Summary of Contents for Arrick Rbotics Mobile Robot
- Page 1 Mobile Robot For Hobbyist, Research and Education Assembly and User Guide Copyright (c) 2005 Arrick Robotics All Rights Reserved Robotics.com...
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Page 2: Table Of Contents
Table of Contents Introduction Introduction...1 About ARobot...1 What You’ll Need ...2 Feature List ...2 Specifications...3 Precautions...4 Component Locator ...5 Glossary of Terms...6 Assembly Assembly Overview...9 Parts...10 Painting ...13 Whiskers ...14 Drive Motor and Brackets...16 Encoder Sensor ...17 Front Wheel Assembly ...18 Steering Motor and Rear Wheels...19 Controller Board ...21 Battery Pack ...22... - Page 3 Expansion Connector ...38 User RC Servo Motors...38 Expansion Circuit Examples...39 Coprocessor Network Expansion...42 Using Other Controllers...43 Additional Information Suggested Reading...44 Component/Accessory Suppliers ...45 Internet Robot Resources...47 Troubleshooting ...49 Warranty Information ...50 ARobot Project Database – www.robotics.com/arobot/projects.html ARobot FAQ – www.robotics.com/arobot/faq.html...
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Page 4: Introduction
Parents: If you’re buying ARobot for a young person, be prepared to help them. About ARobot The ARobot (pronounced "A robot") is a computer controlled mobile robot designed for hobbyists and educators. Ages 16 and up (younger if helped by an adult) can enjoy unlimited experimentation by programming the on-board Basic Stamp II control computer. -
Page 5: What You'll Need
Program using a desktop PC then download for autonomous operation. Expansion port allows unlimited possibilities. Mounting holes for Radio Shack Breadboard or perfboard. Coprocessor network allows multiple processors to communicate and distribute tasks. Application notes for sonar range finding, head light, light sensors, compass, and more. -
Page 6: Specifications
Technical Specifications Body: .062 aluminum - cut, punched, and formed. Configuration: 3-wheel, front wheel drive, rear wheel steer. Dimensions: 10" x 10", 5" tall, 2-1/4 lbs. Payload capacity: 1 lbs. Wheel size: 3.25" diameter. Drive Motor: 12 volt DC gear motor, 74 full load RPM, 1.6 amp full load current. Quality machined wheel coupling and bearings. -
Page 7: Precautions
Precautions The following precautions must be taken to insure trouble free operation of ARobot. The order that these precautions are listed does not indicate their importance. Failure to observe these precautions may result in loss of life, damage of property and/or damage to the Robot. Never attach or remove cables while power is applied to the Robot. -
Page 8: Component Locator
Component Locator Use the following diagrams to familiarize yourself with ARobot' s various components. Encoder Front Wheel Steering Motor Expansion Connector Proto Area Basic Stamp Green LED Red LED Coprocessor Reset Jumpers Buttons Drive Motor Controller Battery Pack Steering Controller Body RC Servo Connector... -
Page 9: Glossary Of Terms
Glossary of Terms Analog Signals – Signals that have values between on and off (1 and 0). Android – A robot that has a human-like form. Artificial Intelligence (AI) – A computer program that simulates intelligence like that found in biological systems. - Page 10 Joystick – A control device that employs a stick to achieve 2 axis control. Laws of Robotics - Three laws written by Isaac Asimov which prevent robots from intentionally harming humans and set other task priorities. A robot may not injure a human being or, through inaction, allow a human...
- Page 11 Glossary of Terms continued Mechatronics – A combination of mechanical and electrical devices to create a system. Natural Language – Language used by humans to communication. Neural Network – A network of processing elements that are connected together to simulate the intelli- gence created by biological brains.
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Page 12: Assembly Overview
Assembly Overview ARobot’s assembly normally takes about 2 hours or less excluding time for painting. Children as young as 10 can build ARobot with the help of an adult. The controller board and cables are pre-built, so sol- dering is not required. During assembly you will do these things: Sand and paint the metal robot body pieces (this is optional). -
Page 13: Parts
Parts ARobot is easy to put together. Make sure you have all of the parts listed below before beginning. If something doesn’t look right, send us some email at info@robotics.com Quantity Description Robot Body Sheetmetal Motor Brackets Encoder wheel Screw, 4-40 x 3/16”... - Page 14 Parts continued Here are drawings of SOME of the parts in the ARobot package. Drawings are not to scale. As you build ARobot, refer back to these drawings to identify parts. Screw, 4-40 x 3/16 Screw, 4-40 x 3/8 Nut, 4-40 Nut, 10-32 Washer, #4 star Washer, #10 star...
