How to - Accelerometer (2) Tilt, Display Graphics, and Video Games
Andy Lindsay (Parallax)
Posts: 1,919
The following is an excerpt from Smart Sensors and Applications by Andy Lindsay, and can be found on pages 167-204.
For more fun projects with your accelerometer, download the full text for free·here.
For other cool applications involving Serial LCDs, the PING))) Ultrasonic Sensor, and compasses, the full kit can be found here.
Happy Gaming!
_____________________________________________________________________________
·
(c) 2004·by Parallax Inc - all rights reserved.···
Post Edited By Moderator (Jessica Uelmen (Parallax)) : 4/9/2009 6:13:52 PM GMT
For more fun projects with your accelerometer, download the full text for free·here.
For other cool applications involving Serial LCDs, the PING))) Ultrasonic Sensor, and compasses, the full kit can be found here.
Happy Gaming!
_____________________________________________________________________________
·
(c) 2004·by Parallax Inc - all rights reserved.···
Post Edited By Moderator (Jessica Uelmen (Parallax)) : 4/9/2009 6:13:52 PM GMT
Comments
·
The accelerometer is featured in lots of HIDs.· HID is short for Human Interface Device, and it includes computer mice, keyboards, and more generally, anything that makes it possible for humans to interact with microprocessors.· With limited space on PDAs, tilt control eliminates the need for extra buttons.· Tilt control is also a popular feature in certain game controllers.·
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·····
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The circuit in products like these is similar to the on introduced in How to – Accelerometer (1) Fundamentals and Basic Tilt Measurements.· If you haven’t already tested the circuit and tried the examples in the Accelerometer Fundamentals page, follow the link over there now and do that first.
·
This chapter has four activities, each in its own post.· You can either click the links to·open each post in a new window or scroll down to find them.·
·
•········· Activity #1: PBASIC Graphic Character Display – introduces some Debug Terminal cursor control and coordinate plotting basics.
•········· Activity #2: Background Store and Refresh with EEPROM – Each time your game character moves, whatever it was covering up on the screen has to be re-drawn.· This activity demonstrates how you can move your character and refresh the background with the help of the BASIC Stamp’s EEPROM.
•········· Activity #3: Tilt the Bubble Graph – With a moving asterisk on a graph, this first application demonstrates how the hot air pocket inside the MX2125 moves when you tilt it.· At the same time, it puts the accelerometer fundamentals to work along with graphic character display and refreshing the background with EEPROM.
•········· Activity #4: Game Control Example – You are now ready to use tilt to start controlling your game character.· The background characters can be used to make decisions about whether your game character is in or out of bounds.· Have fun customizing and expanding this tilt controlled video game.
Post Edited By Moderator (Jessica Uelmen (Parallax)) : 8/25/2010 5:34:57 PM GMT
This activity introduces some programming techniques you will use to graphically display coordinates with the Debug Terminal.· Certain elements of the techniques introduced in this and the next activity are commonly used with liquid crystal and other small displays as well as in certain computer-video technologies like MPEG.· This activity also lays the groundwork for the tilt controlled video games introduced in·
The CRSRXY ·and Other Control Characters
The DEBUG command's CRSRXY control character can be used to place the cursor at a location on the Debug Terminal's receive windowpane.· For example, DEBUG CRSRXY, 7, 3, "*" places the asterisk character seven spaces to the right and three characters down.· Instead of using constants like 7 and 3, you can use variables to make the placement of the cursor adjustable.· Let’s say you have two variables, x and y, the values these variables store will control the placement of the asterisk in the command DEBUG CRSRXY, x, y, "*".
·
The next example program also makes use of the CLRDN control character.· The command DEBUG CLRDN causes all the lines below the cursor’s current location to be erased.·
·
Example Program – CrsrxyPlot.bs2
With this program, you can type pairs of digits into the Transmit Windowpane to position asterisks on the receive windowpane.· Simply click the transmit windowpane and start typing.· The first digit you type is the number of spaces to the right to place the cursor, and the second number is the number of carriage returns downward.· Before typing a new pair of digits, press the space bar once.·
·
·······
····· √······· Enter, save, and run CrsrxyPlot.bs2
√······· Follow the prompts and type digits into the Debug Terminal's transmit windowpane to place asterisks on the plot.
√······· Try the sequence 11, 22, 33, 43, 53, 63, 73, 84, 95.· Do the asterisks in your Debug Terminal match the pattern in the example?
√······· Try drawing a few shapes, like a square, triangle, and circle by predicting the sequence of coordinates you will have to enter.
·
[color=green][color=blue][color=#800080][color=green]' Accelerometer Projects[/color] [color=green]' CrsrxyPlot.bs2[/color] [color=green]'{$STAMP BS2}[/color] [color=green]'{$PBASIC 2.5}[/color] [color=black]x VAR Word[/color] [color=black]y VAR Word[/color] [color=black]temp VAR Byte[/color] [color=blue]DEBUG[/color] CLS[color=black],[/color] [color=red]"0123456789X"[/color][color=black],[/color] CR[color=black],[/color] [color=red]"1 "[/color][color=black],[/color] CR[color=black],[/color] [color=red]"2 "[/color][color=black],[/color] CR[color=black],[/color] [color=red]"3 "[/color][color=black],[/color] CR[color=black],[/color] [color=red]"4 "[/color][color=black],[/color] CR[color=black],[/color] [color=red]"5 "[/color][color=black],[/color] CR[color=black],[/color] [color=red]"Y "[/color][color=black],[/color] CR[color=black],[/color] CR [color=blue]DO[/color] [color=blue]DEBUG[/color] [color=red]"Type X coordinate: "[/color] [color=blue]DEBUGIN[/color] [color=navy]DEC1[/color] [color=black]x[/color] [color=blue]DEBUG[/color] CR[color=black],[/color] [color=red]"Type Y coordinate: "[/color] [color=blue]DEBUGIN[/color] [color=navy]DEC1[/color] [color=black]y[/color] [color=blue]DEBUG[/color] CRSRXY[color=black], x, y, [/color][color=red]"*"[/color] [color=blue]DEBUG[/color] CRSRXY[color=black],[/color] 0[color=black],[/color] 10[color=black],[/color] [color=red]"Press any key..."[/color] [color=blue]DEBUGIN[/color] [color=black]temp[/color] [color=blue]DEBUG[/color] CRSRXY[color=black], 0, 8, [/color]CLRDN [color=blue]LOOP[/color][/color][/color][/color]·
Your Turn – Keeping Characters in the Plot Area
If you type the digit 8 in response to the prompt "Type Y coordinate: ", it will overwrite your text.· Similar problems occur if you type 0 for either the X or Y coordinates.· The asterisk is plotted over the text that shows which row and column CRSRXY is plotting.· One way to fix this is with the MAX and MIN operators.· Simply add the statement y = y MAX 5 MIN 1.· The DEBUGIN command’s DEC1 operator solves this problem for the maximum X coordinate, since it is limited to a value from 0 to 9.· So, all you’ll need to clamp the X value is x = x MIN 1.·
·
√······· Try entering out of bounds values for the Y coordinate (0 and 6 to 9) and and 0 for the X coordinate.·
√······· Observe the effects on the display’s background.·
√······· Modify CrsrxyPlot.bs2 as shown here and try it again
·
· DEBUG CR, "Type Y coordinate: "
· DEBUGIN DEC1 y
·
· Y = y MAX 5 MIN 1··············· ' <--- Add
· X = x MIN 1 ·····················' <--- Add
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· DEBUG CRSRXY, x, y, "*"·
Scale and Offset
Scale and offset were introduced in both What's a Microcontroller and Robotics with the Boe-Bot.· In What's a Microcontroller, they were used to adjust servo position based on input, and in Robotics with the Boe-Bot, they were used to calibrate light sensors.· Here is scale and offset again, this time for positioning characters on a display.
·
Take a look at this example.· When you type in -3-3 into the Debug Terminal’s transmit windowpane, it doesn’t automatically appear at the (-3, -3) position on the graph.· The asterisk actually needs to be placed 0 spaces over and 6 carriage returns down.· Here is a second example.· When you type-in 2,2, CRSRXY actually needs to place the cursor at 10 spaces over and one carriage return down.·
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For values ranging from -3 to 3, the X value has to be multiplied by 2 and added to 6 for CRSRXY to place the asterisk the right number of spaces over.· That’s a scale of 2, and an offset of 6.· Here is a PBASIC statement to make the conversion from X coordinate to number of spaces.
