I love the Hero 2000 idea by the way. I remember when they first came out! Geuss that makes me old, huh?
I was trying to remember about how much they cost - it seem like an astronomical amount to me at the time. Probably really wasn't that much really.
If I recall correctly, it was a three wheel design. So will you have the new 12 volt Wheel set and one tail wheel? The Propeller ought to be fantastic for this. That is where I want to head eventually myself.
Thanks for the input on the battery.
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Whit+
"We keep moving forward, opening new doors, and doing new things, because we're curious and curiosity keeps leading us down new paths." - Walt Disney
Actually the HERO 2000 uses a 12v 24ah battery. Depending upon the brand of battery some are now rated for 26ah in the same physical size.
I've used SLA type batteries for years with excellent results. If you want the battery to last it is best to not drain them completely, make sure you recharge them after each use, and if not using them for a while make sure you fully charge them before storage. Letting an uncharged SLA battery sit will severely shorten the life of the battery. If the base will handle the extra weight then don't be shy about a larger capacity as you'll get a longer run time.
FYI: The earlier HERO 1 and Jr used a three wheel base with two stationary wheels and one combined steering/drive wheel. The HERO 2000 uses two drive motors (differential steering) with an additional two castors (front and rear) for support.
These new Parallax drive motors do look nice and I'm planning on trying them out for a new robot.
Robert
Post Edited (RobotWorkshop) : 5/12/2008 1:44:36 PM GMT
This thread is kinda gotten off topic so hopefully I can get an answer, [noparse]:)[/noparse]
Q: Is it or will it be possible to buy the encoder and circuit board separate from the motors and mount?
I have the exact same motors, in a really similar configuration. I wasn't able to find a good source for encoders for anything bigger than a servo. I'd really love to use these encoders on my projects. Please let em know, economic stimulus funds are depleting fast!
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"A complex design is the sign of an inferior designer." - Jamie Hyneman, Myth Buster
Wow I definitely need to get a set of these! I assumed they were just encoders! they are pretty sweet! I was also a little worried about running out of I/O lines, and that's not even a factor!
John Abshier , the encoders have 18 positions on them so 6" * 3.14 / 18 = 1.04" per count is what I calculate.
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"A complex design is the sign of an inferior designer." - Jamie Hyneman, Myth Buster
The encoders actually have a resolution of 36 positions/rotation which works out to about 0.5" per position.
6" x 3.14 = 18.84 /36 = 0.52" per position
It is 36 positions because:
There are 9 fins on the plastic encoder disk per rotation
times 2 edges per fin
times 2 sensors detecting each edge
= 36 positions per rotation
Whit, what I found out when selecting casters, it's kinda darned if you darned if you don't, the bigger the batteries the more of a need to keep your center of gravity low, so if you go with a small caster to keep your bot low to the ground, it will have a hard time going over ledges and thick carpet. I've tried 1" casters, 4" casters and ended up with 2" casters working the best. I also found that with the smaller the casters the more of a need to keep the weight distributed evenly or the caster(s) with most of the weight will not turn as well and get stuck easier..... just trying to save you some of the headaches I had.
Kevin, that's even better! at least I knew to count the holes not just the tabs. oops getting this thread off track again!
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"A complex design is the sign of an inferior designer." - Jamie Hyneman, Myth Buster
"...to keep your center of gravity low..." .... unless you do something similar to how the wheels on a Segway are in relation to the center of gravity, by placing the castor wheels rotational axis "above" the majority of your weight. This way you could go with larger casters to support the weight of the larger battery, and because the casters are larger, you would have more clearance and more stability compared to a smaller caster.
▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔ Beau Schwabe
IC Layout Engineer
Parallax, Inc.
that's a really good point, I actually tried something similar to that, I was trying to keep my bot with in a 18" diameter so 4" caster didn't leave me enough room. their turning radius just took up too much room.
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"A complex design is the sign of an inferior designer." - Jamie Hyneman, Myth Buster
Well they arrived today, what an impressive package Whit, I was like a 5 yr old at Christmas. Man I am going to have fun with this, Thanks Parallax for a great product. It would have to be a great seller.
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O.k., I just re-read the the whole thread. I think I may build a simple prototype like Chris' just to work out the kinks. Then I will know that everything works before I move on to a final more asthetically pleasing design.
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Whit+
"We keep moving forward, opening new doors, and doing new things, because we're curious and curiosity keeps leading us down new paths." - Walt Disney
Glad you got a bonus - even more glad you got a set of the 12 volt motors and wheels and position controllers.