- Page 15 Parts continued Drive Motor Body Cable Battery Cable Wire Ties Whisker Wires Steering Linkages Bronze Bearing Rear Axles Steering Arms 4-40 nuts Encoder Wheel Body Battery Holder Encoder Sensors 4-40 x 3/8 Controller Spacers 10-32 nuts Motor Brackets RC Servo Steering Motor Controller...
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Page 16: Painting
Be creative, consider using special accents to make your robot stand out. Masking to create special shapes such as flames or zebra stripes. Colored electrical tape from Radio Shack - Catalog #64-2340. Colored adhesive dots from an office supply store. -
Page 17: Whiskers
Whiskers Two whisker wires are mounted on the front of the robot to detect obstacles. Locate the 4 whisker mounting holes near the front center of the robot body. Scratch off paint around the two smaller holes. Next, bend each whisker wire using the drawing as a full scale pattern. Locate the body cable and find the ground lug. - Page 18 Whiskers continued Whisker Detail Full Scale Whisker Wire Pattern 3” 1-1/2” 8-3/4” Total Length 4” Small Loop Attaches to Whisker Spacer Bend both whisker wires using this pattern...
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Page 19: Drive Motor And Brackets
Drive Motor and Brackets Locate the two motor brackets – a left side and a right side. Locate the drive motor. Mount the drive motor to the left motor bracket using 2 or 3 screws according to the drawing. Next, attach the motor brackets to the robot’s body using 3 screws, 3 star washers, and 3 nuts per motor bracket. -
Page 20: Encoder Sensor
Encoder Sensor The encoder sensor counts the teeth in the encoder wheel using invisible IR (infrared) light to measure the distance traveled. The encoder wheel has teeth that interrupt the beam of light. Locate the encoder sensor and notice the dots placed on it (see the drawing). Mount the sensor using 2 screws, 2 star wash- ers, and 2 nuts. -
Page 21: Front Wheel Assembly
Front Wheel Assembly A picture is worth a thousand words – so take a look at the drawings below before starting to building the front wheel assembly. First locate the front wheel which has a threaded bore and a red mark on the hub. Screw the threaded front axle into the wheel so that one side of the axle protrudes about 1/2 inch from the wheel’s hub. -
Page 22: Steering Motor And Rear Wheels
Steering Motor and Rear Wheels Steering of the robot is accomplished using a standard RC servo motor attached to the rear wheels. Read the assembly summary while viewing the drawings. Summary: Bend both 4” wires into steering linkages with pliers using the drawing as a pattern. Attach the horn to the steering motor with a screw. - Page 23 Steering Motor and Rear Wheels continued Steering Motor Mounting Wheel and Axle Steering System...