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· x = (x * 2) + 6
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The Y value has to be multiplied by -1, then added to 3.· That’s a scale of -1 and an offset of 3.· Here again is a PBASIC statement to make the conversion from Y coordinate to number of carriage returns.
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· y = 3 - y
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Try substituting X and Y coordinates in the right side of each of these equations, do the math, and verify that each equation yields the right number of spaces and carriage returns.
Example Program – PlotXYGraph.bs2··
√······· Enter and run PlotXYGraph.bs2.
√······· Try entering the sequence of values: -3-3 -2-2 -1-1 00 11 22 33 and verify that it matches the Debug Terminal example.
√······· Try some other sequences and/or drawing shapes by their coordinates.··
[color=blue][color=green]' Accelerometer Projects[/color] [color=green]' PlotXYGraph.bs2[/color] [color=green]'{$STAMP BS2}[/color] [color=green]'{$PBASIC 2.5}[/color] [color=black]x VAR Word[/color] [color=black]y VAR Word[/color] [color=black]temp VAR Byte[/color] [color=blue]DEBUG[/color][color=#800080] CLS[/color][color=black],[/color] [color=red]" 3| "[/color][color=black],[/color][color=#800080] CR[/color][color=black],[/color] [color=red]" 2| "[/color][color=black],[/color][color=#800080] CR[/color][color=black],[/color] [color=red]" 1| "[/color][color=black],[/color][color=#800080] CR[/color][color=black],[/color] [color=red]"------+------"[/color][color=black],[/color][color=#800080] CR[/color][color=black],[/color] [color=red]"-3-2-1| 1 2 3"[/color][color=black],[/color][color=#800080] CR[/color][color=black],[/color] [color=red]" -2| "[/color][color=black],[/color][color=#800080] CR[/color][color=black],[/color] [color=red]" -3| "[/color][color=black],[/color][color=#800080] CR[/color][color=black], [/color][color=#800080]CR[/color] [color=blue]DO[/color] [color=blue]DEBUG[/color] [color=red]"Type X coordinate: "[/color] [color=blue]DEBUGIN[/color] [color=navy]SDEC1[/color] [color=black]x[/color] [color=blue]DEBUG[/color] [color=black]CR,[/color] [color=red]"Type Y coordinate: "[/color] [color=blue]DEBUGIN[/color] [color=navy]SDEC1[/color] [color=black]y[/color] [color=black] x = (x * 2) + 6[/color] [color=black] y = 3 - y[/color] [color=blue]DEBUG[/color][color=#800080] CRSRXY[/color][color=black], x, y,[/color] [color=red]"*"[/color] [color=blue]DEBUG[/color][color=#800080] CRSRXY[/color][color=black], 0, 10,[/color] [color=red]"Press any Key..."[/color] [color=blue]DEBUGIN[/color] [color=black]temp[/color] [color=blue]DEBUG[/color][color=#800080] CRSRXY[/color][color=black], 0, 8,[/color][color=#800080] CLRDN[/color] [color=blue]LOOP[/color][/color]Your Turn – More Keeping Characters in the Plot Area
You can also use IF…THEN statements to handle values that are out of bounds.· Here is an example of how you can modify PlotXyGraph.bs2 with IF…THEN.· Instead of clipping the value, the program just waits until a correct value is entered.·
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√······· Modify PlotXYGraph.bs2 as shown here, and then run it.· Verify that this program does not allow you to enter characters outside the range of -3 to 3.
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· IF (x > 12) OR (y > 6) THEN··············· ' <--- Add/modify from here...
··· DEBUG CRSRXY, 0, 8, CLRDN,·············· '
········ "Enter values from -3 to 3.", CR,·· '
········ "Try again"························ '
············································ '
· ELSE······································ '
············································ '
··· DEBUG CRSRXY, x, y, "*"················· '
············································ '
· ENDIF····································· ' <--- to here
············ ····························
· DEBUG CRSRXY, 0, 10, "Press any Key..."···
· DEBUGIN temp
··
Algebra to Determine Scale and Offset
The XY plot displayed in the Debug Terminal in this activity is called the Cartesian coordinate system.· Named after 17th century mathematician René Descartes, this system is the basis for graphing techniques used in many mathematical pursuits.· The Cartesian coordinate system’s is most commonly displayed with (0, 0) in the center of the graph.· Its values get larger going upward (y-axis) and to the right (x-axis).· Most displays behave differently, with coordinate 0, 0 starting at the top-left.· While the x-axis increases toward the right, the y-axis increases downward.
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You can use a standard algebra technique, solving two equations in two unknowns, to figure out the statements you will need to transform Cartesian coordinates into debug terminal coordinates.· This next example shows how it was done for the two x and y statements in PlotXYGraph.bs2. ····
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By adding a couple of DEBUG commands, you can display the before and after versions of the X-value you entered.···
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· DEBUG "Type X coordinate: "
· DEBUGIN SDEC1 x
· DEBUG CR, "Type Y coordinate: "
· DEBUGIN SDEC1 y
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· DEBUG CRSRXY, 0, 12, "x before: ", SDEC1 x·· ' <--- Add
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· x = (x * 2) + 6
· y = 3 - y
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· DEBUG CRSRXY, 0, 14, "x after:· ", SDEC1 x· ·' <--- Add
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· DEBUG CRSRXY, x, y, "*"
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√······· Save PlotXyGraph.bs2 under another name, like PlotXyGraphBeforeAfter.bs2.
√······· Add the two DEBUG commands that display the "before" and "after" values of x.
√······· Add two more DEBUG commands to display the “before” and “after” values of y.
√······· Enter the coordinates (3,1) and (-2,-2) into the Debug Terminal's transmit windowpane.
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√······· Record the after values in the table.
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Let’s say you want to design a different size display.· You can use the two before and after X before/after data points you recorded earlier and use them to solve for scale (K) and offset (C) using two equations with two unknowns.·
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········· Xafter = (K×Xbefore) + C
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The usual steps for two equations in two unknowns are:
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(1)··· Substitute your two before and after data points into separate copies of the equation.
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········· 12 = (K×3)· + C
········· 2·· = (K×-2) + C
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(2)··· If needed, multiply one of the two equations by a term that causes the number of one of the unknowns in the top and bottom equations to be equal.
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········· Not needed
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(3)··· Subtract one equation from the other to make one of the unknowns zero.
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··········
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(4)··· Solve for the unknown that did not subtract to zero.
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··········
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(5)··· Substitute the value you solved in step 3 into one of the original two equations.
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········ 12 = (2×3) + C
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(6)··· Solve for the second unknown.
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········ 12 = (2×3) + C
········ 12 = 6 + C
········· C = 12- 6
········· C = 6
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(7)··· Incorporate solved unknowns into your equation.
·········K = 2
········ C = 6
········· Xafter = (2×Xbefore) + 6
Your Turn – Y-Axis Calculations
√······· Modify your program so that it displays the Y-Axis before and after values.
√······· Fill in the table for the Y-axis values:
√······· Repeat steps 1-7 for the Y-Axis equation.· The correct answer is yafter = (-1 ´ ybefore) + 3.
SUMMARY
This activity introduced control characters, techniques for keeping characters inside a display’s boundaries, and the algebra techniques for mapping coordinates to a display.· Control character examples included CRSRXY and CLRDN.· Display boundary examples included the MIN and MAX operators and an IF…THEN technique.· Mapping techniques included simple PBASIC equations to change the values of X and Y-coordinates from Cartesian to their Debug Terminal equivalents.
Questions
1.······ What does HID stand for?
2.······ What two arguments do you need along with DEBUG CRSRXY to place the cursor at a location in the Debug Terminal?
3.······ What control character clears the any printed characters that come after the cursor in the Debug Terminal?
4.······ Where is the Debug Terminal’s transmit windowpane in relation to its receive windowpane?
5.······ What formatter stores a single digit that you type into the Debug Terminal’s transmit windowpane in the X variable?
