Online : Line-following mousebot. PING))) Ultrasonic Sensor. Parallax's PING))) ultrasonic sensors provides a very low-cost and easy method of distance measurement. This sensor is perfect for any number of applications that require you to perform measurements between moving or stationary objects. Naturally, robotics applications are very popular but you'll also find this product to be useful in security systems or as an infrared replacement if so desired. You will definitely appreciate the activity status LED and the economic use of just 1 I/O pin.
The Ping sensor measures distance using sonar; an ultrasonic (well above human hearing) pulse is transmitted from the unit and distance-to-target is determined by measuring the time required for the echo return. Output from the PING))) sensor is a variable-width pulse that corresponds to the distance to the target. Interfacing to the BASIC Stamp and Javelin Stamp microcontrollers is a snap: a single (shared) I/O pin is use to trigger the Ping sensor and "listen" for the echo return pulse. MAKE: Blog: Arduino controlled servo robot kit. MAKE: Blog: How-to Tuesday: Getting started with the 3pi. This week I am going to show you how to get up and running with the 3pi by Pololu. I will be going through all the steps needed to upload the line following program that is included from Pololu. Getting started with the 3pi isn’t too difficult, but there are a few applications and drivers that need to be installed. Note: In this tutorial I will be using a PC running Vista.
You can program the 3pi on a Mac running OSX or Linux, but it’s a different procedure. You can even program the 3pi through the Arduino IDE! What you need: Pololu 3pi Robot – Available in the Maker ShedOrangutan USB Programmer – Available in the Maker ShedUSB A to Mini-B cable – Available at most electronics stores (4) AAA batteries Electrical tape Computer running Vista or XP Optional Items: 3pi Expansion Kit with Cutouts – Available in the Maker Shed3pi Expansion Kit without Cutout – Available in the Maker Shed Part 1: Setting up the 3pi Unpack and add the 4 AAA batteries. Replace the LCD and press the power button. Robots. Now with video of the sensor being used as a Mintvelt inspired object tracker! This sensor is a short range obstacle detector with no dead zone. It has a reasonably narrow detection area which can be increased using the dual version. Range can also be increased by increasing the power to the IR LEDs or adding more IR LEDs The photo below shows my test setup with some IR LED's (dark blue) as a light source and two phototransistors in parallel for the reciever.
You could use one of each but I wanted to spread them out to cover a wider area. This setup works like a FritsLDR but with IR. I'm only running my LEDs about 20mA. I'm using this setup on Junior as a general purpose object advoidance sensor to prevent him backing into anything. To get this to work well with an A/D input it needs to have a much lower impedance (needs to let more current through).
Starting from the left you can see my two IR LEDs with a resistor and transistor in series. This is the schematic for the single version. C i b o M a h t o . c o m » Thing-a-day, Day 9: Servo as input d. Project Hovercraft. Welkom op DelFly.nl. Foundation Technologies for Remote Visual Connectivity from Surv.