College-level robot design questions

[jkleland]

Who I am and my purpose:
I am a junior in college (attending for computer science) who has received a STEM research grant from NASA to research and design a mobile robotics platform. I have basically no experience in robotics. The past three days I have been giving myself a crash course attempting to learn as much as I can as fast as I can, but as you can imagine, trying to get yourself from “no experience” to “college level” using only the internet over the course of one week is fairly difficult. I would give great thanks to any who can help me with some of my concerns listed below.

My questions:

1. If I use a single board computer to control various motor controllers, would there be any reasons to have a microcontroller between the computer and specific controllers?
2. How can I use a laptop in place of the single board computer? How similar are the two methods? (I would have the laptop mounted on the robot, so tethering is an option)
3. What are the differences in programming a robot using a microcontroller vs a SBC vs a laptop?
4. I have seen that a GPS can place the robot accurately within 5m. Would a GPS still be useful if I wanted to cover a given area using a path 1’ wide? (ex. lawn-mower rows)
5. Since I am new to the field, what are some respected brands for parts (controllers, tracks, motors, ect)?
6. What are some good educational resources for what I am trying to do (autonomous robot which can climb stairs, navigate a room, use a GPS, obstacle avoidance)?

I hope my questions are clear, and thank you in advance for any help.

[cbenson]

Hi jkleland,

Welcome to the RobotShop Forum. Congratulations on the grant. To answer your specific questions:

1. If I use a single board computer to control various motor controllers, would there be any reasons to have a microcontroller between the computer and specific controllers?

No.

2. How can I use a laptop in place of the single board computer? How similar are the two methods? (I would have the laptop mounted on the robot, so tethering is an option)

They are very similar, except most of the single board computers we offer allow you to access digital and analog (and other communication) directly via pins. If you use a laptop and want to communicate with sensors, you will need to connect another I/O board via USB. SBC’s also reduce weight considerably (no monitor, keyboard, mouse etc).

3. What are the differences in programming a robot using a microcontroller vs a SBC vs a laptop?

SBC will require you to use few special commands to access the extra hardware (I/O ports for example).

4. I have seen that a GPS can place the robot accurately within 5m. Would a GPS still be useful if I wanted to cover a given area using a path 1’ wide? (ex. lawn-mower rows)

You will also need encoders connected to the wheels to ensure you are moving in a straight line. A compass would help as well.

5. Since I am new to the field, what are some respected brands for parts (controllers, tracks, motors, ect)?

RobotShop only partners with reputable brands and clears out any which do not meet our standards.

6. What are some good educational resources for what I am trying to do (autonomous robot which can climb stairs, navigate a room, use a GPS, obstacle avoidance)?

There are many relevant books, though you wil only likely benefit from sections of each. If time is important, we suggest you start with a laptop, C, an I/O board such as the Phidgets 8/8/8, some IR sensors, a dual motor controller such as the Phidgets Dual Motor Controller (easy connection to your computer) some gear motors and wheels. You can use the RobotShop Drive Motor Sizing Tool to get an idea of which motors you will need.

Read through the material for each part you buy, and spend the most time learning C / C++ / C#.

Don’t hesitate to ask questions here., as well as your teachers.

Hope this helps,