6.······ What operator can you use to make sure the value a variable stores does not exceed a maximum value?
7.······ Are there coding techniques you can use other operators to prevent the value a variable stores from exceeding a maximum or minimum value?
8.······ What statements did CrsrXYPlot.bs2 use to convert Cartesian coordinates to Debug Terminal CRSRXY coordinates?
9.······ If the BASIC Stamp sends a negative value to the Debug Terminal, what can you say about the unsigned value of that number?
10.·· How does scale affect mapping Cartesian coordinates to the Debug Terminal?
Exercises
1.······ Write a DEBUG command that places the cursor five spaces over, seven space down, and then prints the message “* this is the coordinate (5, 7) in the Debug Terminal”.
2.······ Write a DEBUG command that displays a Cartesian coordinates from -2 to 2 on the X and Y axes.
3.······ Calculate the scale and offset for you will need for a coordinate system that goes from -2 to 2 on both the X and Y axes.
4.······ Write a DEBUG command that displays a Cartesian coordinates from -5 to 5 on the X and Y axes.
5.······ Calculate the scale and offset for you will need for a coordinate system that goes from -5 to 5 on both the X and Y axes.
6.······ Write a routine that draws a line of + characters that extends from (1, 1) to (5, 5) in Cartesian coordinates.
Projects
1.······ Modify CrsrXYPlot.bs2 so that it redraws the background before it plots the asterisk.· The net effect should be that it only one asterisk is visible at any given time.· A better way of doing this is introduced in the next activity.
2.······ Modify PlotXYGraph.bs2 so that it displays the coordinates of the most recently placed asterisk to the right of the plot area.
3.······ Modify PlotXYGraph.bs2 so that it plots a line of asterisks from (-3, -3) to (3, 3).
4.······ repeats the line plot.
5.······ Modify PlotXYGraph.bs2 so that it plots a line of asterisks from from (3,-3) to (-3,3), then erases it, then repeats the line plot.
6.······ Modify PlotXYGraph.bs2 so that it works on a plot from -4 to 4 on both the X and Y axes.
7.······ Modify PlotXYGraph.bs2 so that it works on a plot from -2 to 2 on the Y axis in increments of 0.5 and from -4 to 4 on the X axis.
Post Edited By Moderator (Jessica Uelmen (Parallax)) : 8/25/2010 5:37:19 PM GMT
If your game character isn’t on the screen, all that’s visible is the background.· As soon as your game character enters the screen, it blocks out part of the background.· When the character moves, two things have to happen: (1) the game character has to be re-drawn at the new location, and (2) the background that the game character was blocking out has to be re-drawn.· If step 2 never happened in your program, your screen would fill up with copies of your game character.
·
Televisions and CRT computer monitors refresh every pixel many times per second.· The refresh rate on televisions is around 30 Hz, and a few of the more common refresh rates on CRTs are 60, 70, and 72 Hz.· Other devices like the Debug Terminal and certain LCD and LED displays hold the image automatically, or sometimes with the help of another microcontroller.· All the program or microcontroller that controls these devices has to do is tell the display which pixels to change and how to change them.· This is also how video compression on your computer works.· In order to reduce the file size, some compressed video files store the changes to the image instead of all the pixels in each image frame.
·
When used with displays that do not need to be refreshed (like the Debug Terminal or an LCD), the BASIC Stamp’s can store an image of a game or graph background in its EEPROM.· When a game character moves and is redrawn at a different location, the BASIC Stamp can just redraw the characters at the game characters old location.· All you have to do is save the old coordinates of the game character before it moved and then use those coordinates to retrieve the background characters from EEPROM.· Depending on how large the display is, this can save a considerable amount of time that the BASIC Stamp might need to perform other tasks.·
·
This activity introduces three elements to game characters and backgrounds:
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· (1) Storing and displaying the background from EEPROM
· (2) Tracking a character’s old and new coordinates
· (3) Redrawing the old coordinates from EEPROM.·
Background Display from EEPROM
This display doesn’t have to be made with a single DEBUG command, especially if it needs to be maintained as a background with characters traveling over it in the foreground.· Instead, it’s better to store the characters in EEPROM and then display them individually with a FOR…NEXT loop that uses READ and DEBUG commands to display individual characters.
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····
·
You can use the DATA directive to store a background in EEPROM.· Notice how this DATA directive stores 100 characters (0 to 99).· Notice also that each row is 14 characters wide when you add the CR character.· It makes programming much easier if each row is the same width.· Otherwise, finding the character you want can become a rather complex problem.
·
DATA CLS,···················· ' 0 ·
"···· 3|····· ", CR,········· ' 14
"···· 2|····· ", CR,········· ' 28
"···· 1|····· ", CR,········· ' 42
"
+
", CR,········· ' 56
"-3-2-1| 1 2 3", CR,········· ' 70
"··· -2|····· ", CR,········· ' 84
"··· -3|····· ", CR, CR······ ' 98 + 1 = 99
·
You can then use a FOR…NEXT loop to retrieve and display each character stored in EEPROM.· The net effect is the same as a DEBUG command.
·
FOR index = 0 TO 99··· ·····················
· READ index, character
· DEBUG character
NEXT
Example Program – EepromBackgroundDisplay.bs2
√······· Enter, save, and run the program.
√······· Verify that the display is the same as PlotXyGraph.bs2.
[color=green]' Accelerometer Projects ' Program[/color] [color=green]' EepromBackgroundDisplay.bs2[/color] [color=green]'{$STAMP BS2} ' Stamp & PBASIC Directives[/color] [color=green]'{$PBASIC 2.5}[/color] [color=#000000]index VAR Byte [/color][color=green] ' Variables[/color] [color=#000000]character VAR Byte[/color] [color=#000000]DATA [/color][color=purple]CLS[/color][color=#000000], [/color][color=green]' 0 ' Store background in EEPROM[/color] [color=red]" 3| "[/color][color=#000000], [/color][color=purple]CR[/color][color=#000000], [/color][color=green]' 14[/color] [color=red]" 2| "[/color][color=#000000], [/color][color=purple]CR[/color][color=#000000], [/color][color=green]' 28[/color] [color=red]" 1| "[/color][color=#000000], [/color][color=purple]CR[/color][color=#000000], [/color][color=green]' 42[/color] [color=red]"------+------"[/color][color=#000000], [/color][color=purple]CR[/color][color=#000000], [/color][color=green]' 56[/color] [color=red]"-3-2-1| 1 2 3"[/color][color=#000000], [/color][color=purple]CR[/color][color=#000000], [/color][color=green]' 70[/color] [color=red]" -2| "[/color][color=#000000], [/color][color=purple]CR[/color][color=#000000], [/color][color=green]' 84[/color] [color=red]" -3| "[/color][color=#000000], [/color][color=purple]CR[/color][color=#000000], [/color][color=purple]CR[/color] [color=green]' 98 + 1 = 99[/color] [color=blue]FOR[/color][color=#000000] index = 0 [/color][color=blue]TO[/color][color=#000000] 99 [/color][color=green] ' Retrieve and display background[/color] [color=blue]READ[/color][color=#000000] index, character[/color] [color=blue]DEBUG[/color][color=#000000] character[/color] [color=blue]NEXT[/color] [color=blue]END[/color]Your Turn – Viewing the EEPROM Characters
√······· In the BASIC Stamp Editor, click Run and select Memory Map.·
√······· Click the Display Ascii box in the lower left corner of the window.
√······· The digits, dashes, and vertical bars should appear exactly as shown below.
√······· Instead of 14 characters per row, the EEPROM map shows 16.· Verify that you have a total of 100 (0 to 99) characters stored for display purposes in EEPROM.
·
··········
Tracking a Character’s Old and New Coordinates
Let’s say you want to track the previous X and Y coordinates in PlotXYGaph.bs2 from Activity #1.· It takes two steps:
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(1)··· Declare a couple variables for storing the old values, xOld and yOld for example.
·
x············· VAR···· Word
y············· VAR···· Word
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xOld·········· VAR···· Nib ··················' <--- Add
yOld·········· VAR···· Nib ··················' <--- Add
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temp·········· VAR···· Byte
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(2)··· Before loading new values into the x and y variables, store the current value of x into xOld and the current value of y into yOld.
