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Parallax Sensor Box Kit does not include instructions — Parallax Forums

Parallax Sensor Box Kit does not include instructions

Buck RogersBuck Rogers Posts: 2,187
in General Discussion

Hello!
I'm again examining the contents of the kit and I'm noting that there are no instructions. Such as how to assemble the basic box around say a PAB WX whilst wearing a ZigBee card. And here's the link for it:
https://parallax.com/product/parallax-sensor-box-kit/
In this case it won't be wearing a ZigBee card, but it will be a PAB.

Please do not feed the mascot while he is trying to be asleep.

Comments

  • Duane DegnDuane Degn Posts: 10,588

    Is there something in particular giving your trouble?

    In case it would help, here's my interpretation of which tabs go into which slots.

    If you have questions about particular parts, I bet people here on the forum would be happy to suggest what goes where.

  • GenetixGenetix Posts: 1,754

    Buck,

    Click on Downloads and there is a YouTube link for the Parallax Activity Board WX.

  • Buck RogersBuck Rogers Posts: 2,187

    @Genetix said:
    Buck,

    Click on Downloads and there is a YouTube link for the Parallax Activity Board WX.

    Hello!
    Yes that's what I mean. The video was not at all helpful. And it was aimed towards the PAB WX. Especially since that's what was shown in the photo on the site. But the explaination on what can go in there, was all of the full sized boards. Even an Arduino wearing a BOE Shield.

  • Duane DegnDuane Degn Posts: 10,588

    Aren't you using a Propeller Activity Board?

    I don't think there's much of a physical difference between a PAB WX and an older PAB. Don't those instructions apply to your PAB?

  • Buck RogersBuck Rogers Posts: 2,187

    @"Duane Degn" said:
    Aren't you using a Propeller Activity Board?

    I don't think there's much of a physical difference between a PAB WX and an older PAB. Don't those instructions apply to your PAB?

    Hello!
    This is one of those odd "It depends." situations. When I bought it I had planned on installing a Stamp Enterprise Board in it, Company calls it a "super Carrier Board", but since that was the first real one, that's my name for them. Then when I'd got hung up on sorting out the problem of who went where, and of course installing the 2x16 LCD module on it, I promptly put it aside. Right now I'm looking into the problems of triggering the Adafruit Mini Spy Camera with Trigger, and I am indeed using one of the two PAB boards to trigger it. I've also installed power headers on a QS board, which I'll get to in a separate one. And yes there's not much real difference between the two. And the photos on the page show a PAB WX installed. But yes you do bring up a good point.

  • GenetixGenetix Posts: 1,754
    edited 2022-02-26 22:51

    Buck,

    We don't have a real datasheet, we think these are just 'guts' of some low cost keychain camera.
 However, it's not too hard to use.
 Connect the red wire to 3.7V-5VDC and the black wire to ground.
 Then use the white wire to control the camera.
 When touched to ground for under about 100ms,
 the camera will take a photo and stick it in a PHOTO folder on the SD card,
 numbered from PIC000.jpg up to PIC999.jpg.
 The red LED will blink briefly.
 When the trigger wire is touched for over 100ms,
 it will start taking a video clip with audio from the mini microphone.
 The LED will stay on during the entire recording.
 Touch it again for half a second+ to stop.

    I would think that even a BS1 could generate a 100 ms pulse.

    I don't know how well a BS1 handles an LCD since it has very little memory but one of your BS2s should do the job.

    Of course there are those 'Italian things' and MicroCenter has Uno clones for $10.
    The next time they go on sale for $8, I need to buy a bunch of them.
    Notice the code pulses the pin for about 50 ms, which a BS1 or BS2 could do with PULSOUT.
    https://learn.adafruit.com/timelapse-spy-camera
    https://learn.adafruit.com/portable-mini-timelapse-camera/software
    The AdaFruit 'Trinket' is just another Arduino-clone (those Italian things).

  • JonnyMacJonnyMac Posts: 9,159

    I would think that even a BS1 could generate a 100 ms pulse.

    It can with

      PULSOUT thePin, 10

    I don't know how well a BS1 handles an LCD since it has very little memory but one of your BS2s should do the job.

    If you have six free pins and a bit of code space, you can control a parallel LCD with a BS1. I've been doing it since 1994 when I bought my first BS1.

    Of course there are those 'Italian things' ...

    Whenever I'm in a special effects shop and someone looks at my work and asks, "Is that an Arduino?" I always smile and say, "No, because Arduino is Italian for junk!" Then I tell them I'm kidding and explain why I prefer to use the Propeller in almost everything I do.

  • Buck RogersBuck Rogers Posts: 2,187

    Hello!
    Of course guys. All of you have provided good advice and suggestions. Right now I have the PAB that was part of a previous shipment of great ideas running that Spin program that one of you wrote for me, based on that simple idea. Now I can tell all of you it did not travel as part of a series of mysteries, but it was sent from inside the company. Actually Jon, that word is a more involved one meaning simple. And not in a good way, think of the Yiddish word for small mind and well you're there.

