It is essential to test the whisker switches before programming your robot to navigate with them. That way, you can be sure the whiskers are sending the right messages. Otherwise, they might be telling the Propeller that they detect something even though they didn't, or vice-versa.
It is essential to test the whisker switches before programming your robot to navigate with them. That way, you can be sure the whiskers are sending the right messages. Otherwise, they might be telling the Propeller that they detect something even though they didn't, or vice-versa.
In this activity, you will build and test indicator LEDs that will tell you if an object is detected without the help of the Serial Monitor. This is handy if you are not near a PC or laptop, and you need to troubleshoot your IR detector circuits.
What if you have to test the whiskers at some later time away from a computer? In that case, the Serial Monitor won’t be available, so what can you do? One solution would be to use LED circuits to display the whisker states. All it takes is a simple sketch that turns an LED on when a whisker is pressed or off when it’s not pressed.
(2) resistors, 220 Ω (red-red-brown)
(2) LEDs, red
If you have not used the IR Receivers with your ActivityBot before, take a look at the pictures below. The infrared receiver needs three connections: 5 V, GND, and an I/O pin to read the signal it sends. The circuitry inside the infrared receiver makes it safe to connect its signal pin to the Propeller I/O pin with a small resistor, even though the sensor is powered by 5 V.
This connection diagram (below) shows where to connect each 3-wire Ping))) sensor cable. If you’re looking at the color version, note that each black wire is connected to either GND on the breadboard, or the GND terminal in the servo header. Each of those black wires should also be connected to a Ping))) sensor’s GND pin. The power selection jumper between the P13 and P14 servo ports should also be set to 5V, likewise for the one between P15 and P16.
The diagram below shows where to connect each 3-wire Ping))) sensor cable. If you’re looking at the color version, note that each black wire is connected to either GND on the breadboard, or the GND terminal in the servo header (labeled Black to the right of the header block). Each of those black wires should also be connected to a Ping))) sensor’s GND pin.
You will need to add the veho360 speaker and its mounting bracket, the whisker circuits, and one IR receiver circuit to your ActivityBot. You will also need to configure your IR remote for Sony protocol.