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DO
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· xOld = x·································· ' <--- Add
· yOld = y······· ···························' <--- Add
·
· DEBUG "Type X coordinate: "
·
·
Here’s a third step you can use to test and verify that it works:
·
(3)··· Before loading new values into the x and y variables, store the current value of x into xOld and the current value of y into yOld.· Keep in mind that both values will be in terms of Debug Terminal coordinates.· Also keep in mind that the first time through, the old coordinates will be (0, 0) since all variables initialize to zero in PBASIC.
·
· DEBUG CRSRXY, x, y, "*"
·
· DEBUG CRSRXY, 0, 10,······················ ' <--- Add
······· "Current entry: ·(",
······· DEC x, ",", DEC y, ")"· ·
· DEBUG CRSRXY, 0, 11,······················ ' <--- Add
······· "Previous entry: (",
······ ·DEC xOld, ",", DEC yOld, ")"· ·
· DEBUG CRSRXY, 0, 12, "Press any Key..."··· ' <--- Modify
·
· DEBUGIN temp
·
√······· Start with PlotXYGraph.bs2, save it under a new name, and try the modifications just discussed.
Re-Drawing the Background
The net effect we want for game control is to make the asterisk disappear from its old location and appears in its new location whenever it moves.· To make it appear at its new location, simply use a DEBUG command to display the asterisk at its current coordinates.· To make the asterisk disappear from its old coordinates, the background character that was there has to be looked up in EEPROM and then displayed with DEBUG.···
·
····
·
Here is a routine you can add to PlotXYGraph.bs2 to accomplish this:·
·
· DEBUG CRSRXY, x, y, "*"
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· index = (14 * yOld) + xOld + 1············ ' <--- Add
· READ index, character····················· ' <--- Add
· DEBUG CRSRXY, xOld, yOld, character······· ' <--- Add
·
Notice how the index variable selects the correct character from EEPROM.· The x value is the number of spaces over and the y value is the number of carriage returns down.· To get to the correct address of a character on the third row, your program has to add all the characters in the first two rows.· Since each row has 14 characters, yOld has to be multiplied by 14 before it can be added to xOld.· The extra 1 is added to skip the CLS at address 0.
·
Regardless of whether it's a computer display, the liquid crystal display on your cell phone, or your BASIC Stamp application's display, the same technique applies.· The processor remembers two different images, the one in the background, and the one in the foreground.· As the foreground object moves, it is displayed in a different location and the area that the foreground object used to occupy is re-drawn.
·
The most important thing to keep in mind about this programming technique is that it saves the processor lots of time.· It only has to get one character from EEPROM and send it to the debug terminal.· Compared to 99 characters, that's a significant time savings, and the BASIC Stamp can be doing other things with that time, such as monitoring other sensors, controlling servos, etc.
Example Program – EeprogrmBackgroundRefresh.bs2
This is a modified version of PlotXYGraph.bs2 with the background display, coordinate storage, and background redraw techniques introduced in this activity.·
·
√······· Enter save and run EepromBackgroundRefresh.bs2.
√······· Test and verify that the asterisk disappears form its old location and appears at the new location you entered.·
·
[color=#008000]' -----[noparse][[/noparse] Title ]----------------------------------------------------------- ' Accelerometer Projects ' Program info ' EepromBackgroundRefresh.bs2 '{$STAMP BS2} ' Stamp/PBASIC directives '{$PBASIC 2.5} ' -----[noparse][[/noparse] Variables ]------------------------------------------------------- [color=#000000]x VAR Word [/color]' Store current position [color=#000000]y VAR Word[/color] [color=#000000]xOld VAR Nib [/color]' Store previous position [color=#000000]yOld VAR Nib[/color] [color=#000000]temp VAR Byte [/color]' Dummy variable for DEBUGIN [color=#000000]index VAR Byte [/color]' READ index/character storage [color=#000000]character VAR Byte[/color] ' -----[noparse][[/noparse] EEPROM Data ]----------------------------------------------------- [color=blue]DATA[/color] [color=#800080]CLS[/color][color=#000000], [/color]' Display background [color=#ff0000]" 3| "[/color][color=#000000], [/color][color=purple]CR[/color][color=#000000], [/color][color=green]' 14[/color] [color=#ff0000]" 2| "[/color][color=#000000], [/color][color=purple]CR[/color][color=#000000], [/color][color=green]' 28[/color] [color=#ff0000]" 1| "[/color][color=#000000], [/color][color=purple]CR[/color][color=#000000], [/color][color=green]' 42[/color] [color=#ff0000]"------+------"[/color][color=#000000], [/color][color=purple]CR[/color][color=#000000], [/color][color=green]' 56[/color] [color=#ff0000]"-3-2-1| 1 2 3"[/color][color=#000000], [/color][color=purple]CR[/color][color=#000000], [/color][color=green]' 70[/color] [color=#ff0000]" -2| "[/color][color=#000000], [/color][color=purple]CR[/color][color=#000000], [/color][color=green]' 84[/color] [color=#ff0000]" -3| "[/color][color=#000000], [/color][color=purple]CR[/color][color=#000000], [/color][color=purple]CR[/color] [color=green]' 98 + 1 = 99[/color] ' -----[noparse][[/noparse] Initialization ]-------------------------------------------------- [color=blue]FOR[/color][color=#000000] index = 0 [/color][color=blue]TO[/color][color=#000000] 99 [/color]' Display background [color=blue]READ[/color][color=#000000] index, character[/color] [color=blue]DEBUG[/color][color=#000000] character[/color] [color=#0000ff]NEXT[/color] ' -----[noparse][[/noparse] Main Routine ]---------------------------------------------------- [color=#0000ff]DO [/color] [color=#000000] xOld = x [/color]' Store previous coordinates [color=#000000] yOld = y[/color] [color=#0000ff] DEBUG[/color] [color=red]"Type X coordinate: " [/color]' Get new coordinates [color=#0000ff]DEBUGIN[/color] [color=navy]SDEC1[/color][color=#000000] x[/color] [color=blue]DEBUG[/color] [color=purple]CR[/color][color=#000000], [/color][color=red]"Type Y coordinate: "[/color] [color=#0000ff]DEBUGIN[/color] [color=navy]SDEC1[/color][color=#000000] y[/color] [color=#000000] x = (x * 2) + 6 [/color]' Cartesian to DEBUG values [color=#000000] y = 3 - y[/color] [color=blue]DEBUG[/color] [color=purple]CRSRXY[/color][color=#000000], x, y, [/color][color=red]"*" [/color]' Display asterisk [color=#000000] index = (14 * yOld) + xOld + 1 [/color]' Redisplay background [color=blue]READ[/color][color=#000000] index, character[/color] [color=blue]DEBUG[/color] [color=purple]CRSRXY[/color][color=#000000], xOld, yOld, character[/color] [color=blue]DEBUG[/color] [color=purple]CRSRXY[/color][color=#000000], 0, 10, [/color][color=red]"Press any Key..." [/color]' Wait for user [color=blue]DEBUGIN[/color][color=#000000] temp[/color] [color=blue]DEBUG[/color] [color=purple]CRSRXY[/color][color=#000000], 0, 8, [/color][color=purple]CLRDN [/color]' Clear old info [color=#0000ff]LOOP[/color] [/color]Your Turn - Redrawing the Background without Extra Variables
Keeping track of the old location of the foreground character isn’t always necessary.· Think about it this way: in EepromBackgroundRefresh.bs2 the x and y variables store the old values until you enter new values.· By simply rearranging the order that the x and y variables are displayed in, you can eliminate the need for xOld and yOld.
Here is a replacement main routine you can try in EepromBakcgroundRefresh.bs2.· As soon as you press the space bar, your old asterisk disappears.· The new asterisk reappears when you type the second of the two coordinates.· As you will see in the next activity, this technique works really well when the refresh rate is several times per second with tilt control.
√······· Comment the xOld and yOld variable declarations.
√······· Save EepromBakcgroundRefresh.bs2 as EepromBackgroundRefreshYourTurn.bs2
√······· Replace the Main Routine in EepromBackgroundRefresh.bs2 with this one.
√······· Test it and examine the change in the program’s behavior.
