INTRODUCTION

Here Robot is basically a differential wheel robot whose movement is

based on differential drive mechanism which is explained below:

WHAT IS DIFFERENTIAL DRIVE ROBOT ???

The term 'differential' means that robot turning speed is determined by the speed
difference between both wheels, each on either side of your robot. For example:
keep the left wheel still, and rotate the right wheel forward, and the robot will turn
left. As long as both wheels go at the same speed, the robot does not turn - only
going forward or reverse.
 LEFT SIDE RIGHT SIDE ROBOT
MOTORS MOTORS MOVEMENT
Forward Forward Forward
Forward OFF Right turn
OFF Forward Left turn
Forward Backward Extreme right
Backward Forward Extreme left
Backward Backward Backward

MECHANICAL REQUIREMENTS
 A double-pole, double-throw (DPDT) center-off toggle switch. These are sometimes
labeled as "on-off-on"
 Four Direct current(DC) electric motors
 Ribbon wire of approx. 2-3 meters.
 Strong chassis, for e.g. electric sheet, wooden board etc.
 Four wheels.
 DC power supply of range upto 25 volt. For e.g. laptop charger, electrolytic cells
etc.

CHASSIS:
The main frame of the robot, the body which holds the motor, wheels and
the batteries (if placed on bot) is the chassis.
Chassis can be made out of:

· Wood (using right angles to attach motors, drilling and attaching the
motors is easy)
· Plastic (not easily available, but if found makes a very light chassis).
· Metal (Most common chassis which is available but not recommended
because the motors can get misaligned very easily resulting in poor
turning).

ACTUATORS

An “actuator” can be defined as a device that converts energy (in robotics,

that energy tends to be electrical) into physical motion. The vast majority
of actuators produce either rotational or linear motion. For instance, a “DC
motor” is therefore a type of actuator. Motors convert electrical energy to
mechanical energy, which is used to drive the wheels.
A DC motor is a low torque, high RPM motor which has to be geared down
to reduce the speed and increase the torque. The gearing is done
Internally or externally in motors. Both the type of motors are easily
available in the market.Motors should be of around 150-200 RPM

DC MOTOR OPERATION

DPDT switch
DPDT stands for Double Pole Double Throw. It has six connections The double pole is for a dual switched
output and the double throw is for the on or off conditions. DPDT switches commonly use polarity
reversal
 DPDT CONNECTIONS

Controlling the Bidirectional Motor

Switch
Let's step through what happens when you flip the switch to the top, center,
and bottom...
Lack of connections in a DPDT switch, resulting in a turned-off motor.

When the switch lever is in the middle position, the motor is off because the
metal inside the switch is not connecting the wires from the middle terminals
(the motor) to any of the outer terminals (the power source). This is the
same as if you simply disconnected the wires to the battery. Nothing will
happen. No power is being used.
Connections in a DPDT switch, resulting in a motor going forward.

When the switch lever is in the top position, the motor rotates forward. If
your motor rotates in the opposite direction than you expected or wanted,
simply reorient the switch in your hand so that lever is facing the bottom,
and then toggle the lever to the top. Alternatively, you could swap the wires
on either the battery terminals or the motor terminals.

Inside the switch, the lever has pushed metal strips such that the motor
wires on the middle terminal are electrically connected to one pair of the
outer terminals leading to the battery. The term "double pole" refers to that
fact that this switch has a pair of terminals that it connects or disconnects at
the same time. If we only needed a single wire to be connected or
disconnected, we could use a single pole (SP) switch.
Connections in a DPDT switch resulting in a motor going backward.

When the switch lever is in the bottom position, the motor rotates backward.

Inside the switch, the lever has pushed metal strips such that the motor
wires on the middle terminal are electrically connected to the other pair of
the outer terminals leading to the battery. Notice that the black and white
battery wires are on opposite sides on the top and bottom switch terminals.
That's why the motor rotates in the opposite direction.

The term "double throw" refers to that fact that this switch can be thrown to
the top and thrown to the bottom (two different throws). If we only needed
the motor to go forward or turn off, we could use a single throw (ST) switch.

POWER SUPPLY:

The power to the motors can be supplied by using:-

· DC Adapter

· Transformer

· Batteries
 DC adapters and transformers are preferred batteries as adapters provide
accurate voltage and current supply as mentioned on them. Batteries have
to be charged again and again and their performance degraded with time.

WHEELS:

Wheels are the most important part of the robot car for this event.

Wheels should provide:-

· Maximum grip of the bot to the surface.

· High ground clearance.

Components’ costs
 DC motors 4 X 200=Rs 800
 DPDT switches 2 X 15 =Rs 30
 Chassis Rs 20
 Ribbon wire Rs15/metre
 Wheels 4 X 25= Rs 100
 PCB Rs 10