Speaking of which, Parallaxians, I'm getting tired of referring to these as the 12 volt motor and wheel kit. We need a short catch name for the whole package including the position controllers. My suggest is the GO-Bot Kit. Let's brainstorm a bit and maybe one of us will come up with something.
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Whit+
"We keep moving forward, opening new doors, and doing new things, because we're curious and curiosity keeps leading us down new paths." - Walt Disney
I'm really excited Whit, this go-bot kit is really going to complete my bot, not only is it the last item on my list needed for mapping, but it solves a few issues I was having with my current set up. and now I'll have a backup set of motors, not that I'll need them. On my current set up I had the motors geared down 3/1 which meant when it hit something and didn't know it, it had enough power to do some damage and my top speed was slower. when I built my set up I didn't have HB-55's and so I wanted a slower bot. now that I'll have good control of them it will be nice to have the top speed if needed.
Ken, or anyone from parallax, What program did you model the go-bot kits with? any chance of making them public?
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"A complex design is the sign of an inferior designer." - Jamie Hyneman, Myth Buster
The drawings are nice aren't they. The kit came with a black and white copy, but I had to print out a color set from the download!
I can't wait to hear how you like them when you get them in. I really think you will be impressed with the finish of the wheels and aluminum parts and I know you will love the position controllers.
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Whit+
"We keep moving forward, opening new doors, and doing new things, because we're curious and curiosity keeps leading us down new paths." - Walt Disney
StampNut2 said...
Whit+, What are you scheming in that basement of yours he he he with that new drive unit.??????
You mean my underground lair? I want to build a mid-sized bot and platform for starts. The I want to understand how the position controlers work with the HB 25s.
Like I said above, I will just build a simple version first, then go for the finished look I want.
What about you?
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Whit+
"We keep moving forward, opening new doors, and doing new things, because we're curious and curiosity keeps leading us down new paths." - Walt Disney
Comments
I believe that Ken is using a 12 vdc 7 amp-hr battery in his demo unit.
Regards,
TCIII
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If you are going to send·a Robot·to save the world, you·better make sure it likes it the way it is!
I love the Hero 2000 idea by the way. I remember when they first came out! Geuss that makes me old, huh?
I was trying to remember about how much they cost - it seem like an astronomical amount to me at the time. Probably really wasn't that much really.
If I recall correctly, it was a three wheel design. So will you have the new 12 volt Wheel set and one tail wheel? The Propeller ought to be fantastic for this. That is where I want to head eventually myself.
Thanks for the input on the battery.
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Whit+
"We keep moving forward, opening new doors, and doing new things, because we're curious and curiosity keeps leading us down new paths." - Walt Disney
I've used SLA type batteries for years with excellent results. If you want the battery to last it is best to not drain them completely, make sure you recharge them after each use, and if not using them for a while make sure you fully charge them before storage. Letting an uncharged SLA battery sit will severely shorten the life of the battery. If the base will handle the extra weight then don't be shy about a larger capacity as you'll get a longer run time.
FYI: The earlier HERO 1 and Jr used a three wheel base with two stationary wheels and one combined steering/drive wheel. The HERO 2000 uses two drive motors (differential steering) with an additional two castors (front and rear) for support.
These new Parallax drive motors do look nice and I'm planning on trying them out for a new robot.
Robert
Post Edited (RobotWorkshop) : 5/12/2008 1:44:36 PM GMT
Q: Is it or will it be possible to buy the encoder and circuit board separate from the motors and mount?
I have the exact same motors, in a really similar configuration. I wasn't able to find a good source for encoders for anything bigger than a servo. I'd really love to use these encoders on my projects. Please let em know, economic stimulus funds are depleting fast!
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"A complex design is the sign of an inferior designer." - Jamie Hyneman, Myth Buster
DGSwaner
Short answer: YES. Give us some time though - no promise on dates.
Long answer: http://forums.parallax.com/forums/default.aspx?f=10&m=265045&g=265742#m265742 towards the bottom of the thread.
Ken Gracey
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"A complex design is the sign of an inferior designer." - Jamie Hyneman, Myth Buster
DGSwaner
I was excited to see that the Position Control had a seperate part number (which is #29319). Have you had a look at this? http://www.parallax.com/Portals/0/Downloads/docs/prod/motors/27971-MotorMount-v1.0.pdf It has a lot of good info on the Position Controller.
The "real" tires don't say Parallax, Inc. though!·
·
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Whit+
"We keep moving forward, opening new doors, and doing new things, because we're curious and curiosity keeps leading us down new paths." - Walt Disney
Post Edited (Whit) : 5/12/2008 10:21:55 PM GMT
http://forums.parallax.com/showthread.php?p=726196
Dgswaner was right - we were a bit off topic.