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Page 24: Controller Board
Controller Board ARobot’s controller board is the brains of the system. It accepts a Basic Stamp II controller chip which can be programmed from a personal computer. The controller board contains electronics used to drive the motors, sound the speaker, control the LEDs, read whiskers, etc. An expansion port allows addi- tional circuits to be added to the system. -
Page 25: Battery Pack
Battery Pack Don’t install batteries yet. Power is supplied to ARobot using a battery pack that contains 8 AA size batteries. Locate the battery cable which has a batter snap on one end and a 2-pin MTA connector on the other. Pin 1 has the red wire and is +12 volts, Pin 2 is the black wire and is ground (0 volts). -
Page 26: Body Cable
Body Cable The body cable connects the controller to the encoder sensor, whiskers, and ground lug. The body cable will already be attached to the robot because we have already installed the whiskers and ground lug. Route the body cable up through the rectangular hole in the robot’s body. Plug the body cable into the controller’s 10 pin body connector which is next to the expansion connector. -
Page 27: Finishing Up
Finishing Up You’re almost finished building ARobot. Finish up by doing these things: Route the steering motor cable up though the rectangular hole in the robot body. Connect the steering motor cable to the 3 pin connector on the controller board near the body connector (see the controller drawing). -
Page 28: About The Controller
About the Controller Board The Controller board is the brains of ARobot. It contains circuitry to control the steering and drive mo- tors, read the whiskers, control LEDs, speaker, buttons, etc. The controller board has a socket that ac- cepts a Basic Stamp II control computer chip designed by Parallax Inc. www.parallaxinc.com The Basic Stamp II is programmed with a desktop PC through the serial port in the PBasic Language which is much like standard Basic but with some interesting additions. -
Page 29: Cable To Your Pc
Cable to your PC ARobot’s controller board is programmed by connecting it to an Personal Computer (PC) running Mi- crosoft Windows. The serial port (9 pin male connector) will be used for this. A 9 pin male-female ca- ble is included to connect your PC’s serial port to ARobot. It may be necessary to remove your modem or other device (except your mouse) to free up the serial port. -
Page 30: The Test Program
It then reverses direction and steers away from the object. After a short period, it returns to straight forward movement. The Wander program is an excellent starting point for the crea- tion of new programs. www.robotics.com/arobot... -
Page 31: Controller Schematic
About the Controller Board... -
Page 32: Batteries
Batteries ARobot’s controller board requires 9 to 12 volts supplied by 8 AA size batteries. We’ve found that the best batteries are DuraCells. You can also use AA size rechargeable batteries. First turn the controller board off and remove the battery pack from the battery cable. Install the 8 batteries observing polarity + - which is indicated on the holder. -
Page 33: Whiskers
Whiskers Whisker wires are used to detect objects while the robot is moving. There is a left and right whisker which can be read separately to determine the location of the object. The left whisker is connected to the P0 pin and the right whisker is connected to the P1 pin. When an object is detected, these pins return a logic zero (low). -
Page 34: Push Buttons And Jumpers
Push Buttons and Jumpers (switches) Two general purpose buttons and jumpers (also called switches) are provided on the controller card which can be read by the Basic Stamp II. Buttons are momentary – after you press them they return to the off state. -
Page 35: Steering Motor
Drive Motor and Encoder The previous subroutine will START the drive motor. You can monitor the progress of the drive wheel by reading the encoder counter from the coprocessor. Here is example code that will read the encoder. ec var word serout net,baud,["!1E1"] serin net,baud,[hex4, ec] You can use this code within a loop to wait until the desired distance is completed. -
Page 36: Coprocessor Command Summary
Coprocessor Command Summary This section describes how the coprocessor works and how each command is constructed. The controller board contains a coprocessor that is used to control the drive motor, powerful output, en- coder sensor, and the 4 RC servo motors (#1 is used as the steering motor). This frees the Basic Stamp II for other tasks. - Page 37 Coprocessor Command Summary RC Servo Motor and Steering Motor Control: Example: !1R380 This command begins with “!1R” and is followed by a character indicating the RC servo motor number (3 in the example), followed by the position in hexadecimal (80 in the example). Possible position val- ues are “01”...
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Page 38: Hexadecimal, Binary, Bytes, Words
Hexadecimal, Binary, Bytes, Words, etc. Most commands require parameters in the form of hexadecimal values and many commands return hexadecimal values. Sometimes the bits in these values will represent certain things. We’ll use the term “hex” to refer to hexadecimal. Hexadecimal Hex numbers are easy for computers to work with because each hex digit can represent 4 bits, 2 hex dig- its can represent a byte, and 4 hex digits can represent a word. -
Page 39: Battery Connector
Battery Connector (J9) Usage: Supplies battery power to all systems. Type: 2 pin, MTA, .1” Pinout: 1 – +12 volts 2 – Ground Body Connector (J8) Usage: Connects controller to encoder, whiskers, and ground lug. Connector: 10 pin, dual row header, .1” Pinout: 1 –... -
Page 40: Rc Servo Motor Connectors
RC Servo Motor Connectors (J2-J5) Usage: Connects controller to RC servo motors. J2 is used for the steering motor. J3, J4, J5 are user defined. Controlled by the coprocessor Connector: 3 pin, .1”, 4 total Pinout: 1 – Control Pulse 2 –... -
Page 41: Expansion Connector
Expansion Connector (J1) Usage: Connects controller to user devices. Connector: 40 pin .1 IDC Header Pinout: 1 – Ground 2 – Ground 3 – +5 volts, 200ma max 4 – +5 volts, 200ma max 5 – P0 of Basic Stamp II, Left whisker 6 –... -
Page 42: Expansion Circuit Examples
Soldering and other basic electronic skills Books are available from Radio Shack and other sources that teach basic electronic skills such as component identification and soldering. These subjects are beyond the scope of this text and will not be taught here. - Page 43 Our space is limited here so make sure to visit our web site for the latest expansion application notes complete with program examples. www.robotics.com/arobot/projects.html Also visit the Parallax web site which has an entire section dedicated to application notes for the Basic Stamp II.
