arduino coursework outline

8/12/2019 Arduino Coursework outline

1/23

Unit0

WhatisArduino

Referredtohttps://learn.sparkfun.com/tutorials/whatisanarduino

Arduinoisanopensourcesingleboardmicrocontrollerusedforelectronicsprojectssuitableforboth

beginnersandadvancedusers.TheyaregodsendforDIYenthusiastsandtinkerersduetoitsflexibility

andunlimitedapplications.ItoriginatedfromItalybackin2005.ArduinoconsistsofanAtmel8bit

processer.TheArduinoUnoR3weuseinthiscoursefeaturestheATmega16U2, thereby offering

greater transfer rates and memory over its predecessors.

WheretofindResources

ArduinoWikipagehttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Arduino

Arduinomainwebsitehttp://arduino.cc/

https://www.sparkfun.com/products/retired/11227

ExaminingtheSparkFunInventorsKit

Justlikeopeninganythingnewelectronicforthetime,Iwasreallyexcitedtofinallycrackopenthebox,

butitwasmorelikeboxofchocolates.Manylittlecomponents,someofwhichIrecognizelikethe

arduinouno,breadboard, motors,etc.

InstallingtheArduinodevelopmentenvironment

FollowedtheSIKinstructionsforinstallation.Usedthewindowsinstaller,prettystraightforward.ThenI

connectedthearduinounotomycomputerusingtheusbcable,andthedriverswereinstalled

automatically.NextIlaunchdthearduinoIDE.TheIDElooksamazing,verysleekandmodern.Butthisis

notsurprisingastheirwebsiteandoverallbrandinghaveaverysleek,simpleandmodernfeeltothem.

TheSIKguideandtheUnoboardalsodontwell,goodlookandbuildqualityrespectively.IntheIDE,my

boardandCOMportwerealreadyattherightselection.

Referredtohttps://learn.sparkfun.com/tutorials/installingarduino

Writing

and

executing

your

first

program

SIKCircuit1

MYfirstprogram!Ifollowedtheguide,itwasstraightforward,learnedaboutpinMode,digitalWriteand

delay functions.TheprogramransuccessfullywithLEDblinkingonandoffasexpected.ThenIchanged

thepinvalueinpinModefunctionandrantheprogramagain.Itworksafterofcoursemovingthejumper


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cable.IthenchangedvaluesindelayfunctiontochangerateofLEDblinking. Makingadelay0makes

theledasexpectednotblinkatall.

VIDEO https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=03teMswFH8

Unit1

Unit1WorkbookExercisesRoboticComponents

Exercise1

1.ListSparkfunssensors

Tempsensor

FlexSensor

Photocell

Softpotentiometer

2.DefineSparkfunssensorspace. For each of the sensors, identify what it perceives and the range of

possible sensor readings.

Temp Sensor: The one in the sparkfun kit is a low voltage centigrade temperature sensor that can

measure temperature over the -40C to +125C with an accuracy of +or- 2C

Flex Sensor: Its 2.2 in length and measures flex as its bent (its resistance changes).Not meant to flex at

its base.

Photocell: Can sense ambient light as resistance changes based on exposure to light. Light resistance

approx.. 1K ohm, dark resistance approx. 10K ohm

Soft Potentiometer: Can sense the relative position on a strip. Resistance changes from 100Ohms to

10000Ohms as we press down on the strip

3.Now imagine a sonar sensor has been added to Sparkfun. What is the new sensor space?

With a sonar sensor, the sensor space would include the ability to detect objects by sound (pings) , the

result of such detection would be a distance value.

Exercise 2

1.Describe the difference between effectors and actuators.


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An effector is the physical part of a robot that can affect the environment, such as arms, legs, etc.

Whereas, an actuator is the mechanism by which the effector is able to perform these operations.

2.List each of the Sparkfuns actuators and effectors.

Effectors:

Red, Yellow, and RGB LEDs

Piezo Buzzer

Actuators:

DC Motor

Servo

3.List the degrees of freedom for the Sparkfun.

Unlike the Create, for which these questions were intended for, the Sparkfun does not move and so I

would say it has 0 Degrees of Freedom.

Chapter1 FoodForThought

Whatelsecanyoudofromafar,bymeansofteleoperation?Youcantalk,write,andsee,asin

telephone,telegraph,andtelevision.Thereismore.Canyouthinkofit?

