Summary of Arduino Scouting Robot
The article details the construction of a Summer Project: Arduino Scouting Robot. It outlines the key components, including power supplies, motors, servos, converters, and control boards necessary to build an autonomous scouting robot. The project involves using an Arduino Mega2560 for control, wireless communication via Xbee modules, sensor integration with a 9DOF sensor and a Laser Range Finder, and a camera system managed by MOSFET switches to avoid startup glitches. The explanation also includes power management strategies to stabilize the system during startup.
Parts used in the Arduino Scouting Robot:
- 12, 9, 5 volt power supply
- 12-volt charger
- 2 DC motors (7.2V, 3A max current)
- 2 Digital Servos (6V, ~1A max current)
- 8-amp DC-DC step down converter (9V input to 7.2V output)
- 3-amp DC-DC step down converter (9V input to 6V output)
- 10-amp dual motor driver
- Arduino Mega2560
- Xbee wireless transceivers (robot and laptop)
- 9DOF sensor
- Laser Range Finder
- Camera powered by 2 AA batteries
- 2n7000 MOSFET switch (for camera control)
- Power MOSFET Buz101s (for servo and motor ground control)
Summer Project: Arduino Scouting Robot
Arduino Scouting Robot Part 1
* 12,9,5 volt power supply
recharge it with a 12-volt charger
keep power switch on to charge
* 2 DC motors
operate at 7.2V with a maximum current draw of 3 amps
* 2 Digital Servos
operate at 6V with a maximum current draw of ~1 amp each
the pwm wires are connected to the pwm pins on the arduino (pin 2 for pan and 3 for tilt)
* 8-amp DC-DC step down converter
input: 9v
output: 7.2v to feed the motors
The outputs are connected to the 10-amp motor driver (located on the underside
of the robot)
* 3-amp DC-DC step down converter
input: 9v
output: 6v to feed the servos
* 10-amp dual motor driver
input for logic side: 5v and GND (the GND is controlled by arduino pin 23)
and Four logic controllers (Two for direction and two for on/off)
input for motor power side: 7.2v and GND (GND is controlled by the Buz101s mosfet)
and Four motor wires (from two dc motors)
* arduino mega2560
input: 9v to dc jack or 5v to pin
* xbee from robot(wireless transceiver)
input: 5v (when mounted to usb apdater)
note: the 5v line from the xbee is needed for the other robot peripherals (LRF and Motor Driver) also
* xbee from laptop
input: usb
* 9DOF sensor
input: 5v
output: i2c data to arduino {SDA(white) SCL(green)}
* Laser Range Finder input: 5v
output: serial to arudino {TX1(white) and RX1(yellow)}
* Camera
input: 2 AA batteries
output: to SD card
snapshot control by shorting the cam wires
which is control by an 2n7000 mosfet switch (arduino pin30)
must ground the source lead of the mosfet
* Power mosfet Buz101s
These control the grounding of 1) servos and 2) DC motors for startup stabilization reasons. Without these mosfet switches the servo and motors
will move briefly when the power is on due to the arudino startup glitch (normal)
