ActiveBot Test for Trim
When running the Active Bot with Test for Trim after the calibration. The system goes in circles one way and then starts a circle in another way.. Is there some calibration steps I need to follow with the potentiometer ?
Comments
Check what you have done against these pages with careful attention to detail.
http://learn.parallax.com/activitybot/electrical-connections
http://learn.parallax.com/activitybot/mechanical-assembly
After you have found the next problem, re-run the calibration. If it goes straight with Test for Trim after that, then good. If it still behaves erratically, it means there is still another mistake.
The rightmost column should start at 1000, then jump down to something in the 170 to 205 range. After oscillating for a few entries, it should decline to zero, then increase back up to where it started. This pattern should be roughly the same for both left and right wheels. If it's not, it's likely that you still have a wiring or assembly error. When you post the interpolation table, we'll have a better idea of what that error might be.
http://forums.parallax.com/showthread.php/150281-Activity-Bot-mechanical-assembly-step-7-amp-8-heads-up?p=1207655#post1207655
not like the good one shown in http://forums.parallax.com/showthrea...55#post1207655 .. Is there a way to push the encoders down so that they see the spokes like the one that is depicted in the Good picture
You want the encoders up as far as possible to see the spokes.
Try this to reset the servos:
http://learn.parallax.com/activitybot/troubleshooting
-Phil
That said, however, if you plan to mount a heavy load to the front of the bot, such as a gripper, you will want to reverse the encoder instead, so that the cable protrudes forward. But in most cases, having the servo shaft rearward is the better option.
-Phil
If the test program doesn't take the ActivityBot slowly forward for eight seconds, there may still be another assembly step that was not followed correctly. For example, maybe the resistors are the wrong values, something other than 20 k = red-black-orange. Or maybe the supply jumper for the P12/P13 headers was not set to Vin. Or maybe the cable that's supposed to be connected to P12 is connected to P13 and vice-versa. Or maybe it's the P14 and P15 cables that are swapped. Those are some examples of common assembly errors, but yours may be different.
Some of the common errors and their symptoms are documented here: http://learn.parallax.com/activitybot/troubleshooting
Sometimes we can get hints about what's wrong if you post your ActivityBot's calibration table. Please see post #4 http://forums.parallax.com/showthread.php/156153-ActiveBot-Test-for-Trim?p=1276281&viewfull=1#post1276281 in this thread.
If you are going to load code to make the ActivityBot navigate, make sure to:
(1) Plug the battery supply in
(2) Set the PWR switch to 1
(3) Use the Load EEPROM & Run button to load the code into the bot
(4) Set the power switch to 0 while you take it to the place where it's going to navigate
(5) Set the PWR switch to 2
(6) Set the bot down and observe
If it just twitches forward by a few spokes repeatedly, it may mean the batteries are dead. If the Activity Board was left on over night, the LED lights may have brought the batteries down. If one of the batteries is trying to fall out of the pack, it can also have those symptoms.
One other thing to check would be to make sure the shunt jumpers next to the P12/13 and P14/15 servo ports are fitting tightly over their pins. The P12/13 shunt should be over VIN and the center pin, and the P14/15 jumper should be over the 5V and center pin. If either of them are not fitting tightly, pull the shunt jumper off and bend the pins very slightly apart so that when you put the shunt jumper back on, it'll fit snuggly.
Unplug the barrel jack and USB cable connection fully before moving any shunt jumper, or you will damage your board.
wanted to provide feedback. I got it finally working with the trim code. Now I can go forward /backwards, right and left.. The issue I ran into and not sure why, the copy of the trim program that I downloaded was faulty. I downloaded the example code and copied and pasted from the learn zip folder that I downloaded again. and that seemed to do the trick