Youcancontrolmanythingsremotely.InfactIamremotelytypingthismessageonatabletinascreen

sharingappconnectedtoaPC.YoucanremotelycontrolRCcars,UAVs.Youcanremotelylistento

musicbymeansofBluetooth.Youcanremotelycontrolamousepointerwitha2.4ghzwirelessmouse.

Isthermostatarobot?

Iactuallydidntrealizethis,butaccordingtothedefinitionofarobot,athermostatisindeedarobot.

Thisisbecauseitisatangibleobjectintherealworldthatcansensetemperatureandreactaccordingly

toperformitsobjectives.

Istoasterarobot?

Bydefinition,atoasterisnotarobot,becausethoughtitexistsintherealworld,itdoesnotsenseor

reactonitsown.Itsamechanicaldeviceontimerthatrequiresphysicaloperationtomeetits

objectives.

Someintelligentprograms,alsocalledsoftwareagents,suchasWebCrawlers,arecalledsoftbots.Are

theyrobots?

No,becausetheydontexistphysicallyintherealworld,theyarenottangible.

IsHAL,fromthemovie2001,theSpaceOdyssey,arobot?


4/23

MostdefinitelyYES!HALcouldsenseandreactwithhisenvironmentandperformvarioustasksinthe

realworldonhisown.


Howimportant

is

it

for

robots

to

be

inspired

by

biological

systems?...

Does

it

matter

what

kind

of

robot

youarebuilding?Doesitmatterifitisgoingtointeractwithpeople?

Ithinkitisveryimportantforrobotstobeinspiredbybiologicalsystems,mostofthetimeirrelevantof

whethertheyinteractwithpeopleorthekindofrobotyouarebuilding.Firstly,becauserobotsbasically

performtasksthathumansdo.Nowwecantrytodeviatearobotscapabilitiesfrommimickinga

humans,likeairplanes,etc.Butarobotwouldstilloperatewithinournature.Andbiologicalsystemsin

ourworldhaveevolvedtoworkinthisnature.Sowhathappensis,robotswouldatsomelevelinour

worldalwaysatsomelevelgetinspiredbysomebiologicalsystem.Soforhelicoptersitwouldstillbe

wings,andperhapsflightofsomeinsects.Nowifwebuildrobotsinouterspace,wherebiological

systemsmight

not

reign,

it

might

start

to

be

different

from

biological

systems.

For

starters,

dealing

with

antigravity.Forinstance,anobjectthatcanfloatinspacewiththrustersinvariousdirections,isnot

reallyinspiredbyanyorganismsflightinnature(ordeepsea),sincegravityplaysaroledownhere.So

thiswouldbetheexception.


1.Whatdoyouthinkismoredifficult,manipulationormobility?Thinkofhowthoseabilitiesdevelop,in

children,babies,andadults.

Babiesfirstdeveloptheirbrainsandtorso.Theythendevelopgrossmotorskills,wheretheycanmove

theirhandsandlegsroughlybutnotinfullcontrol.Afterthisstagetheystartcrawlingandeventually

walkslowly.Duringthetimetheylearntowalkwell,theyalsodevelopfinemotorskills.

Soitishardtoanswerthisquestiondefinitively.Iwouldsay,basiccrudemanipulationiseasierthan

mobility.Butsomeprecisemanipulationisharderthanbasicmobility.Andadvancedmobilitylike

specialmaneuvers,etc.areroughlyjustasdifficultassomeadvancedmanipulation.

2.Howlargedoyouthinkyoursensorspaceis?

Wellwehaveour5senses.Wecanfeeltouchliketextures,temperatures,etc.Wecansee:wehave

peripheral20/20visionat24fps,wecanseevisiblelight.Wecansmellbymeansofourolfactorynerves,

sotheyhavealimitation(worsethandogsforexample).Wecanhearhear,between20and20,000Hz

frequencies,atlimiteddecibels.

Nowitseemswecansensemuchmorethanthis,butthatsonlybecauseofwhatweashumanscan

dofromthesesenseinputs.Forinstancewesmellsomething,andthatinstantlytriggerspastmemories,

itcouldbeatraumaticevent,andsowefeelwesensedsomethingmore.Ithinkthisisalsohowsome

peopleclaimsixthsense.Theystillhave5senses,itisjusttheirbrainsunderlyingprocessestagged


5/23

alongwiththeir5sensesthatcreatesthatillusion.Anotherexample,isthefeelingoflove,westillhave

our5senses,itsjustourbrainprocessing(releasingchemicals,etc)intandemwithoursensesthat

makesusfeellikewesensemuchmore.