·
'
[noparse][[/noparse] Main Routine ]
·
DO
·
· index = (14 * y) + x + 1················· ·' Redisplay background
· READ index, character
· DEBUG CRSRXY, x, y, character
·
· DEBUG CRSRXY, 0, 8,······················ ·' Get new coordinates
······· "Type X coordinate: "
· DEBUGIN SDEC1 x
· DEBUG CR, "Type Y coordinate: "
· DEBUGIN SDEC1 y
·
· x = (x * 2) + 6·························· ·' Cartesian to DEBUG values
· y = 3 - y
·
· DEBUG CRSRXY, x, y, "*"·················· ·' Display asterisk
·
· DEBUG CRSRXY, 0, 10, "Press any Key..."·· ·' Wait for user
· DEBUGIN temp
· DEBUG CRSRXY, 0, 8, CLRDN················ ·' Clear old info
·
LOOP
Animation and Redrawing the Background
You can also use the techniques introduced in this activity to write programs for a variety of animated sequences.· Here is just one example:·
√······· Save EepromBackgroundRefresh.bs2 as ExampleAnimation.bs2
√······· Replace the main routine in the program with the one shown here.
√······· Run it and observe the effect.
'
[noparse][[/noparse] Main Routine ]
DO
· FOR y = 0 TO 6
··· FOR temp = 1 TO 2
····· FOR x = 0 TO 12
······· IF (temp.BIT0 = 1) THEN
········· DEBUG CRSRXY, x, y, "*"
······· ELSE
········· index = (14 * yOld) + xOld + 1
········· READ index, character
········· DEBUG CRSRXY, xOld, yOld, character
········· xOld = x
········· yOld = y
······· ENDIF
······· PAUSE 50
····· NEXT
··· NEXT
· NEXT
LOOP
SUMMARY
This activity introduced a means of storing, displaying and refreshing a background character display image from EEPROM.· This is a useful ingredient for many product displays, and will also come in handy for tilt display and games.· An entire display background can be printed with a FOR…NEXT loop.· A READ command in the loop depends on the FOR…NEXT loop’s index variable to address the next character in the sequence.· After the READ command loads the next character in the variable, the DEBUG command can be used to send the character to the Debug Terminal.· For erasing the tracks left by a character moving over the background, the character’s previous position can be stored in one or more variables.· The previous position information can then be used along with the READ command to look up the character that should replace the moving character after it has moved to its next position.·
Questions
1.······ What are the refresh rates of common CRT computer monitors?
2.······ Name two types of displays that do not need have all their pixels repeatedly refreshed by the BASIC Stamp?
3.······ What kind of routine do you need to display all the background characters stored in a DATA directive?
4.······ Why is it important to know how many background characters are in each row?
5.······ A signed value could be positive or negative.· Why are word variables better for storing signed values?
6.······ What is the key to redrawing the background with the same variables used to store a character’s current position?
Exercises
1.······ Write a routine that draws a rectangle with asterisks.· This routine should be 15 asterisks wide and 5 asterisks high.
2.······ Write a routine that makes a shape such as a rectangle, triangle or circle, then causes it to disappear one asterisk at a time.
3.······ If your background is 5 characters wide by 3 characters high, predict the minimum size variable you can use to set the address for your read command and explain your choice.· Do you have any room for additional characters such as CLS?
Projects
1.······ Write a program that allows you to move an asterisk around the Cartesian plane with the R, L, U, and D keys.· Only one asterisk should appear on the plot at any given time.
2.······ Write a drawing program that allows you to select characters and draw them over the Cartesian plane.· By pressing the enter key twice, the drawing disappears one character at a time.
Post Edited By Moderator (Jessica Uelmen (Parallax)) : 8/25/2010 5:39:13 PM GMT
This activity combines the graphics concepts introduced in Activity #1 and #2 with the accelerometer tilt measurement techniques introduced in Chapter 1.· The result is an asterisk bubble that demonstrates the movement of the heated gas pocket inside the MX2125’s chamber.· Here is an example of what the Debug Terminal in this activity displays when the accelerometer is tilted up and to the left.
·
····
·Here is a legend for the different ways you can tilt the board on its axes along with each tilt’s effect on the location of the hot gas pocket.
·····
Tilt Control of Asterisk Display
BubbleGraph.bs2 updates the position of the hottest spot inside the accelerometer chamber about 8 times per second (8 Hz).· After displaying the (background) XY axes to the debug terminal, it repeats the same steps over and over again.
·
········· •········· Display the background character and pause for the blink-effect.
········· •········· Get the X-axis tilt from the accelerometer
········· •········· Adjust the value so that it fits on the plot’s X-axis.
········· •········· Get the Y-axis tilt from the accelerometer
········· •········· Adjust the value so that it fits on the plot’s Y-axis.
········· •········· Display the asterisk and pause again for the blink-effect.
·
Each of these steps is discussed in more detail after the example program.
Example Program – BubbleGraph.bs2
·
√······· Enter and run BubbleGraph.bs2.
√······· Hold your board as shown in the Tilt Asterisk Display figure.· .
√······· Practice controlling the asterisk by tilting the board.·
√······· Aside from holding you board horizontally and tilting it, try holding it vertically and rotating it in a circle.· The asterisk should travel in a circular arc around the graph as you do so.
[color=#008000]' -----[noparse][[/noparse] Title ]--------------------------------------------------------------[/color] [color=#008000]' Accelerometer Projects ' Program info[/color] [color=#008000]' BubbleGraph.bs2[/color] [color=#008000]'{$STAMP BS2} ' Stamp/PBASIC directives[/color] [color=#008000]'{$PBASIC 2.5}[/color] [color=#008000]' -----[noparse][[/noparse] EEPROM Data ]--------------------------------------------------------[/color] [color=#008000]' Store background to EEPROM ' Address of last char on row[/color] [color=#0000ff]DATA[/color] [color=#800080]CLS[/color], [color=#008000]' 0 [/color] [color=#ff0000]" 5^Y "[/color], [color=#800080]CR[/color], [color=#008000]' 22[/color] [color=#ff0000]" 4| "[/color], [color=#800080]CR[/color], [color=#008000]' 44[/color] [color=#ff0000]" 3| "[/color], [color=#800080]CR[/color], [color=#008000]' 66[/color] [color=#ff0000]" 2| "[/color], [color=#800080]CR[/color], [color=#008000]' 88[/color] [color=#ff0000]" 1| X"[/color], [color=#800080]CR[/color], [color=#008000]' 110[/color] [color=#ff0000]"----------+--------->"[/color], [color=#800080]CR[/color], [color=#008000]' 132[/color] [color=#ff0000]"-5-4-3-2-1| 1 2 3 4 5"[/color], [color=#800080]CR[/color], [color=#008000]' 154[/color] [color=#ff0000]" -2| "[/color], [color=#800080]CR[/color], [color=#008000]' 176[/color] [color=#ff0000]" -3| "[/color], [color=#800080]CR[/color], [color=#008000]' 198[/color] [color=#ff0000]" -4| "[/color], [color=#800080]CR[/color], [color=#008000]' 220[/color] [color=#ff0000]" -5| "[/color], [color=#800080]CR[/color] [color=#008000]' 242[/color] [color=#008000]' -----[noparse][[/noparse] Variables ]----------------------------------------------------------[/color] x VAR Word [color=#008000]' Store current position[/color] y VAR Word index VAR Word [color=#008000]' READ index/character storage[/color] char VAR Byte [color=#008000]' -----[noparse][[/noparse] Initialization ]-----------------------------------------------------[/color] [color=#0000ff]FOR[/color] index = 0 [color=#0000ff]TO[/color] 242 [color=#008000]' Read & display background[/color] [color=#0000ff]READ[/color] index, char [color=#0000ff]DEBUG[/color] char [color=#0000ff]NEXT[/color] [color=#008000]' -----[noparse][[/noparse] Main Routine ]-------------------------------------------------------[/color] [color=#0000ff]DO [/color][color=#008000]' Begin main routine[/color] [color=#008000] ' Replace asterisk with background character.[/color] index = (22 * y) + x + 1 [color=#008000]' Coordinates -> EEPROM address[/color] [color=#0000ff]READ[/color] index, char [color=#008000]' Get background character[/color] [color=#0000ff]DEBUG[/color] [color=#000080]CRSRXY[/color], x, y, char [color=#008000]' Display background character[/color] [color=#0000ff]PAUSE[/color] 50 [color=#008000]' Pause for blink effect[/color] [color=#008000] ' Get X-axis tilt & scale to graph.[/color] [color=#0000ff]PULSIN[/color] 6, 1, x [color=#008000]' Get X-axis tilt[/color] x = x MIN 1875 MAX 3125 [color=#008000]' Keep inside X-axis domain[/color] x = x – 1875 [color=#008000]' Offset to zero[/color] x = x * 2 / 125 [color=#008000]' Scale[/color] [color=#008000] ' Get Y-axis tilt & scale to graph.[/color] [color=#0000ff]PULSIN[/color] 7, 1, y [color=#008000]' Get Y-Axis tilt[/color] y = y MIN 1875 MAX 3125 [color=#008000]' Keep in Y-Axis range[/color] y = y – 1875 [color=#008000]' Offset to zero[/color] y = y / 125 [color=#008000]' Scale [/color] y = 10 – y [color=#008000]' Offset Cartesian -> Debug [/color] [color=#008000] ' Display asterisk at new cursor position.[/color] [color=#0000ff]DEBUG[/color] [color=#000080]CRSRXY[/color], x, y, "*" [color=#008000]' Display asterisk[/color] [color=#0000ff]PAUSE[/color] 50 [color=#008000]' Pause again for blink effect[/color] [color=#0000ff]LOOP [/color][color=#008000]' Repeat main routine[/color]How BubbleGraph.bs2 Works
The first thing the main routine does is displays the background character at the current cursor position.· With a 50 ms pause, it completes the “off” portion of a blinking asterisk.· While the programs in Activity #2 had 14 characters per row, this larger plot has 22 characters per row.· This value has to be multiplied by the y display coordinate, then added to the x display coordinate, plus one for the CLS at EEPROM address zero.· The result stored in index is the EEPROM address of the correct background character.
