A twist on an old robot.
Matt Battle
Posts: 172
Okay guys, I might still be a newbie to this field but I have a project in mind. I don’t know how many of you have done or read about the Mousey JunkBot. What I want to do is not just to make the junkbot but to add upon what the author has done. For one I want to make my first PCB that will fit inside the mouse body. Second, I want to control the robot with an embedded stamp chip. That’s of course once I figure out the stamp chip and what I can do with it. Also maybe have it some what be run off of some rechargeable batteries and have it either be recharged using some solar panels or maybe just have some LEDS either three or a tri-LED that changes color depending on the state of the battery(s). I won’t start working on it for a few months. It would be like a big project incorporating little projects into one.
So I do have a few questions and concerns. The main concern is that this to much for my first project? If so then what would you recommend I should work on or towards? I know that with most of the things I have come up with I would be looking for a nice size mouse to hack up. I really want to use a mouse shell, I just think it will keep the Mousey Junkbot feel, so there might be some things I won’t be able to do and I won’t know until I start really planning out this robot. One more thing, if I do design a PCB board to fit the shell I find, can PCB fabrication companies cut the board to the size I want? Thanks guys for your comments and questions. Have a good holiday.
-Matt
So I do have a few questions and concerns. The main concern is that this to much for my first project? If so then what would you recommend I should work on or towards? I know that with most of the things I have come up with I would be looking for a nice size mouse to hack up. I really want to use a mouse shell, I just think it will keep the Mousey Junkbot feel, so there might be some things I won’t be able to do and I won’t know until I start really planning out this robot. One more thing, if I do design a PCB board to fit the shell I find, can PCB fabrication companies cut the board to the size I want? Thanks guys for your comments and questions. Have a good holiday.
-Matt
Comments
Mostly I think that it is more of the kind of project that someone that knows a bit about electronics would get through easily. If it is really a first, I would reconsider the BOE bot as it is a very flexible platform that would allow you to forget your mistakes and easily move on.
Mousey JunkBot might be a real money glutton for a beginner.
Above all, the bottom line here is FUN. If it ain't a fun way to learn, it is something that just ends up in the back of a closet -- like my 5th grade violin.
You can layout your board to fit inside a mouse and the PCB vendor will provide you with an oversized rectangle [noparse][[/noparse]unless you really want to find one that is willing to charge quite a bit extra].· Then, you can sit down with a coping saw and carefully shape the board to fit.· I don't recommend using power tools as slowness increases the accuracy.
Once you have the shape, you can file [noparse][[/noparse]with a regular 'mill bastard' file] or emery paper the outside shape to a smooth, snug fit.
Anything is possible with patience and the desire to acquire the skill sets that are needed.
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"When all think alike, no one is thinking very much.' - Walter Lippmann (1889-1974)
······································································ Warm regards,····· G. Herzog [noparse][[/noparse]·黃鶴 ]·in Taiwan
Post Edited (Kramer) : 12/24/2005 3:24:53 PM GMT
Robotics involves three main diciplines (electronics, programming, and mechanics).· I would strongly suggest developing a prototype (not necessarily in a mouse body) to work out all the "kinks" of the electronics and programming.· Then, once the prototype is working satisfactorily, it becomes an "implementation issue" of mechanically getting it to fit the physical shape desired.
To prototype, there are a variety of great kits out there... IMHO, The Parallax BOEBot is by far the best to learn and develop on.
I first went through the entire BOEbot tutorial (a.k.a. The Stamps In Class Robots! curriculum).· Then my first project was to basically build a home-brew version of the BOEbot using parts from Home Depot (It was amazing how much I learned just doing this!)· Then I focused on driving the motors using products like Pololu's Dual Serial Micro Controller (this "liberated" the Stamp·from having to continuously maintain the motors).· Then I focused on sensors (whiskers, IR, Sonar, accelerometers, etc.).· The point is that I allways start my learning on a simple, solid platform (like the BOEbot), then move to my own physical implementation.
