Not sure why anybody wants to go below 5v, but diodes can be used to drop voltages, and diodes can be put on the reference legs of voltage regulators to raise the output by the same amount as the voltage drop across the diode. If the bot is going to be operated via a single 9v battery, it will probably need to be a rechargable Ni-MH type. At the bottom of the below page I’ve got a diagram of how I get 5.7v for my servos and 5.0v for the servo controller. If I was to have to work with a single 9v battery, I’d use the 1 amp 5v regulator with a diode on the reference leg to get the output up to 5.7v for the servos. I’d use a smaller 5v regulator with a big capacitor to supply the controller board. The capacitor would help maintain voltage to the controller When the servo motors move.
I love scotty diodes. They come in real handy for making homemade voltage regulators to control small changes. I like your design. Very creative.
i love them too. Pete got me hooked on them when he sent me a couple…Thats why i suggest them for regulating small projects with small amounts of voltage.
all right now im done
with the body and legs
so now i need to write a simple program
to make it go strait but first i have to learn more on programing
so for now were back to electronics iv decided im getting the polulu controller
but i need to know how to program it?
‘sigh’
Dare I ask what batteries you decided to use?
im still thinking about that…
but thats not what im focusing on
i want to know how to program the
polulu.
You’re going to need a power source of some sort if you want to program anything. Batteries would be a good thing to think about.
As to commanding the Pololu servo controller: It might be wise to have a look at the forums on the Pololu website - they’re probably more knowledgeable about them over there than here.
I will say, however, that I had no problems working with the Pololu servo controller; it’s quite well documented, and my first attempt at using it met with success (as did my first attempts at using the SSC-32 - another well-documented and supported controller 
). Read the documentation (important step, there) available online, and it will explain quite a lot. Read the Pololu forums (they even have one called “Using Pololu Products”), and it will explain even more.
Be aware that, going with the Pololu controller, you will not have the “group move” feature that is handy to have when coordinating the simultaneous motion of several servos, as in a walking robot.
Also, although the amateur robotics community is generally very open and helpful, it might be considered something of a minor faux-pas to ask for help with one product at the website of the manufacturer of a competing product.
Come one. Like there is any comparison.
wowy7, you seem to be struggling a bit with the concept of using a specific voltage for your servos, which is ok. But for you to undertake learning how to program from scratch, for a biped with a controller that you will be lacking helpful programs for, might be setting yourself up for disappointment.
I’m not trying to discourage you but it seems ever helpful piece of advice that we give, you shrug it off and do your own thing. There is a fine line between being creative doing things your own way, and ignoring good advice because it isn’t what you want to hear.
Get yourself 4 rechargeable AA batteries and a plastic case for them. I would buy an SSC-32 if I were you, since you will probably end up needing the visual software to get your biped to do anything but twitch. Seamus if right. You are going to want the “group move” as well.
Just try listening to our advice. We want you to get your robot working. We are only trying to help.
As I’ve stated before, I have used both the Pololu controllers and the SSC-32 in my projects, depending on the application. Recently, when space was at a premium on my testbed bot’s brain-board, I went with a Pololu unit because of its small footprint and the fact that I was only going to be driving a few servos.
My current project - a store-window display for the local hobby shop to promote our robotics club 8) - uses an SSC-32 for a number of reasons, such as channel-count, coordinated group movement, and even the fact that the footprint is the same as that of the ABB.
The downside here is that switching between the two units, I have twice the information to keep track of, in terms of control protocols. Without getting into an “A versus B” type of discussion, I usually prefer the SSC-32 over the Pololu unit, due to a deeper feature set.
[size=75](…and I’m not just saying that because this is a Lynxmotion forum, either!)[/size]
im listning but i told you that i have to choose
what kind of batteries im using i can’t use the ssc-32 because its the size
of the robot it self and yes i am listning to every piece of iformation
you give me i know your not trying to discurege me 
just all i wan’t to know right now is what kind of sofware to use for the polulu
thats all i want to know is that so hard to answor 
.
Actually, that isn’t so hard to answer.
Short answer: I know of no software package that will allow you to work with the Pololu controller in the same way that you can use the SSC-32.
You’ll probably be on your own to develop the movement commands, sequences, and code for use with the Pololu controller.
The SSC-32 has sequencer and interface software for the PC, which allow you to construct and export code for use with microcontrollers. To the best of my knowledge, there is no such software available for the Pololu controller. All of the programming I have done with the Pololu unit has been done directly from the microcontroller level, sending serial commands directly from the micro’s I/O pins, as generated by the program within the microcontroller itself.
One thing to bear in mind about using the Pololu controller: There are 7-bit and 8-bit command modes for sending the servo from one position to another. The 7-bit mode is fairly straightforward, requiring only a value of 0 to 127 (in addition to an attention character, command byte, and servo number), but it will only provide for about 90 degrees of motion from the servos. In order to get the full 180-degree arc, you’ll need to use 8-bit mode, which requires a 2-byte command in addition to the attention, command, and servo number bytes. This means that in order to sweep the range using more than a simple “go to this position” command, you’ll need to break it down into two parts - one for the first half of the arc, and another for the second half. Not exactly the most convenient method in the world, but I guess it works for getting 256 positions from a protocol where every “bit 7” is a zero.
Much more information on how to interface and command the Pololu controller can be found in the user’s manual, available on their website.
(Admin: Sorry for the long-winded explanation - I don’t mean to turn this into a tech support thread for someone else’s product.)
Software wise, you can use batch files to control your servo controller if you want to use a pc to control it. The pololu can operate at 2400 bps, which may be advantagous for radio control if that is desired. In the mini-ssc mode, only three bytes are needed to position a servo. The below link shows some simple programming for servo control. I’d suggest you connect the servos to the controller and test some simple control of the servos prior to actually putting them in a robot setup.
That’s a pretty slick “lizard-brain” technique, there!
Been a LONG time since I did any real amount of batch-file bashing, and reading your page brought back a lot of memories about it.
I imagine it would get kind of dirty if you were doing too much more than just a handful of moves, but it’s very clever. I like it. 8)
If you want to try the batch file setup, they are used to control the below webcam pan/tilt.
Photographic proof that Elvis is still alive!!!
HAHA! 
That made my day…nice one.
oh and pretty slick zoomkat, I especially like the “up and down bird” thats in the camera view… 
me too, in my chem class my teacher has one on her desk, i like him, i call him pete
watching online video bird goes up, bird goes down…coooool
sry bout hijacking the post guys, got a bit carried away
lol, me too now that I think about it… 