·
···· ' Replace asterisk with background character.
···· index = (22 * y) + x + 1
···· READ index, char········
···· DEBUG CRSRXY, x, y, char
···· PAUSE 50················
·
The PULSIN command measures the X-axis measurement pulse the accelerometer sends to P6 and stores it in the x variable.· MIN and MAX values are applied to x so that it doesn’t cause the program to try to place the asterisk outside the plot area.· Then, by subtracting 1875 from x, it causes the variable to range from 0 to 1250.· Multiplying by 2 then dividing by 125 results in values ranging from 0 to 20, the number of characters across the X-axis on the plot.
·
···· ' Get X-axis tilt & scale to graph.
···· PULSIN 6, 1, x····· ······
···· x = x MIN 1875 MAX 3125··
···· x = x – 1875 ·············
···· x = x * 2 / 125··········
·
The PULSIN command measures the Y-axis measurement pulse the accelerometer sends to P7 and stores it in the y variable, and the min and max values are again applied to prevent the asterisk from wondering off the plot area.· While the plot area is 20 spaces wide, it’s only 10 spaces tall.· This time, a measurement that ranges from 1875 to 3125 has to be mapped to a range of 10 to 0 (not 0 to 10).· Dividing y by 125 gives a scale of 10, but we want the largest value to map to 0 carriage returns (Y = + 5) on the Debug terminal while the smallest value maps to 10 carriage returns down (Y = -5).· That’s what y = 10 – y does.· When + 10 is substituted for y on the right side of the equal sign, the result on the left is 0.· When 0 is substituted for y on the right side of the equal sign, the result on the left is 0.· It works right for 1 through 9 too; give it a try.·
·
···· ' Get Y-axis tilt & scale to graph.
···· PULSIN 7, 1, y·········
···· y = y MIN 1875 MAX 3125
···· y = y – 1875 ···········
···· y = y / 125············
···· y = 10 – y ·············
·
The last steps before repeating the loop in the main routine is to display the new asterisk at its new x and y coordinates, then pause for another 50 ms to complete the “on” portion of the blinking asterisk.
·
···· ' Display asterisk at new cursor position.
···· DEBUG CRSRXY, x, y, "*"
···· PAUSE 50········ ·····
Your Turn – A Larger Bubble
Displaying and erasing a group of asterisks can be done, but compared to a single character, it’s a little tricky.· The program has to ensure that none of the asterisks will be displayed outside the plot area.· It also has to ensure that all of the asterisks will be overwritten with the correct characters from EEPROM.·
·
····
Here is one example of how to modify BubbleGraph.bs2 so that it displays.·
·
√······· Save BubbleGraph.bs2 as BubbleGraphYourTurn.bs2.
√······· Add this variable declaration to the program’s Variables section:
·
temp··· VAR···· Byte·
·
√······· Replace the “Replace asterisk with background character” routine with this:
·
' Replace asterisk with background character (modified).
FOR temp = (x MIN 1 – 1) TO (x MAX 19 + 1)
· index = (22 * y) + temp + 1
· READ index, char
· DEBUG CRSRXY, temp, y, char
NEXT
·
FOR temp = (y MIN 1 – 1) TO (y MAX 9 + 1)
· index = (22 * temp) + x + 1
· READ index, char
· DEBUG CRSRXY, x, temp, char
NEXT
PAUSE 50
·
√······· Replace the “ Display asterisk at new cursor position” routine with this:
·
' Display asterisk at new cursor position (modified).
DEBUG CRSRXY, x,··········· y,··········· "*",
····· CRSRXY, x MAX 19 + 1, y,··········· "*",
····· CRSRXY, x,··········· y MAX 9 + 1,· "*",
····· CRSRXY, x MIN 1 - 1,· y,··········· "*",
····· CRSRXY, x,··········· y MIN 1 - 1,· "*"
PAUSE 50
·
√······· Run the program and try it.· Test to make sure problems do not occur as one of the outermost asterisks is forced off the plot area.
·
Another twos complement gotcha to avoid is subtracting 1 from 0 and then setting the MIN value afterwards.· Remember from Activity #1 that twos complement system stores the signed value -1 as 65535.· That’s why the MIN value was set to 1 before subtracting 1.· The result is then a correct minimum of 0.· The same technique was used for setting the MAX values even though there really isn’t a problem with y + 1 MAX 10.
SUMMARY
This activity demonstrated how the accelerometer measurements from Chapter 1 can be combined with cursor positioning and character recall techniques from this chapter to create a tilt controlled display.· Simple PULSIN measurements were used to measure the accelerometer’s X and Y axis tilt.· The values were then scaled, offset, and displayed in the Debug Terminal as an asterisk over a Cartesian plane.· The asterisks position indicated the position of the hottest pocked of gas inside the MX2125’s chamber, and as it moved, the background at its previous position was redrawn.
Questions
1.······ When you tilt the accelerometer to the left, which way does the asterisk bubble travel?
2.······ If the coordinates of the asterisk moved from (0, 0) to (0, 3), which direction did you tilt it?
3.······ If the coordinates of the asterisk started at (-5,0), and ended at (5, 0), what do you think happened to the accelerometer?
4.······ If the coordinates of the asterisk started at (3, -3) and ended at (-3, 3) what tilt did the accelerometer start in, and what tilt did it end in?
5.······ Which axis was the fulcrum if the accelerometer started at (2, 2) and ended at (-2, 2)?
6.······ Here are four unusual coordinates for a single motion: (0, 5), (-5, 0), (0, -5), (5, 0).· What motion can you perform on the accelerometer to cause it to report this sequence of coordinates without ever changing the tilt?
7.······ If the accelerometer’s readings travel from (0, 5) to (0, -5), then back again repeatedly, what two motion sequences are likely?
Exercises
1.······ Modify the background for a coordinate system from -3 to 3 on both the X and Y axes.
2.······ Modify the background display initialization for a coordinate system from -3 to 3 on both the X and Y axes.
3.······ Modify the scale and offset calculations for a -3 to 3 coordinate system.
4.······ Modify the scale and offset calculations so that the asterisk travels the same direction you tip the board instead of the opposite direction.· When you tip the board left, the asterisk should go left, etc.
Projects
1.······ Instead of a coordinate system from -5 to 5 on both axes, modify BubbleGraph.bs2 so that it functions on a coordinate system from -4 to 4.
