTC and a built in uSD slot. QuickStart can also handle 64KB for code in C/C++ so it's pretty viable, cheap, and there are a growing ist of examples for it.

lardom

A major reason that I switched from the BS2 to the Propeller was 32K vs 2K ram. Program size was no longer an issue. With the Stamp I needed three other micros to run a keypad, LCD and a stepper. With the Prop I was able to eliminate those three extra microcontrollers with code. In addition I only used one cog and I saw a big improvement in speed. I saved a lot of money and the forum made my transition fairly easy.

rjo__

There are as many ways to transition to the Propeller as there are people. I like yours the best. You have a project and you simply want to apply the Prop.
This narrows down the list of things you might consider studying.

For a general introduction, with emphasis on globally important issues, I personally like the Propeller education kit, in the 40 pin dip flavor.

But there are a lot of new users and potential new users reading the forum...all you would really have to do is pick a Prop board and then start asking questions:)

You will get all the help you need... and a lot of other people will be helped and/or encouraged to take the plunge.

Either way, please keep us informed of your progress.

Rich

Gadgetman

NWCCTV wrote: »

What should I start with that would actually be usable in my larger robot project that I am working on?

Why not tell us a bit about the robot project?
Then we might be able to point you in the direction of already existing code that can be adapted.

ericball

Unfortunately, there doesn't appear to be much information on the forum regarding MS Robotics Developer Studio, although Parallax does have the Eddie Robot Platform (http://www.parallax.com/eddie) which is "compatible" and appears to be Propeller based. You might want to start there if RDS is a requirement for your project.

Duane Degn

I think the QuickStart is probably the easiest way to get starting with the Propeller. If you get it from Gadget Gangster you get a free proto board to mount on top of it. There's a link to the GG deal in post #1 of my index (see signature).