PING Wire Noise Sensitivity
Escadi
Posts: 1
Hello, I'm trying to find the source of the random noise that I have with my PING sensor and Arduino UNO as they're collecting distance and timestamp data and transmitting it to a LabVIEW VI. I use this simple system to measure it's relative position to a surface that makes little changes and it occasionally picks up noise especially when the wires connecting to it are lightly stressed, with just the touch of a finger. I saw a thread asking about it's sensitivity to high voltage and long wires and I got the following info from user Phil Pilgrim (PhiPi):
You are getting an output, though, right? IOW, it's not just non-responsive. Here are some things you can try, from simplest, to more complicated:
1. Add an electrolytic cap of at least 220 uF between Vdd and Vss at the Ping))) end of the cable.
2. Add a 4.7K pulldown resistor to the non-Ping))) end of the cable, between Sig and Vss.
3. Add a local 5V regulator circuit to the Ping))) end of the cable to provide its Vdd, and supply 9V to the regulator over the cable.
The most likely scenario is that the cable is dropping too much voltage, either altogether, or just when the Ping))) fires. In the latter case #1 will help; in the former case, #3 will help. #2 will help to eliminate problems with electrical noise.
-Phil
These seemed like interesting methods to debug the issue and I'm very curious to try them but I thought I'd ask the forums for more advice while trying them out. I know that on my test rig we have a high voltage motor (480 V!) that was causing obvious noise to the PING sensor so I moved it a considerable distance away and it measures fine except for the occasionally noise measurements. I thought the high frequency vibration from the motor/gearbox were causing the noise, considering my experience with the sensors sensitivity to touch.
I have even notice that when it measures an oddly shaped surface ( the surface I measure is a soft soil that may experience some deformation while testing) it measures constant noise. I'm assuming this may be because the soil's deformation is absorbing the sounds waves as opposed to when it's completely flat and more reflective. Would you guys agree?
I don't understand why I get noise from simply touching the wires, they're about 3 inches in length and the PING sensor is located next to the Arduino and is powered by the microcontroller's 5V supply. I also saw a review for a similar product in Amazon which the reviewer said he noticed a difference between powering the Arduino from a USB connection (noisy) and connecting it directly to a battery (cleaner).
Any advice/discussion would be gladly appreciated! Sorry for the long post!
You are getting an output, though, right? IOW, it's not just non-responsive. Here are some things you can try, from simplest, to more complicated:
1. Add an electrolytic cap of at least 220 uF between Vdd and Vss at the Ping))) end of the cable.
2. Add a 4.7K pulldown resistor to the non-Ping))) end of the cable, between Sig and Vss.
3. Add a local 5V regulator circuit to the Ping))) end of the cable to provide its Vdd, and supply 9V to the regulator over the cable.
The most likely scenario is that the cable is dropping too much voltage, either altogether, or just when the Ping))) fires. In the latter case #1 will help; in the former case, #3 will help. #2 will help to eliminate problems with electrical noise.
-Phil
These seemed like interesting methods to debug the issue and I'm very curious to try them but I thought I'd ask the forums for more advice while trying them out. I know that on my test rig we have a high voltage motor (480 V!) that was causing obvious noise to the PING sensor so I moved it a considerable distance away and it measures fine except for the occasionally noise measurements. I thought the high frequency vibration from the motor/gearbox were causing the noise, considering my experience with the sensors sensitivity to touch.
I have even notice that when it measures an oddly shaped surface ( the surface I measure is a soft soil that may experience some deformation while testing) it measures constant noise. I'm assuming this may be because the soil's deformation is absorbing the sounds waves as opposed to when it's completely flat and more reflective. Would you guys agree?
I don't understand why I get noise from simply touching the wires, they're about 3 inches in length and the PING sensor is located next to the Arduino and is powered by the microcontroller's 5V supply. I also saw a review for a similar product in Amazon which the reviewer said he noticed a difference between powering the Arduino from a USB connection (noisy) and connecting it directly to a battery (cleaner).
Any advice/discussion would be gladly appreciated! Sorry for the long post!
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