T.W.E.R.P. - test platform for robot hardware & software

Let's Make Robots Robots
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T.W.E.R.P. - The Wandering Electronic Robotics Platform was built to test sensors and code for future projects . The platform is the bottom of a RAD 1.0 robot (I have another complete so I chopped this one up) that has a high/low speed switch. 6v alarm battery powers the drive motors, 4 AA rechargeables in a case power the Arduino "brain". SR04 ultrasonic distance sensor sits on a small actuator for obstacle avoidance and to determine a clear path. IR proximity sensor mounted low like a bumpswitch for small obstacles not picked up by ultrasonics. The next project will be W.A.S.P - Wandering Automated Security Platform which will be a modified Omnibot 2000, I plan to paint it, make both arms moveable, possibly controlled over Internet, with video camera and speech. This will be a security robot to guard the house while I'm away.

 http://www.myspace.com/video/protalent/twerp-on-the-loose/108780784

6v SLA drive motor battery, 4AA rechargeable battery pack for Arduino, L298N based motor controller shield & sensor shield.

*** UPDATE *** I modified the code to keep from getting stuck in corners. Now the LookAround() function sweeps right & left 180 degrees in 40 degree increments then maps the angle to a variable for delay time when turning. I tried to approximate the max distance angle with the actual turn angle and it looks close (I'm no math wizard but I'm sure there's an equation for that). So while moving forward it does a quick right/left look when an obstacle is detected which is fine for normal navigation but in a more complex environment, like a corner, it does a wider search for the optimal path.

11/27/2013

Successfully integrated remote control by adding a wireless PS2 controller. No video at this time but this is not a quality upgrade. Maybe it's because of using a cheap knockoff controller purchased through Ebay. In researching on the 'Net it seems there is varying success. It sometimes gets a little erratic thinking it got a joystick signal when it hasn't even though I compensated by adding a dead zone around the joystick center as it's very touchy. The buttons seem to respond as they should however I'm only using the L1 + Left Stick for direction and R1 + Right Stick for servo sweep. This code will be integrated into my BigBot project to drive it around and pan/tilt a camera. Left Stick controls forward, reverse, left turn and right turn. Right Stick (since TWERP only has an ultrasonic sensor on a servo I'm only using the x-axis) for left/right sweep. The PS2 Shield from Cytron looked good but the price more than doubled with shipping added so I went with PS2 Connector and PS2 Wireless Controller Receiver Level Shifter from https://www.robotshop.com/ (I was already getting an order together and they were really cheap). I probably should have bought the complete setup from them but I had already ordered the controller + receiver on Ebay and was just looking for the connector.

8/1/2015

TWERP made his public debut at Robotics Day @ Melrose Center at the Orange County Public Library in Orlando, FL. Only a few minor changes (had to update the power source to handle the growing pool of sensors, results were getting flaky) since my last update but that was the only project I had available on fairly short notice. Also had to modify and clean up the code since it's a test platform and I'm constantly trying different things. I got to talk to a lot of kids, really smart kids, about robots and how the sensors work. I'm almost tempted to take it to the upcoming Maker Faire but I would prefer getting my BigBot project to a point where I can show that instead. I should be able to do that in the six weeks I have before the Faire if I don't get sidetracked. This is all new for me and I enjoyed it enough to want to do a few more.

Wanders around sensing obstacles with ultrasonic & IR sensors.

  • Actuators / output devices: one servo
  • Control method: autonomous
  • CPU: Arduino Duemilanove
  • Power source: 6v battery
  • Programming language: Arduino
  • Sensors / input devices: HC-SR04 ultrasonic sensor & IR Proximity sensor
  • Target environment: Indoor/Outdoor
This is a companion discussion topic for the original entry at https://community.robotshop.com/robots/show/t-w-e-r-p-test-platform-for-robot-hardware-software
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I watched the video.

I am curious, would having the servo turn farther help drive the machine in fewer corners?

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lookaround()

I originally had it turn more each way but it was making drastic changes so I’m trying to narrow down the best option. Too much and it can’t navigate a doorway. It’s all a learning experience, that’s the purpose of the platform. When I find what works best it will all go into the Omnibot2000. Have you done something like this? What have you found to be the best range?

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I have not yet produced a robot.

I have no clue on range. You might look to see what the beam width of your particular sensors are. That should give you a decent idea as to how far to each side to look.

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Updated

I updated the code for a wider range when a quick right/left isn’t enough. It sweeps 189 degrees in 40 degree increments. I’ll post a new video when my son brings my camera back. :slight_smile:

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That Base Looks Lovely…

EDIT: I just saw the link to and then watched the video. : Looks like most of the noise in this one is just the gearing?

(IGNORE the rest of this…; my aplogizes i was going off of previous bots id seen on the Rad base…)

Those bases look wonderfull. Ive been looking at rad for a long time. I’ve been wondering though; has anyone experimented with any ways to make the motors quiter or to muffle them? I’d prefer to create a relatively quiet base… It looks like ill have to build one with over powered motors myself and find some way to get around the noise created by pwm on a microcontroller… Maybe a proper motor controller?

 

Anyways not trying to hijack the thread. Just curious. Very nice 'bot.

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Putting TWERP to use

I decided to check out remote control by wireless PS2 controller. I want to use one for controlling my BigBot project and a few smaller projects that are still in the dream about stage. It works but not as clean as I’d like although it could be because it’s a cheap knockoff and not a real Sony or quality compatible controller. I just like the idea of using a remote that people (kids) are familiar with so with the help of my grandson I’ll try to match how it works in video games. So far the left joystick controls movement direction and the right joystick controls a camera to look around.

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I have thise exact chassis,

I have this exact chassis, minus the top part - I was given it ages ago!

Thanks for giving me a bit of motivation to finally use it for something other than a dust gatherer!