Sooursensorspaceislimited,butisseeminglyvastgiventheprocessingbyourbrains.

3.Can

you

think

of

information

in

life

that

is

observable,

partially

observable,

hidden?

Observableinformationincludesthingsoursensescanpickup,likeobjects,sounds,etc. Hidden

informationincludesthingslikeemotionalfeelings.Partiallyobservableinformationcouldbethingslike

Iexplainedinthepreviousquestion,whereyouobservesomebasicinformationbutourbrainperceives

morebyprocessingthatinformation.Soforexample,instincts,wecanobservesomethingsubtlebut

dangerous,andthenourbraintriggerspastmemories,andsowecanbyinstinctrunawayfor

example.Buthappenedwasweonlypartiallyobservedsomething.

SIKCircuit

2

Thiscircuitissameascircuit1exceptthereisapotentiometeradded.Thispotentiometercanoutputa

voltageanywherebetween0and5volts.Thisiscontrolledphysicallybytheuserturningtheknob.My

potentiometerhadapinharshlybent,anditisflimsy,feelslikeitcanbreakanytime.Butotherthanthat

Circuitwasjustastrivialtosetupasthelasttime.Rotatingthepotentiometer,theLEDblinksfroma

slowintervaltofast.Thisisaccomplishedbythedelayfunctiontakinginthevaluebeingoutputted

(analog)bythepotentiometer.

VIDEO https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Vsl8_5eURK0

SIKCircuit3

WhenIfirstputtogetherhastilyImissedtheresistors,butnoticedmyerrorandimmediatelyputthem

in,butthennothingworked.IthenrealizedIputtheGNDwireonthewrongsideofthebreadboard.

AfterfixingthatItworked.Followingtheguide,everythingworkedwithoutahiccup.Ijusthadtobe

extracarefulingettingthepinsinrightbyseparatingthem,andknowingtheshortoneisRed(sequence

isRed,GND,green,blue).Theprogramissimilartothepreviouscircuitsexceptitturnsonthevarious

Red,Green,BlueLEDsindifferentcombinationstooutputthedesiredcolor.

VIDEO https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dnH7MVEjr1Y

SIKCircuit4


6/23

Thisprogramwasalsosimilartopreviouscircuits,exceptwith8LEDs.Assemblingwasjusteasythough.

Exceptputtingallthejumpercablesintodigitaloutputpins29wasannoying.Thepinsweretooclose

togetherandsothejumpercablesdidnothaveenoughroomnexttoeachother.Isomehowmanaged

tojamthemin.IusedalternatingyellowandredLEDsasopposedtoallsamecolorbecauseIplannedto

dosomechangestotheprogramforfun.Ifirstranthecircuitasitwasintendedanditwentsmoothly.It

wasjust

afor

loop

in

terms

of

code.

Then

Ichanged

the

code

in

the

loop

to

turn

on

all

even

LEDS

on

at

once,thenoff,andthenalloddatonce,thenoff.Itwassimple,butoutputwasasexpected,allyellow

LEDsturnedonatonceandthenallRedLEDsturnedonatoncenext,andsoon.

VIDEO https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UIoPhlTdA4Q

SIKCircuit5

Finally,somethingotherthanjustLEDs.Iassembledthecircuitaccordingtotheguide.Seemedsimple

enough,exceptoneofthepushbuttonsIgothadallitspinsbent.Ihadtoalignthemcorrectlytofitinto

thebreadboard.

After

finishing

the

circuit

Iran

the

program

and

nothing

worked.

Ichecked

the

physical

connectionsacrossmyboard.Ihad2mistakes,Ididnothave1ofthewiresalignedcorrectlywitha

pushbuttonandIhadmyLEDwireinthewrongpin.Thecodeworkslikethis:IfIpusheitherbuttonit

connectstogroundandtheLEDwilllightup.IpushboththenbyBooleanlogictheLEDwillturnoff.It

worksasexpected.

