Open Source Electric Drive Cube Robot

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Revision as of 03:09, 30 March 2017 by Fengfeng (talk) (Outline)
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Overview

  • Project: Open Source Electric Drive Cube Robot
  • Objective: To make a Cube Robot car
    • Can be controlled by Joypad.
    • Also can support Bluetooth APP control.
  • Difficulty: Middle
  • Time-consuming: 2-Hour
  • Maker: PKJ

Bill of Material

Bill of Modules(Joypad mode)

Module Number Function
Microduino-Core 2 Core module
Microduino-USBTTL 1 Program download module
Microduino-nRF24 2 Wireless communication module
Microduino-Joypad 1 Remote control module
Microduino-TFT 1 Display module
Microduino-Robot 1 Drive board

Bill of Module(Bluetooth mode)

Module Number Function
Microduino-Core 1 Core module
Microduino-USBTTL 1 Program download program
Microduino-BT 1 Bluetooth communication module
Microduino-Robot 1 Drive board

Other Material

Component Number Function
Frame of the Robot car 1 Body of the car
Screw 18 Fixation
Nut 8 Fixation
Micro-USB cable 1 Download program
47mm wheel+ motor fixing seat 2 Car wheels
N20DC speed-down motor 2 Drive wheels
3.7V Li-ion battery 1 Power supply
Boxz Materials.jpg

Principle of the Experiment

  • There are various kinds of Robot cars, such as robot car of tracking, barrier, Bluetooth control, which with different functions and need to adopt different sensors.
  • However, all those Robot cars are basically controlled in the same way, that is, moving in four directions.
  • Here we adopt two-wheel drive structure. By control the rotation of two wheels, we can achieve moving forward and backward, or spinning. Of course, it needs auxiliary wheel to keep balance.
  • This car has a simple structure, including wheels, body and control system.
    • 1)The wheels adopt two speed-down motors with large torque, which can have PWM speed adjustment to make sure easy control.
    • 2)The body of the car adopts wood with a size of 8cm*8cm*8cm.
    • 3)The whole control system contains four parts:
  • CPU
    • Adopt Microduino-Core as the core. Just like the CPU of a computer, it can analyze and process complicated things.
  • Wireless commmunciation
    • Adopt Microduino-nRF24 wireless communication scheme with fast communication response and the control range of about 50m in the open area.
    • Or adopt Microduino-BT wireless communication scheme, which can work with phone APP to directly control. The control range is about 20m in the open area.
  • Motor control
    • Adopt a group of built-in DC motor drive unit on the Microduino-Robot, and a unit can drive two motors.
  • Power supply system
    • Adopt a built-in sing-cell Li-ion battery management unit on the Microduino-Robot to manage charging and discharging function.

Program Download

Programming

  • Stack Microduino-Core and Microduino-USBTTL together, then use the USB cable to connect the USBTTL module for program uploading.
    • Note: Please upload programs before stacking all modules together.
  • Open Arduino IDE for Microduino development environment. (For the buildup, please refer to: AVR Core:Getting started )
  • Make sure the right board(Microduino-Core Atmega328P@16M,5V) and the relevant port number(COMX)
  • Open the " Robot_Microduino.ino " program in the downloaded projects.
  • Click "→" and upload the program to the development board.

Installation

  • Step1:
    • Adopt Motor fixation base to fixate the two N20 gear motors on the Structure-A1.
    • Assemble the Wheels, tyres and Couplings, then install them with the fixated N20 gear motor.
Cubestep1.jpg


  • Step2:
  • Insert Structure-A2 into the slot of the two sides of Structure-A1.
  • Use two Structure-A4 to fixate the bottom of Auxiliary wheel on the Structure-A3.
  • Prepare Structure-A3 and Structure-B1 from up to down as the picture shows below.
Cubestep2.jpg


  • Step3:
  • Fixate theStructure-B2 and Structure-C1 on the two sides.
Cubestep3.jpg
Cubestep4.jpg


  • Step5:
  • Fixate Auxiliary wheels on Structure-C2 with two Structure-C3.
  • Insert the Structure-C2 to the front side.
Cubestep5.jpg
  • Step6:
  • InsertStructure-D2 to the back side and stick the antenna.
  • Put the Structure-D1 on the top and by here, congratulations! You just completed the installation.
Cubestep6.jpg

Instructions of the Remote Control

  • If stacking the nRF module and start, the system will enter the Joypad control mode by default, otherwise, it'll enter the Bluetooth mode.

Guide for Joypad Control

  • For the installation, you can refer to the following page: [1]

Guide for Bluetooth Control

  • First of all, download remote control APP(Android): File:MTank.rar
  • Confirm that the version of your phone is above Android 4.3 and the Bluetooth is open.
  • Search the Bluetooth device named "Microduino", and connect to it.
  • Then you can control it remotely by APP.
  • For details, please refer to mRobot

Code Description

  • Find the configuration file in " user_def.h ".
  • The following codes can configure the channel under nRF mode, which needs to keep consistent with Joypad controller.
  • For the Joypad's nRF mode channel configuraton, you can refer to: Channel Configuration of nRF Mode
#define NRF_CHANNEL 70  //nRF channel
  • The following codes can configure the throttle and the corresponding steering channel.
  • For the corresponding channel, you can refer to: Channel/Operation Description
#define CHANNEL_THROTTLE  2 //Throttle channel 
#define CHANNEL_STEERING  1 //Steering channel
  • The following codes can revise the speed ratio of the two wheels.
    • The range is between -1 and 1.
    • Set as -1, the maximum speed ratio, clockwise.
    • Set as 1, the maximum speed ratio, anti-clockwise.
    • If the car cannot go straightly, you should reduce the speed ratio of the lower wheel.
#define motor_fixL 1  //Speed correction (-1 to 1)
#define motor_fixR 1  // Speed correction (-1 to 1)

FAQ

  • Q:How to choose Joypad mode or Bluetooth mode for this CUBE robot?
    • A:You don't have to select manually but stack nRF24 module when power-on. The system will enter the Joypad mode by default, or it'll enter Bluetooth mode.
  • Q:What type of battery does the CUBE robot support?
    • A:It supports 3.7V 1S lithium battery.
  • Q:How to connect the motors?
    • A:You can connect the two motors to the A.A/A.B interfaces respectively.
  • Q:Does my phone support Bluetooth control?
    • A:It is supportable for phones of Android 4.3 or higher.