- Page 44 Our space is limited here so make sure to visit our web site for the latest expansion application notes complete with program examples. www.robotics.com/arobot/projects.html Also visit the Parallax web site which has an entire section dedicated to application notes for the Basic Stamp II.
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Page 45: Coprocessor Network Expansion
Coprocessor Network Expansion The complete application note for coprocessor expansion can be found on our website at: www.robotics.com/arobot/projects.html A coprocessor is one of the most powerful expansions that can be added to ARobot. A coprocessor can remove time consuming tasks from the master processor, leaving it for higher level routines. The coprocessor could be used to add a ring of sonar range finders, read a time consuming compass, proc- ess video images, control motors, etc. -
Page 46: Using Other Controllers
Using Other Controllers ARobot’s controller board is designed to accept the Basic Stamp II controller chip made by Parallax (www.parallaxinc.com). Parallax makes other Basic Stamp II compatible controllers which offer more memory and greater speed. Other manufacturers also make controllers that are compatible with the Ba- sic Stamp II and most of them should work fine with ARobot' s controller board. -
Page 47: Suggested Reading
Robot Science & Technology Magazine Dedicated to Real Robots. 2351 Sunset Blvd. Suite 170 Rocklin, CA 95765 http://www.robotmag.com 1-888-510-7728 Robotics Digest Practical Applications of Systems, Control, Vision, Motion, and Navigation in Robotic Mechanisms. Willian E. Gates 1700 Washington Ave. Rocky Ford, CO 81067 719-254-4558 102505.3055@compuserve.com... -
Page 48: Component/Accessory Suppliers
Component Suppliers The following list of suppliers has been compiled to help in the expansion of ARobot. These vendors offer such items as single board computer, sensors and actuators. Most of the companies listed have catalogs which contain detailed part and technical information and can be obtained at little or no cost. Ampro Computers 990 Almanor Ave. - Page 49 SAVA Industries 70 Riverdale Rd. Riverdale, NJ 07457 (201) 835-0882 Manufactures cables and pulleys. Small Parts 6891 N.E. 3rd Ave. P.O. Box 381736 Miami, FL 33238-1736 (305) 751-0856 This company stocks a broad range of precision parts such as screws, tubing, and tools. Stock Drive Products 2101 Jericho Turnpike New Hyde Park, NY 11040...
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Page 50: Internet Robot Resources
Netscape or via FTP (File Transfer Protocol). Various newsgroups are available that allow readers to exchange ideas and ask questions. Arrick Robotics maintains an Internet Web Site at www.robotics.com. At this site you can browse pages describing various product offerings and view the latest demonstration code and example programs. - Page 51 Questions not answered in the FAQ can be posted to the newsgroup for a direct response from other readers. Parallax also offers a Basic Stamp forum – see www.parallaxinc.com Newsgroup Name comp.robotics.misc comp.ai comp.ai.alife comp.ai.fuzzy comp.ai.genetic...
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Page 52: Troubleshooting
Problem: Some other problem. Remedy: If you' ve read the manual and our on-line FAQ but the problem still can' t be resolved, don' t waste another second, e-mail us at info@robotics.com for the answer! -
Page 53: Warranty Information
Warranty Information ARRICK ROBOTICS warrantees this product to be in good working order for a period of one (1) year from the date of purchase. Should this product fail to be in good working order at any time during this period, ARRICK ROBOTICS will, at its option, repair or replace the product at no additional charge except as set forth below. - Page 54 Robotics.com...