VIDEO https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5VfuqJ6efOw

SIKCircuit6

Iassembled

the

circuit

by

the

guide.

Assembly

was

smooth.

The

circuit

is

straightforward,

except

the

onlythingtonoteisthatavoltagedividerisrequired.Theoutputofthiswillbereadasananaloginput.

Analoginputrangefrom0to1023butwriteonlyrangesover0to255sotheinputismappedtooutput

rangeof0to255.Theprogramranasexpected.Aswritteninprogramdocumentation,thelightdidnt

completelyturnoff,soIplayedaroundwiththerange0to1023.Ieventuallypicked400700andit

workswellenough.TheLEDturnsoffwhenlightisdetectedbythephotocell.Ialsoreversedtheeffect

bywritingtotheanalogpin:255thelightlevel.SonowtheLEDisonwhenitlightissensed.

VIDEO https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=80_jkZpa3EM

SIKCircuit

7

Thiscircuitwasparticularlyeasytoassemble,onlyonepartneededwithnoresistors,justthetemp

sensorandwires.Hadtolearntoidentifythepinsforthetempsensor.Withthesensorflatfacingyou

(pinsdown)theleftmostpinis5v,andrightmostisGND.Ihookedupthewirescorrectly.Finallywriting

codeforoutputtingdataonscreen(serialportwindow).Restofthecodewasstraightforward.Execute

programandgetfollowingresults


7/23

voltage:2.89 degC:238.57 degF:461.43

*Facepalmtohead*

Evenafterknowingwhateachofthe3pinsonthetempsensorare,Imixedupthewirespositiveand

negativeonthebreadboard. FirstIthoughtthereadingwasoffandItouchedthesensoranditreally

washot.Irantitagainafterfixingthewires.Andthereadsweregoodnow,prettyconsistent.






Voltagefluctuatedupto.73anddownto.71.Thisisrelativelyminoranditsprettystableactually.I

touchedthesensorandthetemperaturespiked,butnothingerratic.Soitwasallnormal.




VIDEOhttps://www.youtube.com/watch?v=03teMs

wFH8

MeetingLearningObjectives

1)definethetermrobotandprovideabriefhistoryofrobotsandrobotics.

Arobotisanautonomousphysicalsystemintherealworldthatcansensethingsandservesome

purpose.

2)listthecomponentsofatypicalrobot.

Followingrobotcomponentsrelatestoahumanbeings

Bodytoexistinthephysicalworldanddothings

Effectorsandactuatorstodoperformactions


8/23

Sensorstosenseitsenvironment

Controllertothinkandactonitsown

Unit2

Unit2WorkbookExercisesLocomotion

ComparewhattheyaredoingwiththeiRoombatorobotkitslikeLegoMindstorms.Howdothey

compare?

TheLegoMindstormskitlookslikeitsgearedmoretowardsayoungeraudienceforasfunhobbyisttoy.

Thoughitcanmostdefinitelyserveotherpurposes,canbeusedforrapidprototypingforsmallprojects

thatcan

use

its

array

of

sensors,

wheels,

tracks

,etc.

The

iRoomba

kit

looks

more

professional

and

comesfullyassembled.Itcouldbeagoodforresearchapplications.Itisjustarobotbasethatcanadd

moresensorsandhasacargobayformountingotherthings.

HowdothemotorsusedintheiRoombacomparetothevariousmotorsinyourInventor'skit?

TheiRoombahas2motorsattachedtoitsdrivewheels.Icouldnotfindspecsonthesemotors.Iwould

assume,forthesizeoftheiRoombaandthecargoitcancarry,itsmotorsaremorepowerfulthanthe

Skparkfuns.

DiscusshowyoumightbuildarobotliketheiRoombausingyourInventor'skit,includingandadditional

partsyou

might

have

to

acquire.

Wow,sincetheiRoombaisacompleteunit,fullyassembled,Iwouldsaythattobuildsimilarlywith

Sparkfun,wewouldneed,wheels,gears,chassis,anadditionalmotor,motorshield.Wewouldalso

needahostofsensors,likedistancesensors,etc.


1.How

would

you

measure

amotors

torque?

What

about

its

speed?

YoucanmeasureamotorsspeedbytheRPMsitgenerates.Iamnottoosureabouttorquebutmyguess

isyoucancalculatetorqueifyouknowthePowerandRPMsofamotor.IthinkPower=torquexRPM

2.HowmanyDOFarethereinthehumanhand?


