- Copyright
- About the Author
- About the Technical Reviewer
- Acknowledgments
- Introduction
- 1. Welcome Robot Inventor!
- 2. Where to Obtain Tools and Parts
- 3. Safety
- 3.1. Benefiting from Age and Experience
- 3.2. Following Instructions
- 3.3. Reading Chemical Labels
- 3.4. Donning Safety Glasses
- 3.5. Wearing Other Safety Clothes
- 3.6. Insuring Adequate Ventilation
- 3.7. Storing Properly
- 3.8. Washing Before Eating
- 3.9. Avoiding Nasty Elements
- 3.10. Shocking
- 3.11. Steering Clear of Dangerous Robots
- 3.12. Sizing Up Motors
- 3.13. Lighting Up
- 3.14. Staying Rested and Level-Headed
- 4. Digital Multimeter
- 4.1. Must-Have Features
- 4.2. Nice-To-Have Features
- 4.3. Optional Features
- 4.3.1. Inductance
- 4.3.2. RS-232/USB Data Interface
- 4.3.3. Scope
- 4.3.4. Backlight
- 4.3.5. Stopwatch/Single Pulse Width
- 4.3.6. Temperature
- 4.3.7. Sound
- 4.3.8. Count
- 4.3.9. Bar Graph
- 4.3.10. Data Hold
- 4.3.11. Data Auto
- 4.3.12. High/Low/Logic
- 4.3.13. Memory
- 4.3.14. Relative
- 4.3.15. Offset
- 4.3.16. Limit Testing/Compare
- 4.3.17. Holster or Rubber Boot
- 4.4. AC Features
- 4.5. Obtaining Hook Probe Adaptors
- 4.6. Comparing Actual Multimeters
- 4.7. Proceeding Without a Meter
- 5. Numbers and Units
- 6. Robot Line-Following
- 6.1. Defining the Course Conditions
- 6.2. Picking the Robot's Size
- 6.3. Seeing Sandwich
- 6.4. Obtaining a Kit
- 6.5. Building Up
- 7. Nine-Volt Batteries
- 8. Clips and Test Leads
- 9. Resistors
- 10. LEDs
- 10.1. Learning About LED Attributes
- 10.2. Extreme Close Up of an LED
- 10.3. Identifying Multicolor LEDs
- 10.4. Testing an LED
- 10.5. Variety Pack
- 10.6. Brightening Your Way
- 11. Power On!
- 11.1. Introducing the Parts List
- 11.2. Reading a Schematic
- 11.3. Building the Power Indicator Circuit
- 11.4. Understanding the Roles of Each Component
- 11.5. Measuring the Power Indicator Circuit
- 11.6. Circuit Summary
- 12. Solderless Prototyping
- 13. Solderless Breadboard Setup
- 14. Variable Resistors
- 14.1. Potentiometers
- 14.2. Variable Brightness LED Circuit
- 14.3. Brightness Balancing Circuit
- 14.4. Cadmium-Sulfide Photoresistors
- 14.5. Light-Controlled Circuit
- 14.6. Balanced Brightness-Sensing Circuit
- 14.6.1. Part List for Balanced Brightness-Sensing Circuit
- 14.6.2. Brightness-Sensing Pairs
- 14.6.3. Matching Photoresistors
- 14.6.4. Resistance-Balancing Potentiometer
- 14.6.5. Current-Limiting Resistor
- 14.6.6. Test Points
- 14.6.7. Converting Resistance to Voltage with a Voltage Divider
- 14.6.8. Building the Balanced Brightness-Sensing Circuit
- 14.6.9. Inability to Balance the Brightness-Sensing Circuit
- 15. Comparators
- 15.1. Voltage Comparator
- 15.2. Brightness Comparator Circuit
- 15.3. Adding Headlights
- 15.4. Appreciating a Simple Mind
- 16. Transistor Switches
- 16.1. Defining Negative Power
- 16.2. Testing Bipolar Transistors with a Multimeter
