MachineGrid::Robots at Work

A Simple Serial Parser Using A State Machine

This note illustrates how to decode or parse incoming serial data with an example. Transmitting one byte serially to a microcontroller is simple.The easiest way to do this is to interrupt the controller when a byte arrives on the receive pin. There is no need to parse or separate data as whatever comes in, is assigned to a variable. But what if there is more than one byte that needs to be received.How would you go about separating all the bytes and …

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Soldering Your Accelerometer – The ADXL202E

I finally get my hands on Analog Devices’ accelerometer- the ADXL202E. It’s small,very small.
See what I mean!

However there’s this problem, I usually work on PDIP packages and SMDs do give me a scare,not because I’ve never soldered them,but because I do not have the necessary equipment for it. So I decide to do my thing , and also take a little inspiration from Sparkfun’s Breakout board.

My first step was to find a thinner tip …

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Programming the SRV-1 Robot Wirelessly

The Surveyor SRV-1 robots( the Philips LPC2378 version) have the ability to be programmed remotely via Maxstream Zigbee radios.
The usual way to program the Surveyor SRV-1 is via the lpc21isp utility by issuing the command:
lpc21isp.exe -hex srv1.hex com1 115200 14746
.
To program the robot wirelessly, follow the steps:
1. Download the flash utility from here.
2. You get the following splash screen after unzipping the files and running the exe.
Keep the robot switched off….

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Accelerometers for your Robot[The ADXL202 and the MEMSIC 2125]

You’ve seen robots run on two wheels ,walk on two legs and balance just like us humans.I bet you’ve wondered whats in them that makes them “not tip over.

The device that enables this is a tiny teeny IMEM [aMicro Electro-Mechanical System] which can measure anything between ±1g to ±20g [some of the high g accelerometers measure ±20g to ±250g ]

The sensors:
…

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PIC16484A Temperature Controller

Ever needed to measure temperature and display it? This project details measuring temperature using a temperature sensor ,an ADC and a Microcontroller PIC16f84a with schematics,codes and illustrations. This project was done fairly long ago, so please excuse the quality of the pictures.

Overview
The Temperature control module was a part of my Final year undergraduate project,which consisted of transmitting data wirelessly.
The module uses an inexpensive 8 bit Temperature Sensor the TMP37 from Analog Devices.
Since the data was …

12 Comments | Posted in » Microcontrollers, Tutorials

Parallel Port Tutorial – Part 2 (Handling Inputs)

Disclaimer : The information provided here is correct to my best knowledge.You may use it at your own risk.
This is a followup of the first tutorial which described using the port as an output. This tutorial demonstrates how to use the parallel port as an input. This feature is a great help in robotics as it is used to collect data of what the robot really is encountering.
The INPUT PINS

Picture Courtesy :: Ian Harries

The 10,11,12,13,15 …

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Parallel Port Tutorial – Part 1

Disclaimer: The information provided here is correct to my best knowledge.You may use it at your own risk .

This tutorial will help you get a taste of controlling your machine using the printer port. Though the parallel port isn’t being used for many applications ,it is a boon for us hobbyists. This tutorial’s main aim is to get you working , so that you can send signals from the port like control a motor. …

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