2.······ Modify BubbleGraph.bs2 so that it allows you to hold your Board of Education (or BASIC Stamp Homework Board) so that you can read the writing on the board.· The way the bubble behaves should be the same as it did in the original program.
3.······ Modify BubbleGraph.bs2 so that the cursor moves in the direction you tilt the board and test it.
Post Edited By Moderator (Jessica Uelmen (Parallax)) : 8/25/2010 5:40:22 PM GMT
Here are the rules of this Activity's tilt controlled game example.· Tilt your board to control the asterisk.· If you get through the maze and place the asterisk on any of the "WIN" characters, the "YOU WIN" screen will display.· If you bump into the pound sign "#" before you get to the end of the maze, the "YOU LOSE" screen is displayed.· As you navigate the maze, try to move your asterisk game character through the dollar signs "$" to get more points.
·
Converting BubbleGraph.bs2 into TiltObstacleGame.bs2
TiltObstacleGame.bs2 is inarguably a souped up version of BubbleGraph.bs2.· Here is a list of the main changes and additions:
•········· Add two backgrounds for win and lose.
•········· Give each background a Symbol name.
•········· Write a game player code block that detects which background element the game character is in front and uses that information to enforce the rules of the game.·
·Try the game first, then we’ll take a closer look at how it works.
Example Program – TiltObstacleGame.bs2
√······· Enter, and save TiltObstacleGame.bs2.
√······· Before you run the program, make sure your board is level.· Also, make sure you are holding it the same way you did in Activity 3, with the breadboard is closest to you, and the serial cable is furthest away.
√······· If you want to refresh the “$” characters, click your BASIC Stamp Editor’s Run button.· If you want to just practice navigating and not worry about points, press and release the Reset button on your board.·
'
[noparse][[/noparse] Title ]
' Accelerometer Projects···················· ' Program info
' TiltObstacleGame.bs2
·
'{$STAMP BS2}······························· ' Stamp/PBASIC directives
'{$PBASIC 2.5}
·
'
[noparse][[/noparse] EEPROM Data ]
' Store background to EEPROM················ ' 3 backgrounds used in game
·
Maze DATA @0, HOME,························· ' Maze background
"#####################", CR,
"######·· $·· ########", CR,
"##····· ###······ ###", CR,
"#·· ###########·· ###", CR,
"#$···· #········ ####", CR,
"#####· #·· $ #####WIN", CR,
"#···· ##··· ##· $·· #", CR,
"# $· ########### #· #", CR,
"#·· ##$##······· #· #", CR,
"#········ ########· #", CR,
"#####################", CR
·
YouLose DATA @243, HOME,···················· ' YouLose background
"#####################", CR,
"#####################", CR,
"###··· #######·· ####", CR,
"###··· #######·· ####", CR,
"#####################", CR,
"########## ##########", CR,
"#####################", CR,
"###············· ####", CR,
"###· YOU LOSE··· ####", CR,
"###············· ####", CR,
"#####################", CR
·
YouWin DATA @486, HOME,····················· ' YouWin background
"···· ###########···· ", CR,
"· #################· ", CR,
"#####·· #####·· #####", CR,
"####···· ###···· ####", CR,
"# ###·· #####·· ### #", CR,
"#· ###############· #", CR,
"##·· ###########·· ##", CR,
"##················ ##", CR,
" ####· YOU WIN· #### ", CR,
"·· ####······ ####·· ", CR,
"····· #########····· ", CR
·
'
[noparse][[/noparse] Variables ]
x········ VAR···· Word······················ ' x & y tilts & graph coordinates
y········ VAR···· Word
·
index···· VAR···· Word······················ ' EEPROM address and character
char····· VAR···· Byte
·
symbol··· VAR···· Word······················ ' Symbol address for EEPROM DATA
points··· VAR···· Byte······················ ' Points during game
·
'
[noparse][[/noparse] Initialization ]
x = 10······································ ' Start game character in middle
y = 5
·
DEBUG CLS··································· ' Clear screen
·
' Display maze.
symbol = Maze······························· ' Set Symbol to Maze EEPROM DATA
·
FOR index = 0 TO 242························ ' Display maze
· READ index + symbol, char
· DEBUG char
NEXT
·
'
[noparse][[/noparse] Main Routine ]
DO
·
· ' Display background at cursor position.
· index = (22 * y) + x + 1············ ······' Coordinates -> EEPROM address
· READ index + symbol, char················· ' Get background character
· DEBUG CRSRXY, x, y, char·················· ' Display background character
· PAUSE 50·································· ' Pause for blink effect
·
· ' Get X-axis tilt & scale to graph.
· PULSIN 6, 1, x···························· ' Get X-axis tilt
· x = x MIN 1875 MAX 3125··················· ' Keep inside X-axis domain
· x = x - 1875······························ ' Offset to zero
· x = x * 2 / 125· ··························' Scale
·
· ' Get Y-axis tilt & scale to graph.
· PULSIN 7, 1, y···························· ' Get Y-Axis tilt
· y = y MIN 1875 MAX 3125··················· ' Keep in Y-Axis range
· y = y - 1875······························ ' Offset to zero
· y = y / 125······························· ' Scale
· y = 10 - y································ ' Offset Cartesian -> Debug
·
· ' Display asterisk at new position.
· DEBUG CRSRXY, x,· y, "*"·················· ' Display asterisk
· PAUSE 50······ ····························' Pause again for blink effect
·
· ' Display score
· DEBUG CRSRXY, 0, 11,······················ ' Display points
······· "Score: ", DEC3 points
·
· ' Did you move the asterisk over a $, W, I, N, or #?
· SELECT char··············· ················' Check background character
··· CASE "$"································ ' If "$"
····· points = points + 10·················· ' Add points
····· WRITE index, "%"······················ ' Write "%" over "$"
··· CASE "#"···················· ············' If "#", set Symbol to YouLose
····· symbol = YouLose
··· CASE "W", "I", "N"······················ ' If W,I,orN, Symbol -> YouWin
····· symbol = YouWin
· ENDSELECT
·
· ' This routine gets skipped while symbol is still = Maze.· If symbol
· ' was changed to YouWin or YouLose, display new background and end game.
· IF (symbol = YouWin) OR (symbol = YouLose) THEN
··· FOR index = 0 TO 242···················· ' 242 characters
····· READ index + symbol, char············· ' Get character
····· DEBUG char···························· ' Display character
··· NEXT···································· ' Next iteration of loop
··· END····································· ' End game
· ENDIF····································· ' End symbol-if code block
·
LOOP·· ······································' Repeat main loop
How it Works – From BubbleGraph.bs2 to TiltObstacleGame.bs2
Two of the DATA directive’s optional features were used here. Each of the three backgrounds was given a Symbol name, Maze, YouWin, and YouLose.· These Symbol names make it easy for the program to select which background to display.· The optional @Address operator was also used to set each directive’s beginning EEPROM address.· In BubbleGraph.bs2’s background, the first character is CLS to clear the screen.· The problem with CLS in these DATA directives is that it erases the entire Debug Terminal, including the score, which is displayed below the background.· By substituting HOME for CLS, the entire backgrounds can be drawn and redrawn without erasing the score.
·
Maze DATA @0, HOME,············
"#####################", CR,
"######·· $·· ########", CR,
·· ·
·· ·
·· ·
YouLose DATA @243, HOME,·······
"#####################", CR,
"#####################", CR,
·· ·
·· ·
·· ·
YouWin DATA @486, HOME,········
"···· ###########···· ", CR,
"· #################· ", CR,
·· ·
·· ·
·· ·
Two variables are added, symbol to keep track of which background to retrieve characters from, and points to keep track of the player’s score.·
symbol··· VAR···· Word·
points··· VAR···· Byte·
The initial values of x and y have to start in the middle of the obstacle course.· Since all variables initialize to zero in PBASIC, and that would cause the game character to start in the top-left corner, instead of in the middle.·
x = 10·······················
y = 5
·
The symbol variable is set to Maze before executing the FOR…NEXT loop that displays the background.· Since all variables are initialized to zero, this happens anyhow.· However, if you were to insert a DATA directive before the Maze background, it would be crucial to have this statement.·
·
' Display maze.
symbol = Maze················
·
This is the background display in the initialization section.· Look carefully at the READ command.· It has been changed from READ index, char to READ index + symbol, char.· Since the symbol variable was set to store Maze, all the characters in the first background will be displayed.· If symbol stored YouLose, all the characters in the second background would be displayed.· If it stored YouWin, all the characters in the third background would be displayed.· This routine will be used again later in the program.
