Penn State Robotics Club

Tutorial 2 of 3: Sensors

Getting started
Sign-in to the club's roster: www.psurobotics.org > Member Tools (Top) > Member's Sign-In Get your group's kits Optional Club Resources: Hammond 312 Learning Factory Building materials (Wood, servos, sensors, etc.) Sunday Hours (Sunday, 2pm, 312 Hammond) Other Microcontrollers New motors and motor controllers (Fast!) Load up the RoboWiki tutorial Search: "Tutorial: Tabletop Sensors"

Tutorial Kit
Two Servos One Arduino Microcontroller (Important!) One Proto-Shield USB Cable Small Breadboard Generic Gray Chassis Battery Battery-to-Arduino Converter Wires Sensors!

If you are missing anything, let us know!

Sensors?
Sensors: Any device that gets feedback from the real-world Examples: Range finders (IR, Sonar, LIDAR) Smoke detection Light/UV/line detection Sound detection Interface: Analog: Varying voltage with varying input (Easy) Digital: Returns a number or packet of data (Moderate) Competition focus: Range finders (IR, Sonar) for maze navigation Light detection (Find the light bulb or line) for fire / light

Range Finders (Sonar)

Function: Sends out pulses of sound and waits for a response Positives: Wide beam, great with walls & general obstacles Negatives: Wide beam, slow, sensitive to noise Interface: Red - Power in (~5V) Black - Ground Yellow/White - Signal Signal: Linear ratio between distance and voltage 10 mV per inch The Arduino can read voltage in, using "analogRead"

Range Finders (InfraRed)

Function: Sends a beam of IR and measures the return angle Positives: Small beam, high resolution, fast Negatives: Small beam, sensitive to surface Interface: Red - Power in (~5V) Black - Ground Yellow/White - Signal Signal: Non-linear ratio between distance and voltage Each sensor is unique (Model & manufacturing issues) The Arduino can read voltage in, using "analogRead"

UV-Tron
Function: Detects flames / UV energy Positives: Very sensitive Negatives: Very sensitive, hard to interface Interface: Look at RoboWiki for article Signal: Sends a high-signal based on any detection which is caught by Arduino Interrupt handle

Connecting Sensors
Choose any location on your robot, but be wary of: Wires Min/max distance Wide sonar cone Connections: Black: Ground Red: ~5 Volts Yellow/White: Signal Arduino: 14 Digital pins 6 Analog-in pins 3.3 Volts 5 Volts Ground VIN: Battery voltage (Unregulated)

Connecting Sensors
Create a common ~5 Volt line from the Arduino Connect sensor's Red wire to this common line Create a common Ground line from the Arduino Connect sensor's Black wire to this common line Connect the sensor's output to the Analog In on the Arduino Connect the Yellow/White line from the sensor to any of the 6 analog in

Connecting in Software
Download, un-zip, and run the Arduino IDE Connect your Arduino via usb Make sure the correct device is selected Make sure the right COM line is selected

Sensor Configuration
Goal: Find the right ratios for your sensors Starting point: Basic program File > New & File > Save (Choose a name...) Basic code body: void setup() { Serial.begin(9600); } void loop() { int value = analogRead(0); Serial.println(value, DEC); delay(100); }

Explanation
void setup() Main application entry point Only runs once when powered-on or reset void loop() Main code body Runs an infinite number of times int value = analogRead(0); Read an analog value from pin zero Returns 0 to 1023 (Linear to 0V to 5V) Place that value into the variable "value" Serial.println(value, DEC); Print the value of "value" as a decimal to your computer

Sensor Configuration & Reading

Record the value of your sensor over a series of distances Use a book or block as your collision surface Rulers are in room 312 Far right button is serial: Plot the value read from your terminal Excel is installed on all computers Derive an equation that takes voltage and returns distance

Resources
Club officers are walking around Use the wiki for your code: Search "Range Finders" or "Range Tutorial" Remember Sonar is linear (Easy to configure) IR is non-linear (Not so fun...) Derive an equation that takes voltage and returns distance Debugging: Returns internal variables to the computer terminal Initialize communication with "Serial.begin(9600)" Send strings with "Serial.println("xyz")" Send integers with "Serial.println(myInt, DEC)"

Your Challenge!
Two parts: Challenge I Interface with one sonar placed in front of the vehicle Have the robot move forward without hitting anything Challenge II Interface with two IR after configuration Try and follow a wall (at any distance you want ) Look through the wiki - There is a solution

Ask senior members if you need help.