9/23

Iamgoingtoassumethewristisnotincludedasthetextbookmentionedthewristwithoutthehand.

Myhandcanoverallmovein3dimensionalspaceandalsoroll,pitch,yawmovementssothats6

DOF.

Eachfingercanmovein3dimensionalspacethemselves,sothats3*5=15DOF

Eachofmyfingershas2joints,sothats10DOF.

Sototal31DOF


HowdoesautomatedWebpathplannerlikeGoogleMapsfindtheoptimalpath?

Well,Iremember

from

my

combinatorics

class

that

we

calculated

the

optimal

path

between

2nodes

in

graphusingtheDijikstrasAlgorithm.Iguesssamecouldbeappliedhereasitsprettymuchthesame,the

edgesarestreetsandnodescanbeintersections.

SIKCircuit8

Assemblywaseasy.Ididntscrewintheattachmentfortheservo,asitfitquitesnug.ThistimeImade

sureIgotthewiringrightsoIwouldntscrewituplikethelastcircuit.Forthecode,Ilookedinthe

servo.hlibrarytounderstandthevariousfunctions.Itwasprettybasic.Thecodewasstraightforward

too.Ifirst

made

the

servo

just

go

to

various

positions

to

see

how

it

would

operate.

It

was

pretty

accurate,thoughIhadtoholditinmyhandthewholetime.ThenIranitwithincrementingpositions.

ThenIranitwithmanycommandssettingitatvariouspositions(Degrees)andtheservowasslow,

seemedliketheprogramwaspushingahead,IguessIneededdelays.

VIDEO https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=luoJWE3vTJA

SIKCircuit9

Assembly

was

again

straight

forward;

I

left

the

last

circuit

as

it

is

and

added

the

flex

sensor.

A

voltage

dividerisusedherejustlikethephotocellcircuit.Andjustlikethatcircuit,thevoltagedivideronlya

returnsaportionofthe0to1023range.Wehavetomapthatrangeto0to180deg.FirstIranthe

programtoseetheresult.Theservoisnotrunningsmoothly,itjitters.Ithencheckedtheoutputinthe

serialwindow.Theservo readingwasat120,Ichangedthedefaultrangeof600900to726900asthe

flexsensorreadingontheserialwindowstates726.Irantheprogramagainandtheservoreading

startedat0.Nowtoavoidthejitterymovement,Ihadtomakesharp,quickflexingonthesensor.


10/23

VIDEO https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=urDeeKREW68

SIKCircuit10

Justwanted

to

note

that

to

make

the

assembly

process

more

educational,

Istudy

the

circuit

guide

and

trytoassembleitwithoutreferringtoit.OfcourseIalmostalwaysmakeerrors,butatleastIthinkIam

learningbetter.InthiscaseIputtheGNDwireaccidentallyonthewrongRGBpin,butcaughttheerror

whenIdoublechecked.Ialsohadpushtheresistorsapartastheyweretouchingeachothersincethey

weretooclose.Forthecode,havingdonethepreviouscircuits,Iimmediatelyunderstandthewaytodo

thisone.Wejustreadasensorvaluethroughanaloginputlikebefore.Andjustlikepreviouscircuits,we

havetomapthevoltagerangefromsensor(01023)totheRGBrange(0255).Eachcolor,red,green,

andbluegetsathirdofthetotalvoltagerangeread.Finallywejustoutputthecolors.Rantheprogram

anditworks.Butthesoftpotwastooflimsy,itkeptcomingoutofthebreadboard,andIhadtoholdit

withonehandwhileIpresseditwiththeotherhand.Anotherwaywastopushdownonitwhilesliding

myfinger

along

the

strip,

the

colors

change

gradually.

VIDEO https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vplSec_ODko

SIKCircuit11

Iwasexcitedtobuildthiscircuitandplaywithsound.Thepinsonmybuzzerwereseverelybent.After

workingthem

back

to

shape

Imanaged

to

securely

pin

it

to

the

breadboard.