FOR index = 0 TO 242·········
· READ index + symbol, char
· DEBUG char
NEXT
·
Three routines have to be added to the DO...LOOP in the main routine.· The first simply displays the player’s score:
· ' Display score
· DEBUG CRSRXY, 0, 11,······················ ' Display points
······· "Score: ", DEC3 points
The second routine is crucial; it’s a SELECT…CASE statement that enforces the rules of the game.· This statement looks at the character in the background at the asterisk’s current location.· If the asterisk is over a space " ", the SELECT…CASE statement doesn’t need to change anything, so the main routine’s DO...LOOP just keeps on repeating itself, checking the accelerometer measurements and updating the asterisk’s location.· If the asterisk is moved over a "$", the program has to add 10 to the points variable, and write a "%" character is written over the "$" in EEPROM.· This prevents the program from adding 10 points several times per second while the asterisk is held over the "$".·· If the asterisk is moved over a "#", the YouLose symbol is stored in the symbol variable.· If the asterisk moves over any one of the "W" "I" or "N" letters, YouWin is stored in the symbol variable.·
·
· ' Did you move the asterisk over a $, W, I, N, or #?
· SELECT char························· ······' Check background character
··· CASE "$"································ ' If "$"
····· points = points + 10·················· ' Add points
····· WRITE index, "%"······················ ' Write "%" over "$"
··· CASE "#"······························ ··' If "#", set Symbol to YouLose
····· symbol = YouLose
··· CASE "W", "I", "N"······················ ' If W,I,orN, Symbol -> YouWin
····· symbol = YouWin
· ENDSELECT
·
As you’re navigating your asterisk over " ", "$", or "%", this next routine gets skipped because symbol still stores Maze.· The SELECT…CASE statement only changes that when the asterisk was moved over "#", "W", "I", or "N".· Whenever the SELECT…CASE statement changes symbol to either YouWin or YouLose, this routine displays the corresponding background, then ends the game.
·
· ' This routine gets skipped while symbol is still = Maze.· If symbol
· ' was changed to YouWin or YouLose, display new background and end game.
· IF (symbol = YouWin) OR (symbol = YouLose) THEN
··· FOR index = 0 TO 242·· ··················' 242 characters
····· READ index + symbol, char············· ' Get character
····· DEBUG char···························· ' Display character
··· NEXT···································· ' Next iteration of loop
··· END················· ····················' End game
· ENDIF····································· ' End symbol-if code block
Your Turn – Modifications and Bug Fixes
The game doesn't refresh the "$" symbols when you re-run it with the Reset button. It only works when you click the Run button on the BASIC Stamp Editor.· That's because the DATA directive only writes to the EEPROM when the program is downloaded.· If the program is restarted with the Reset button, the BASIC Stamp Editor doesn't get the chance to store the spaces, dollar signs, etc, so the percent signs that were written to EEPROM are still there.· To fix the problem, all you have to do is check each character that gets read from EEPROM during the initialization.· If that character turns bout to be a "%", use the WRITE command to change it back to a "$".
√······· Save TiltObstacleGame.bs2 as TiltObstacleGameYourTurn.bs2
√······· Modify the FOR...NEXT loop in the initialization that displays the maze like this:
·
FOR index = 0 TO 242·················· ······' Display maze
· READ index + symbol, char
· IF(char = "%") THEN······················· ' <--- Add
··· char = "$"······························ ' <--- Add
··· WRITE index + symbol, char·············· ' <--- Add
· ENDIF······························· ······' <--- Add
· DEBUG char
NEXT
·
√······· Verify that both the BASIC Stamp Editor's Run button and the Board of Education's Reset button both behave the same after this modification.
If the player rapidly changes the board's tilt, it is possible to jump over the "#" walls.· There are two ways to fix this, one would be to add jumping animation and call it a "feature".· Another way to fix it would be to only allow the asterisk to move by 1 character in either the X or Y directions.· To fix this, the program will need to keep track of the previous position.· This is a job for the xOld and yOld variables introduced in Activity #2.·
√······· Add these variable declarations to the Variables section in TiltObstacleGameYourTurn.bs2:
·
x········ VAR···· Word······················ ' x & y tilts & coordinates
y········ VAR···· Word
·
xOld····· VAR···· Word······················ ' <--- Add
yOld····· VAR···· Word······················ ' <--- Add
·
√······· Add initialization statements for xOld and yOld.
·
x··· = 10··································· ' Start game character in middle
xOld = 10··································· ' <--- Add
y··· = 5
yOld = 5···································· ' <--- Add
·
√······· Modify the main routine so that it x can only be greater than or less than xOld by an increment or decrement of 1.· Repeat for y and yOld.
·
y = 10 - y································ ··' Offset Cartesian -> Debug
·
IF (x > xOld) THEN x = xOld MAX 19 + 1···· ··' <--- Add
IF (x < xOld) THEN x = xOld MIN 1 - 1····· ··' <--- Add
·
IF (y > yOld) THEN y = yOld MAX 9 + 1····· ··' <--- Add
IF (y < yOld) THEN y = yOld MIN 1 - 1····· ··' <--- Add
·
' Display asterisk at new position.
DEBUG CRSRXY, x,· y, "*"·················· ··' Display asterisk
PAUSE 50·································· ··' Pause again for blink effect
·
xOld = x·································· ··' <--- Add
yOld = y·································· ··' <--- Add
·
' Display score
√······· Run and test your modified program and verify that the asterisk can no longer skip "#" walls.
SUMMARY
This activity introduced tilt mode game control.· The rules of simple games can be implemented with SELECT...CASE statements that use the character in the background at the location of the game character to decide what action to take next.· Multiple backgrounds can be incorporated into a game by making use of the DATA directive's optional @Address operator and Symbol name.· Since the Symbol name is actually the EEPROM address at the beginning of a given DATA directive, your program can access elements in different backgrounds by adding the EEPROM address Symbol make to the READ command's Address argument.·
Questions
1.······ What's the beginning address of the YouLose background?
2.······ What's the value of YouWin?
3.······ Why were the control characters at the beginning of each background changed from CLS to HOME?
4.······ What command can you use to check the value of a DATA directive's Symbol name?
5.······ What's the difference between displaying the 23rd character in the YouLose EEPROM DATA and the 23rd character in YouWin?
6.······ If you change the Maze DATA directive's @Address operator from 0 to 10, what will you have to do to the other DATA directives in the program?
7.······ If you change the YouWin DATA directive's optional @Address operator from 486 to 500, what else in the program will you have to change?
8.······ What kind of code block enforces the rules of the game?
9.······ What variable has to change for the game to end?
10.·· What command changes the "%" values back to "$" values in EEPROM?
11.·· How can you prevent the asterisk from skipping over the "#" wall?
Exercises
1.······ Modify the code block that adds points to your score so that it gives you 100 points per "$".· Explain what else needs to be modified for the program to work properly.
2.······ Explain how to modify the program so that you can choose between three different mazes.
3.······ Explain what will happen to the program if you remove the @Address operators from the DATA directives.
4.······ Write a segment of code that remembers the highest score.
Projects
1.······ Add a pushbutton circuit to the game, and modify the program so that you can use the pushbutton to toggle between different mazes.
2.······ Modify the program so that the "$" character earn you 10 points, and the "#" characters deduct 10 points.· The game should start you with 20 points.
3.······ Create a 4 X 16 character version of this game.· That's 4 characters high by 16 characters wide.
4.······ Rearrange the program so that the main routine calls subroutines for everything bug executive decision making.
5.······ Modify the game so that it displays a character in the direction you are traveling.· Use "v", "<", ">", and "^".· Add a pushbutton circuit that shoots an asterisk that makes a "#" disappear when it hits it.
Post Edited By Moderator (Jessica Uelmen (Parallax)) : 8/25/2010 5:41:31 PM GMT