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Whit+
"We keep moving forward, opening new doors, and doing new things, because we're curious and curiosity keeps leading us down new paths." - Walt Disney
John Abshier , the encoders have 18 positions on them so 6" * 3.14 / 18 = 1.04" per count is what I calculate.
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"A complex design is the sign of an inferior designer." - Jamie Hyneman, Myth Buster
DGSwaner
The encoders actually have a resolution of 36 positions/rotation which works out to about 0.5" per position.
6" x 3.14 = 18.84 /36 = 0.52" per position
It is 36 positions because:
There are 9 fins on the plastic encoder disk per rotation
times 2 edges per fin
times 2 sensors detecting each edge
= 36 positions per rotation
The product documentation for the kit has lots of info about the Position Controllers and can be found here:
www.parallax.com/Portals/0/Downloads/docs/prod/motors/27971-MotorMount-v1.0.pdf
-Kevin McCullough
Here are some more possibilities for the castor wheels. These are wheelchair castors.
These would match the wheels pretty well, eh?
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Whit+
"We keep moving forward, opening new doors, and doing new things, because we're curious and curiosity keeps leading us down new paths." - Walt Disney
Kevin, that's even better! at least I knew to count the holes not just the tabs. oops getting this thread off track again!
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"A complex design is the sign of an inferior designer." - Jamie Hyneman, Myth Buster
DGSwaner
"...to keep your center of gravity low..." .... unless you do something similar to how the wheels on a Segway are in relation to the center of gravity, by placing the castor wheels rotational axis "above" the majority of your weight. This way you could go with larger casters to support the weight of the larger battery, and because the casters are larger, you would have more clearance and more stability compared to a smaller caster.
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Beau Schwabe
IC Layout Engineer
Parallax, Inc.
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"A complex design is the sign of an inferior designer." - Jamie Hyneman, Myth Buster
DGSwaner
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Never give up when things go wrong, Just work them out.
robosapienv2-4mem8.page.tl/
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Whit+
"We keep moving forward, opening new doors, and doing new things, because we're curious and curiosity keeps leading us down new paths." - Walt Disney
Post Edited (Whit) : 5/14/2008 4:46:06 PM GMT
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Never give up when things go wrong, Just work them out.
robosapienv2-4mem8.page.tl/
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Whit+
"We keep moving forward, opening new doors, and doing new things, because we're curious and curiosity keeps leading us down new paths." - Walt Disney
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Whit+
"We keep moving forward, opening new doors, and doing new things, because we're curious and curiosity keeps leading us down new paths." - Walt Disney
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"A complex design is the sign of an inferior designer." - Jamie Hyneman, Myth Buster
DGSwaner
Glad you got a bonus - even more glad you got a set of the 12 volt motors and wheels and position controllers.
Speaking of which, Parallaxians, I'm getting tired of referring to these as the 12 volt motor and wheel kit. We need a short catch name for the whole package including the position controllers. My suggest is the GO-Bot Kit. Let's brainstorm a bit and maybe one of us will come up with something.
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Whit+
"We keep moving forward, opening new doors, and doing new things, because we're curious and curiosity keeps leading us down new paths." - Walt Disney
Post Edited (Whit) : 5/16/2008 11:42:21 AM GMT
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Never give up when things go wrong, Just work them out.
robosapienv2-4mem8.page.tl/
Post Edited (StampNut2) : 5/16/2008 12:37:53 PM GMT
Ken, or anyone from parallax, What program did you model the go-bot kits with? any chance of making them public?
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"A complex design is the sign of an inferior designer." - Jamie Hyneman, Myth Buster
DGSwaner
I can't wait to hear how you like them when you get them in. I really think you will be impressed with the finish of the wheels and aluminum parts and I know you will love the position controllers.
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Whit+
"We keep moving forward, opening new doors, and doing new things, because we're curious and curiosity keeps leading us down new paths." - Walt Disney
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Never give up when things go wrong, Just work them out.
robosapienv2-4mem8.page.tl/
Like I said above, I will just build a simple version first, then go for the finished look I want.
What about you?
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Whit+
"We keep moving forward, opening new doors, and doing new things, because we're curious and curiosity keeps leading us down new paths." - Walt Disney
I have been waiting for these Motors and wheels as well, I already can invision the the chassis they will go in
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Thank's Brian
·"Imagination is more important than knowledge..." ·· Albert Einstein
www.PropelX.com
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Never give up when things go wrong, Just work them out.
robosapienv2-4mem8.page.tl/
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Whit+
"We keep moving forward, opening new doors, and doing new things, because we're curious and curiosity keeps leading us down new paths." - Walt Disney