ok, now that I have gotten my SES arm to work the way I want it with my ps2 controller I now need to fix another problem, or rather a limitation of the ps2 controller.I know that the maximum distance of operation the ps2 controller will give me is 75ft line of sight. Since my robot is a surveillance rover, I need more distance (atleast about 100ft) and I need controll to be possible with walls in between the controller and the reciever. Is there anyway that the signal can be boosted and some how allow it to transmit through walls. I dont know the actuall kind of wireless controll the ps2 uses wheather Radio (which I dont think) or IR like a television remote. Anyways, any suggestions on how to go about doing this if possible. If not, thanks anyway.
i think all wireless controllers use IR, because radio is ya know…a bit out there, itd be like using a cell phone to contact your TV or something…i think
yep, did a bit of reading up on the ps2 controller and concluded it was a form of IR…thanks.
Some PS2 controllers do indeed use IR, though most of the ones I have seen (and both of the ones I have experimented with) have been RF, using the 2.4 GHz band. Low-power transceiver modules in this frequency range are quite small, since antenna length is usually the limiting factor in a radio’s size, and at 2.4 GHz, antennas can be only an inch or two long.
Your particular unit may be IR, but it may also be RF. Easiest way to tell (other than reading the specs) would be to run a simple test program - something that beeps or does something similar when you push a button - and walk into another room and close the door, or cover up the controller with a blanket while twiddling it. If it continues to operate with no way for light to make it from the handheld to the receiver, you’ve got an RF controller. If it stops, then you’re using IR.
well, i havent bought me a ps2 controller yet. Im actaully about to get one and was deciding on what kinds were out there…(sorry, should’ve mentioned it before). Ok, so if its 2.4 gHz RF than it should transmitt through walls. Thanks. I’ll make sure I pick one up that uses this kind of technology.
Ok, well the ps2 controller im getting now is 2.4 ghZ controller so it isn’t line of sight. Though Im puzzled about something. The camera i am getting for rover is a 2.4ghZ camera as well. Will there be interference? I would buy a 1.2, but already have one on the bot, which Is why im changing frequencies to avoid interference…Looks like i keep running into more interference problems. It would be cool if I could get one of these 1.2 multi channel recievers without having to buy all the cameras that comes with it.
superdroidrobots.com/shop/it … 5&catid=36
Does anyone have one of these or know a place where I can get them without any cameras. I’ve googled it but didnt come up with good results…thanks.
The 2.4 GHz band is just that - a band of frequencies, not a single discrete frequency. Chances are pretty good that they will be able to coexist without any real issues.
Wireless networks, for example, operate on the same band, but on different channels within that band, in order to minimize interference. Much like the channels on your TV set, they use a number of individual frequencies to coexist within the same range of frequencies without stepping on each other’s toes.
This frequency management is usually done automatically, without requiring any real operator intervention. My PS2 controller has a translucent plastic case on it, and it’s easy to spot the RF modules within the transmitter and receiver. The controller and receiver simply feed their data to the modules, which handle all of the intricacies of channelization, protocol handling, and frequency negotiation on their own. The most I have to do is to look at the LED, and as long as it lights up solid, I know that they’ve worked out a frequency that can coexist with a wireless camera, and anything else that may be working on the same band.
Though there may be some potential for adverse effects such as the output of the video camera’s transmitter overpowering the receiver for the controller, these sorts of things are often fixable by something as simple as separating the two units and mounting them in different locations on your robot.
hmmm…this makes sense, thanks for the detailed post. But I actaully found a good multi-channel reciever for the cameras which gives me some cool abilities like zoom, 4 way picture, ect. So just to be safe, im gonna go with this, especially since I may add more cameras to my rover in the future (this can handle 8 cameras.)
Thanks for all the posts, appreciate it!
I might also mention that if you want to send audio and video data back from your robot, another option is to get an amateur radio license. 
At even the most basic ‘technician’ level of licensing, hams have access to the amateur television (ATV) frequency allocations in the (440 MHz) 70cm band and upwards. Some of the most available low-power transmitters operate on and around the frequency of 434.000 MHz, which has the advantage of being the same frequency as cable channel 59. This means that, while it may not be the best performer in this application, you almost certainly have a ready-built receiver for use with an ATV transmitter. You can use the audio channel for return audio from an onboard mic, or if you’d rather not listen to the constant whine of your robot’s motors, you could use the audio channel to feed a data stream - telemetry, for example - back to the operator’s position, to be decoded and interpreted there.
Sure there are issues of having to take a test in order to get a license, but it’s really easy stuff - especially for someone who’s already technically-minded enough to be experimenting with robotics.
thanks for the tip! 
I will consider it deffinately for my other projects whcih may be able to use this to their advantage!
Many of the projects currently on my waiting list make use of my ham license in one form or another. From using ATV for video and positional data return, to using a 2-meter transceiver for remote control and monitoring. Far from the common perception of just being a bunch of old farts sitting around complaining about their arthritis and reminiscing about the days of vacuum tubes, there’s a lot of interesting stuff being done in the amateur radio community that is readily applied to amateur robotics as well.
Sorry about the topic drift. We now return you to your regularly scheduled discussion.
np, thanks for the post.