- 16.3. Bipolar Transistor Test Circuits
- 16.4. Brightness Comparator Circuit with Transistors
- 16.5. Summarizing PNP and NPN Transistors
- 17. DC Motors
- 17.1. How DC Motors Work
- 17.2. Simple DC Motor Circuit
- 17.3. Primary Characteristics of DC Motors
- 17.3.1. Rotational Speed Characteristic of DC Motors
- 17.3.2. Torque Characteristic of DC Motors
- 17.3.3. Voltage Characteristic of DC Motors
- 17.3.4. Current Characteristic of DC Motors
- 17.3.5. Efficiency Characteristic of DC Motors
- 17.3.6. Audible Noise Characteristic of DC Motors
- 17.3.7. Electrical Noise Characteristic of DC Motors
- 17.3.8. Mass Characteristic of DC Motors
- 17.3.9. Dimension Characteristic of DC Motors
- 17.3.10. Summarizing the Characteristics of DC Motors
- 17.4. DC Gearhead Motors
- 17.5. Moving Forward
- 18. Adding Gearhead Motors
- 19. Wheels
- 19.1. Anatomy of a Wheel
- 19.2. Characteristics of Robot Wheels
- 19.3. Wheel Choice for Sandwich
- 19.4. Cleaning Tires
- 19.5. Rolling Along
- 20. Coupler
- 20.1. Alternatives
- 20.2. Tubing
- 20.3. Measuring and Cutting the Tubing
- 20.4. LEGO Cross Axles
- 20.5. Gluing the Coupler Together
- 20.6. Adding a Setscrew to the Coupler
- 20.7. Admiring the Coupler
- 21. Soldering Equipment
- 22. Soldering and Connecting
- 22.1. Putting Together the Motors and Switches
- 22.1.1. Putting Together the Motors
- 22.1.2. Putting Together the Line-Following Switch
- 22.1.3. Putting Together the Tube LED Circuit
- 22.1.4. Finishing Up
- 22.2. Soldering Experience
- 22.1. Putting Together the Motors and Switches
- 23. The Motherboard
- 23.1. The Line-Following Circuit
- 23.1.1. Tweaking For Better Performance
- 23.1.2. Point-to-Point Soldering Versus a Printed Circuit Board
- 23.1.3. Point-to-Point Soldering the Line-Following Circuit
- 23.2. Testing the Robot's Electronics
- 23.3. Holding Your Breath
- 23.1. The Line-Following Circuit
- 24. Body Building
- 24.1. Approaching Robot Bodies
- 24.2. Transforming the Sandwich Container
- 24.2.1. Creating Motor Holes
- 24.2.1.1. Marking and Determining Space Required By the Circuit Board
- 24.2.1.2. Creating a Template Sticker for the Motor Holes
- 24.2.1.3. Positioning the Template Stickers on the Container's Sides
- 24.2.1.4. Making Pilot Holes and Drilling Screw Holes
- 24.2.1.5. Introducing the Grinding Stone Accessory
- 24.2.2. Mounting the Motors
- 24.2.3. Creating the Motor Tube
- 24.2.4. Installing the Motors and Tube
- 24.2.5. Adding the Switches and Battery Holder
- 24.2.6. Adding the Circuit Board
- 24.2.7. Drilling Holes for the Trimpots
- 24.2.8. Carving Out a Window in the Container Lid
- 24.2.9. Finishing Touches
- 24.2.1. Creating Motor Holes
- 24.3. Ready to Roll
- 25. Launching the Line-Follower
- 25.1. Correcting and Tweaking
- 25.1.1. Preliminary Examination
- 25.1.2. Trial Run: Following a Straight Line
- 25.1.3. Correcting Common Problems
- 25.1.4. Does This Look Straight to You?