    As for what's going inside that box if it gets assembled, I'm leaning towards a Super Carrier board wearing BS2 for ideas. As for what ideas? That's the first step. Again I'm just asking for and getting good advice.

  • Buck RogersBuck Rogers Posts: 2,187

    @Genetix said:
    Buck,

    We don't have a real datasheet, we think these are just 'guts' of some low cost keychain camera.
 However, it's not too hard to use.
 Connect the red wire to 3.7V-5VDC and the black wire to ground.
 Then use the white wire to control the camera.
 When touched to ground for under about 100ms,
 the camera will take a photo and stick it in a PHOTO folder on the SD card,
 numbered from PIC000.jpg up to PIC999.jpg.
 The red LED will blink briefly.
 When the trigger wire is touched for over 100ms,
 it will start taking a video clip with audio from the mini microphone.
 The LED will stay on during the entire recording.
 Touch it again for half a second+ to stop.

    I would think that even a BS1 could generate a 100 ms pulse.

    I don't know how well a BS1 handles an LCD since it has very little memory but one of your BS2s should do the job.

    Of course there are those 'Italian things' and MicroCenter has Uno clones for $10.
    The next time they go on sale for $8, I need to buy a bunch of them.
    Notice the code pulses the pin for about 50 ms, which a BS1 or BS2 could do with PULSOUT.
    https://learn.adafruit.com/timelapse-spy-camera
    https://learn.adafruit.com/portable-mini-timelapse-camera/software
    The AdaFruit 'Trinket' is just another Arduino-clone (those Italian things).

    And @Genetix I actually did think of going for the BS1 first, and then a BS2. But for effect I was interested in coding it in Spin. Since I don't grok that language, and I know that a lot of you good people do grok it as well as probably for PASM as well.

    The Stamps are next by the way for the next iteration.

  • GenetixGenetix Posts: 1,754
    edited 2022-02-27 00:42

    Buck,

    You can kill an any with a nuke but that is just a waste.

    So far you mentioned the camera and an LCD and according to Jon a BS1 will suffice.
    Maybe you have more stuff that requires a BS2.

    So far though you haven't specified anything that requires the Propeller's power.
    PASM is only needed for very time critical applications such as generating video.
    Spin is a LOT faster than PBASIC so you can bit-bang things like low speed serial that the Stamp is just too slow for.
    Look at the Spin code in Martin Hebel's BS2 Functions Object and you will see what I mean.
    https://web.archive.org/web/20200216170249/http://obex.parallax.com/object/164

    Jon posted a basic Propeller template here.
    https://forums.parallax.com/discussion/154999/help-with-converting-serout-to-propeller

  • Buck RogersBuck Rogers Posts: 2,187

    @Genetix said:
    Buck,

    You can kill an any with a nuke but that is just a waste.

    So far you mentioned the camera and an LCD and according to Jon a BS1 will suffice.
    Maybe you have more stuff that requires a BS2.

    So far though you haven't specified anything that requires the Propeller's power.
    PASM is only needed for very time critical applications such as generating video.
    Spin is a LOT faster than PBASIC so you can bit-bang things like low speed serial that the Stamp is just too slow for.
    Look at the Spin code in Martin Hebel's BS2 Functions Object and you will see what I mean.
    https://web.archive.org/web/20200216170249/http://obex.parallax.com/object/164

    Jon posted a basic Propeller template here.
    https://forums.parallax.com/discussion/154999/help-with-converting-serout-to-propeller

    Hello!
    I believe you're mixing up my currernt Prop project, with one of my many Basic Stamp ones, and the original reason for buying the box kit. That Stamp one involved connecting the Stamp to a TI83Plus which would running two programs that were not written by me. The Stamp program would running an update of one either the one provided by the author of the TI ones, or a translation of the Stamp 2 one to a Stamp 1 by Jon. The purpose behind it would have been to confirm that everything worked and that I could continue developing Stamp ideas.

    The Camera board and the Prop either as part of a PAB or on a QS are completely different things from all of that. Now the Spin program for that is running on the PAB. I am leaning towards dedicating yet another PAB to doing all of that contstantly, But first I want to see if the whole business will work on a QS.

  • GenetixGenetix Posts: 1,754

    Buck,

    The Propeller is much better suited for use with the TI-83+ than the BS2.
    One of these days I will play with it.

    I took the Arduino code and converted it to Spin.
    Just change the Trig constant to whatever I/O pin you choose.
    I added a 'HeartBeat' and some DEBUG code that you can delete if you wish.

    spin
    spin
    Timelapse Spy Camera.spin
    5K
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