coin counter
Grad Student Joe
Posts: 1
I am a graduate student who needs help putting together a demonstration for my students.· I attempting to construct a coin sorter with an LCD ouput that outputs the sum of the change counted.· I will be using break beam sensors to detect the coins and then a program to count the coins and add the appropriate amounts to output to a serial Parralax LCD in a 4 bit mode.· I need help writing a program that will do what I need it to do.· I am a mechanical engineer, so this is all somewhat new to me.· Any help would be appreciated.
Comments
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" Hey! Why is there silicone on my hemostats?"
I was working on something like this a while back....but I was more concerned with false counts and hadn't even gotten to the 'counting' stage.
You can do this any number of ways!· You can use a photo diode and detector in the same module ( http://www.katlax.com/pdf/pg_1_82.pdf·-- I just googled this real quick..but it's similar to many modules out there).
A simple LED and a photoopto will work too!· I don't know of a general output from these...but the link above shows that it'll switch V+ back to you when it's interrupted (depending on Normally Open/Closed).· The Stamp is great at reading TTL logic (+5volt and 0Volt).
I'd suggest you download the "What's a Microcontroller" text from Parallax's website to get some easy ideas on doing basic things.
You'll want to protect your stamp with an resistor in series with your sensor (Can't remember what a good value is....22k?).
You can do a search in this forum and find my old thread...but I hadn't settled on anything in particular as to how I was going to prevent a penny and a quarter from passing through the same beam...OR...a penny causing a 'count' in the quarter shoot!· I think I was leaning towards a silo type of canister with pager motors (vibrating)...in the hopes that the motors would smooth out the coins so I could guide them towards different holes.
I had also looked at the CAM type arm that the M&M sorter uses...but again, I need to deliver one coin at a time....stacking becomes an issue when you drop a handfull in.
http://web.mit.edu/~jijon/www/coinsorter.htm· this is a site of interest....I'm looking at doing something similar to this....but they only sort...not count!
I looked at weight....magnetics....colour vision....diameter....it all came down to isolating coins and characterizing them one at a time!
LEt me know how you do!!· It's rather simple..but fun and complex (didn't I just say simple?)....
cheers
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Steve
http://ca.geocities.com/steve.brady@rogers.com/index.html
"Inside each and every one of us is our one, true authentic swing. Something we was born with. Something that's ours and ours alone. Something that can't be learned... something that's got to be remembered."