My Super Mouse Trap
Jerry Elya
Posts: 16
I built my forst "Rube Goldberg" machine when I was 9; I played sick and spent all day building a "Get the Cat Off the Table" machine that included a record player, balloons, spatulas, eyc. Mom loved it, calling all the neighbors over, but I ended up grounded for a month and the neighbors muttering things whenever they saw me.
Anyway, I now volunteer with an academic competition in Indiana (have been for teh past twelve years), and five of us adults are working on a modular RG machine standard called "Super Mouse Trap". After six years off fiddling around with design and theory, we finally came up with a building standards and construction of four modules (so far) has started.
Modules are based on a 3.5ft x 2ft table made of 1 4 4's covered with plywood. ENDS are built to a standars, all identical, and within 1/16 of an inch. the rest is limite only by creativity and talent, plus a few safety rules. A billiard (pool) ball rolls into a module from the previous (left, spectator view), and after what's HOPEFULLY some interesting action, rolls out to the right.
I purchased a Stamps in Class for economuc reasons; while much of module cintrol can be done with switches and latching relays, there are a few more complex things I want to control via the BSIC. For example, a brain warp led me to add a drawbridge that passes THROUGH an elevator shaft (while the elevator is up), and dispense accumulated "wasted" balls back to a lifter at 2 second intervals, then restart the elevator.
Anyway, it'll be an ongoing project for close to forever; my #1 prototype will have pretty much have "one of everything imaginable", as it'll be the one I show around the State to gather interest and spark ideas. Pics and schematics posted as they become available.
So far, I have:
Simple elevator that raises the ball on upon entry
Tipover that swings a ball over a large gab by un-balancing a platform on a dowel
Step Lifter that lifts multiple balls 2" per step, for a total of 18"
Domino Chain that actuallt resets the string of dominos without anything touching them
Various bells, buzzers, and horns triggered by a ball passing over.
Is there a schematic out there for an opto detector that takes a second or to to trigger? I'm looking for something taht will output a logic level, NOT for when a ball passes by, but for when a ball actually sits, stopped, in ONE location. In other words, a "track is full" detector.
I'd also like to park a computer under my modules and link it somehow to switch contacts, perhaps via Basic Stamp, so the computer's sound card can play WAV files on command, and maybe even route speaker outputs to one of several speakers for a more believable 3D sound effect. But, that's not something I'm working on for a few more months, at least.
Anyway, I now volunteer with an academic competition in Indiana (have been for teh past twelve years), and five of us adults are working on a modular RG machine standard called "Super Mouse Trap". After six years off fiddling around with design and theory, we finally came up with a building standards and construction of four modules (so far) has started.
Modules are based on a 3.5ft x 2ft table made of 1 4 4's covered with plywood. ENDS are built to a standars, all identical, and within 1/16 of an inch. the rest is limite only by creativity and talent, plus a few safety rules. A billiard (pool) ball rolls into a module from the previous (left, spectator view), and after what's HOPEFULLY some interesting action, rolls out to the right.
I purchased a Stamps in Class for economuc reasons; while much of module cintrol can be done with switches and latching relays, there are a few more complex things I want to control via the BSIC. For example, a brain warp led me to add a drawbridge that passes THROUGH an elevator shaft (while the elevator is up), and dispense accumulated "wasted" balls back to a lifter at 2 second intervals, then restart the elevator.
Anyway, it'll be an ongoing project for close to forever; my #1 prototype will have pretty much have "one of everything imaginable", as it'll be the one I show around the State to gather interest and spark ideas. Pics and schematics posted as they become available.
So far, I have:
Simple elevator that raises the ball on upon entry
Tipover that swings a ball over a large gab by un-balancing a platform on a dowel
Step Lifter that lifts multiple balls 2" per step, for a total of 18"
Domino Chain that actuallt resets the string of dominos without anything touching them
Various bells, buzzers, and horns triggered by a ball passing over.
Is there a schematic out there for an opto detector that takes a second or to to trigger? I'm looking for something taht will output a logic level, NOT for when a ball passes by, but for when a ball actually sits, stopped, in ONE location. In other words, a "track is full" detector.
I'd also like to park a computer under my modules and link it somehow to switch contacts, perhaps via Basic Stamp, so the computer's sound card can play WAV files on command, and maybe even route speaker outputs to one of several speakers for a more believable 3D sound effect. But, that's not something I'm working on for a few more months, at least.
Comments
For instance, say that you have an opto sensor that produces a voltage when light hits it, and no voltage when it is dark. Monitor this voltage with the BS2, and if the voltage goes to 0 for x amount of time, then take the appropriate action. Program x to whatever interval you like with the Stamp.
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Chris Savage
Parallax Tech Support
csavage@parallax.com
http://forums.parallax.com/showthread.php?p=536994
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Chris Savage
Parallax Tech Support
csavage@parallax.com
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Beau Schwabe
IC Layout Engineer
Parallax, Inc.
·· If this is a completed project it would help forum members if you could post pictures, code and schematics if available.
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Chris Savage
Parallax Tech Support
csavage@parallax.com