As to your last point, many of the PCB Fabricators will cut a board in what ever shape (and with whatever cutouts) you want.
Hope this helps!
Steve
I do have some other questions about this project. The main thing from what I read is that the stamp is design to control servos or stepper motors and not DC motors right? So, I read about what kramer was talking about the PWM or a digitally controlled H-bridge to control the DC motors and I have the SN754410NE chips which I will most likely use to test out the circuit but if they don't make the H-bridge in the SMD size then there is no point of me even working with the SN754410NE, be a waste of my time I guess. So then what a PWM?? Is it a cheap or a board or what? Also talking about SMD, has anybody work with soldering SMD's? any tips or sites that would help me with my task at hand? Thanks again guys. Have a good day.
Post Edited (Matt Battle) : 12/25/2005 12:38:04 AM GMT
http://users.sch.gr/pavlos/Projects/bs2_mini/Bs2_mini_board_EN.htm
Thanos
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That is a nice BS2 mini board. I might have to use that as reference when I make my own board. I am going to try to put everything on one board but I do like how you did yours with splitting it into two parts. I am trying to figure out how to eliminate parts that i don't need to save room. Like one idea I have, which Ken from Parallax came up with, is to use a 3 pin connector to program my bot like he used on the penguins. The only thing is how he did it.
-Matt
And if you don't like its shape, you can always make your own layout to fit in the dimensions of a mouse case.
Thanos
Post Edited (Tronic (Greece)) : 12/28/2005 8:41:08 AM GMT
Oh???? The programming port for the penguin is detachable? Hmm I thought he just used a 3 pin connector to program it. Do you know of any pics showing the detachable port for it?
That is what I like about your mini board and if I use SMD parts I will be able to put more things inside the case. The only thing I trying to figure out is what is the simplest method, using the smallest amount of parts, to connect a DB9 or 3 pin connector to OEM Basic Stamp2 chip to be able to program it? Do you know of any schematics? I like the way you do it Thanos its just that I hate to lose that part and have to make a new one.
-Matt
On the botton of the page on the link I gave you there is detailed schematic of how all the parts (tranzistors, capacitors, resistors etc.) are connected to each other other in order for the circuit to work properly. If you follow this schematic you can rearrange the parts anyway you like.
http://users.sch.gr/pavlos/Projects/bs2_mini/Bs2_mini_board_EN.htm
Thanos
Post Edited (Tronic (Greece)) : 12/28/2005 2:33:41 PM GMT
You could easily breadboard an interface and then just use 3 wires directly to the I/O pins [noparse][[/noparse]RX and TX] and Vss [noparse][[/noparse]ground]. Alternatively --If you wanted the Mouse to provide power for the Max232, you could add a Vcc [noparse][[/noparse]+5volts] and a 4th wire.
If you consider that the DB9 Connector is fairly huge in terms of what you want to do, I am pretty sure you would like to leave that outside the mouse.
In that way, you have quite a bit more room to play with. I am sure you want to pack 'goodies' into it. And everyone takes a bit of space. Also, the larger the battery, the longer use.
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"When all think alike, no one is thinking very much.' - Walter Lippmann (1889-1974)
······································································ Warm regards,····· G. Herzog [noparse][[/noparse]·黃鶴 ]·in Taiwan
P.S. I am going to try Thanos setup and see if I can get my chip detected and if I can't then I am back to square 1 and trying to figure out what is wrong with the chip.
Something to keep in mind if you plan on running your drive (motor) off of the same power supply (battery) as your control (Stamp) electronics is that any time a motor starts up, it tends to drag your power supply down momentarily. Without appropriate power filtering/buffering, this can cause your Stamp to reset and start from square one in your program. Depending on when this happens, it can mimic all sorts of other problems and be hair-pulling-rific...
Just something to think about.
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Truly Understand the Fundamentals and the Path will be so much easier...
I figure as much. That is one thing on my list is to figure out how I am going to run the motors and what is going to control them. Right now I am working on the main problem at hand which is the basic stamp 2 chip not showing up in the editor.
-Matt