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PE Kit info — Parallax Forums

PE Kit info

RsadeikaRsadeika Posts: 3,837
edited 2007-01-16 01:59 in Propeller 1
I have been working with the PE Kit for about a week now, and I have found it to be quite usefull. Now a few questions come to mind.

Will you be making available, to the general public, more labs? I found that to be an interesting experience. I am waiting for a lab that shows you how make use of the 5V power supply. In the parts bins I did see, nor would I recognize, the necessary parts to make a steady 5V supply.

Will there be a parts kit availble that would contain things like VGA, TV, sound, keyboard, mouse, ..., etc connectors that could be used on a breadboard?

I am sure that I will think of something else, but for now, that would be it.

Thanks

Ray

·

Comments

  • Steph LindsaySteph Lindsay Posts: 767
    edited 2006-11-20 19:56
    Hello Rsadeika,

    I'm glad you are finding your PE kit is useful to you!

    Andy is at this moment feverishly typing right behind me, and tells me he should have the next lab to me for testing and editing later today; we aim to post it to the website before Thanksgiving.· A third lab is mostly written and should be following soon after, and new labs will be released regularly.··He already has Spin objects developed for test circuits using ALL the components included with the kit.· As you can imagine, it is very easy for·him to think up fun and educational·projects to do with the hardware, and another matter entirely to write about them in a way where students can learn from and succeed with them!

    As far as connector parts for TV, VGA, sound, keyboard, and·mouse, it has definitely been discussed and a preliminarily researched,·but nothing has been decided at this point.· Of course it would open up the learning opportunities even further, but the demand must be there to make it feasable.

    Now for the 5V issue - your kit should have included two regulators, one for 3.3V and one for 5V, both are used in the Setup and Testing circuit built with the Propeller DIP Plus Kit that came in your box.·So,·the basic PE Platform circuit was designed to accommodate future labs that·use both·a·3.3V devices (the Propeller chip circuit) and 5V devices (the infrared detector in your Project Parts kit) but Andy has not started writing that one yet.· (Please contact Tech Support if there were NOT two regulators in your kit, or if they were both labeled 3.3 V.)

    Thanks much,
    Stephanie Lindsay
    Editor, Parallax Inc.
  • RsadeikaRsadeika Posts: 3,837
    edited 2006-11-20 20:20
    Stephanie,

    There were two regulators there, I guess what I need next is a schematic showing me what to move around in order to get a conditioned 5V supply. My kit seems to have everything; I think 'What is a Propeller' might be an appropriate name for the compilation of the labs.

    Thanks

    Ray
  • Andy Lindsay (Parallax)Andy Lindsay (Parallax) Posts: 1,919
    edited 2006-11-21 19:45
    Ray,

    The attached IR Distance Detection - Archive [noparse][[/noparse]Date 2006.11.21 Time 11.29].zip·is a prototype for a forthcoming PE Kit Lab.· It has instructions, schematic, and source code that should all be viewed with the Propeller Tool software.·

    The 5 V application is an IR Object and Distance Detection circuit similar to the one featured in Chapters 7 and 8 of Robotics with the Boe-Bot v2.2 (PDF 4.26 MB).·

    Please post any questions that come up so that we can make sure to correct the instructions for the upcoming lab.

    There should also be a complete lab (21 pages) on some introductory Spin and I/O pin control and monitoring topics posted tomorrow.· I'll post an update here when that's ready.

    Regards, Andy



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    Andy Lindsay

    Education Department
    Parallax, Inc.

    Post Edited (Andy Lindsay (Parallax)) : 11/21/2006 7:50:05 PM GMT
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    IR Distance Detection - Archive [Date 2006.11.21 Time 11.29].zip
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  • lairdtlairdt Posts: 36
    edited 2006-11-21 20:11
    Got my PE kit this morning... took longer to get the dividers setup than it did to get the first lab going. So I'll be messing around with several things in the works here as my hardware expands and looking forward to the additional labs as they are completed.

    I've been programming in assembler since 1982, digital/analog electronics almost as long, and just started to get back into robotics with my son. After using Zilog (eZ80, Z8e) chips for a couple of years now, this is down right simple to create solid designs. Going to be a fun weekend!
  • Brian SmithBrian Smith Posts: 44
    edited 2007-01-11 07:51
    I think there is an error with the schematic for the IR sensor. The diagram in the Robotics PDF is correct but the spin file schematic looks wrong. The IR sensor works with p1=+5v· p2=gnd· p3=P0 on propeller chip.· This had me confused for a minute.

    Keep the labs coming! Im on the last one and they have been really helpfull.
  • JohnBFJohnBF Posts: 107
    edited 2007-01-16 01:59
    Brian,

    Good catch. Thanks! I spent an hour double checking circuits and settings trying to figure out why hyperterminal kept showing zeroes, then I noticed your post and that solved it.

    Parallax, maybe there's a lesson here. Maybe making it so easy to draw circuits right into the code encourages less care in how they're drawn. Maybe there could be some extra language in the manuals about taking extra care in wiring diagrams since, like the rest of the object, they will be travelling far and wide.

    Anyway, keep the kits coming. They're great!

    /John
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