- 25.2. The Maiden Voyage
- 25.3. Potential Improvements
- 25.4. Final Bow
- 25.1. Correcting and Tweaking
- 26. Encore
- 26.1. Robot Components
- 26.1.1. Logic Chips
- 26.1.2. Microcontrollers
- 26.1.3. Voltage Regulators
- 26.1.4. Capacitors
- 26.1.5. Solar Power
- 26.1.6. Resistor Networks
- 26.1.7. Pushbuttons
- 26.1.8. DIP Switches
- 26.1.9. Jumpers and Shorting Blocks
- 26.1.10. Tilt Sensor
- 26.1.11. Temperature Sensors
- 26.1.12. Touch Sensors
- 26.1.13. Object Detection and Infrared Remote Control
- 26.1.14. Distance and Object Sensor
- 26.1.15. Oscillators and Crystals
- 26.1.16. Sound
- 26.1.17. Relays
- 26.1.18. Adding Gears
- 26.1.19. Servos
- 26.1.20. Encoders—Determining Wheel Speed
- 26.1.21. Displays
- 26.1.22. Wireless Data and Control
- 26.2. Everyday Challenges
- 26.3. Contests
- 26.4. The Great Wide Open
- 26.1. Robot Components
- 27. Appendix
I wrote this book because I love building robots. I want you to love building robots, too.
It took me a while to learn about many of the tools and parts in amateur robotics. Perhaps by writing about my experiences, I can give you a head start.
It's amazing that so many brilliant minds work in the virtual universe now, rather than with what can be touched. Hopefully, you'll join the select ranks of inventors who create things that are physically real, even if homemade.
This book is aimed at teenagers or adults who have an avid interest in science and dream of building household explorers. No formal engineering education is assumed.
The robot described and built in this book is battery-powered and about the size of a lunchbox. It is autonomous. That is, it isn't remote controlled.
You'll begin with some tools of the trade, work your way through prototyping, robot bodybuilding, and eventually soldering your own circuit boards. By the book's end, you will have a solid amateur base of understanding so that you can begin creating your own robots.
This book isn't about destructive robots. However, the fundamental techniques presented here can provide a good foundation before tackling monster projects, if you so choose.
If you're an experienced engineer and would like to learn more about multi-dimensional vision systems, FPGAs (field-programmable gate arrays), or seven-degrees-of-freedom robot arms, then this book is probably under your head.
Thumb through the pages to see if there's anything that gets your brain juices flowing.
If you're younger, have a limited financial budget, negligible free time, or aren't ready for drilling and soldering, then I highly recommend you begin with LEGO MINDSTORMS. The LEGO robot kit has limited electrical potential, but is very friendly and should have you building interesting robots quickly.
The most recent version of the kit is LEGO MINDSTORMS NXT. The prior versions of LEGO MINDSTORMS Robotics Invention System (1.0, 1.5, and 2.0) are no longer manufactured. However, they are often available at garage sales and online auction sites for a lower cost than the NXT version.
If you decide to go the LEGO route, pick up a LEGO MINDSTORMS kit, some batteries, and an Apress MINDSTORMS book.
If you want an easily constructed kit that is more advanced than LEGO, consider the Parallax Boe-Bot robot. It comes with a BASIC processor, circuit board, motors, wheels, body, instruction books, CD-ROM, tutorial, and either a USB or RS-232 serial port. Boe-Bot doesn't require soldering.
If walking robots are more your style, check out the Parallax Penguin. Or, if you want a preassembled (ready-to-go) robot, look into the Parallax Scribbler.
Parallax also has robots based on the more-advanced Propeller processor, such as the Stingray. It is more appropriate for those with a software programming background.
Arduino is a very popular open source brain board, similar to the Parallax BASIC Stamp or Propeller. Both Solarbotics and SparkFun Electronics carry a wide variety of Arduino-based boards that you can connect with prototyping wires, rather than soldering.
Whenever possible, descriptions of tools and parts mentioned in this book are accompanied by listings of resellers, part numbers, and approximate prices. No favoritism to a particular supplier or part is intended.
Prices are listed in US dollars. Keep in mind that prices change and that part numbers may no longer be accurate after this book is published. Bummer!
Book errata, updates, and an up-to-date parts list is maintained at http://www.robotroom.com/SandwichStuff.html#PARTS
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