There

was

hardly

anything

elseneededtobuildthiscircuit.Triedtoworkthroughthecodeandunderstanditfirst.Thenotes

correspondingtovariousfrequencieswashelpful!AllIneededtoknowthenwasthelengthofthesong

(numberofnotestoplay),tempo(thespeedtoplayalteredthroughdelays).Twoimportantarrayswere

neededtocustomizemusic,thenotesarraythatactuallyholdsthenotesforthesong,andthebeats

arraythatstateshowlongeachnoteisplayed.Iranthecircuitanditplayedthenotesbeautifully.Ithen

changedthenotestoplayjinglebellsfromwhatIrememberplayinginmusicclass.Iused:Songlength

26,tempo250andthefollowing:

charnotes[]="eeeeeeegcdefffffeeeeddedg";

intbeats[]

={1,1,2,1,1,2,1,1,1,1,2,,1,1,1,1,1,1,1,1,1,1,1,1,1,2,2};

Anditplaysbeautifully.

VIDEO https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wA2ObubzPmo


11/23

SIKCircuit12

Therewerealotmorethingstoputtogetherforthiscircuitthanthepreviousones.Ithoughtitwould

just beamatterofgivingpowertothemotor,butapparentlynot.ThenIlearnedthatthepinsonthe

arduinoarenotstrongenoughtorunthemotor,thatmakessense.Ifirstreadandlearnedthevarious

partsofthecircuitbeingused:Forinstance,thediodeisusedtopreventaspikeinvoltagefromthe

motordamagingthetransistor.Idoublecheckedmycircuitcarefullybeforerunningtheprogram.Itran

asexpected.Iattachedapieceofelectricaltapetothemotortoactasamakeshiftpropeller.

VIDEO https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AOPCz9FbT4

MeetingLearningObjectives

1)listthevariousmechanismsofroboticmovement.

Somemechanismsofroboticmovementarearms,Legs,Tracks,Wheels,Tracksandpropellers

2)discussactiveversuspassiveactuation.

Activeactuationusesactivepowerconsumptiontoprovidepower,whereaspassiveactuationuses

potentialenergyintheeffectorsmechanicsanditsinteractionwiththeenvironmenttoprovidepower.

3)describedifferenttypesofactuators.

Thetypes

of

actuators

include

Electric

motors,

Hydraulics

(use

fluid

pressure),

Pneumatics

(use

air

pressure),Photoreactivematerials(reacttolight),Chemicallyreactivematerials(likefiberinacid&

alkalinesolutions),Thermallyreactivematerials(reacttotemperature), andPiezoelectricmaterials

(reacttopushingandpressing)

4)discussthesimilaritiesanddifferencesbetweenDCmotors,gearedmotors,andservomotors.

Allofthesemotorsconvertelectricalenergyintomechanicalenergybymeansofusingmagnets,loops,

wire,andcurrenttogeneratemagneticfieldsthatinturnrotatethemotorshaft.Gearedmotorsaddto

aDCmotorbyallowingittochangeforceandtorqueoutput. Thisisparticularlyusefulforrobotsas

robotscantradeaDCmotorsspeedwithmoretorqueinagearedmotor.ServomotorsaresimilartoDC

motorsexcept

for

the

fact

that

they

can

rotate

their

shaft

to

aparticular

position.

This

is

useful

in

roboticsforprecisecontrolovereffectors.

5)describeandcalculatethedegreesoffreedominmovement.

ADegreeofFreedom(DOF)istheminimumnumberofthecoordinatesneededtodescribeamechanical

systemsmotion.Forinstanceifarobotmovesin3dimensionalspace,themovementinthe3axis(x,

y,z)givesus3DOF.Ifthatrobotcanroll,pitch,oryaw(whichareallrotationsalongthedifferent


12/23

axis),thenthats3moreDOF.Themoretheindependentcomponentsthatcanmovelikethis,themore

DOFthatsystemwouldhave.

6)discussstabilityinroboticmovement.

Thereare2typesofstabilityforrobots,staticanddynamic.Arobotthatisstablestaticallycanhold

itselfupwithoutfallingwhileitisnotmovingbyhavingenoughstaticcomponentstosupportitself.A

robotisstabledynamicallyifitneedstomovetobeabletokeepitselfup,likeaflyingrobot.

Unit3


1.HowmanyDOFarethereinthehumanhand?Canyoucontroleachofthemindependently?

Iamgoingtoassumethewristisnotincludedasthetextbookmentionedthewristwithoutthehand.

Myhandcanoverallmovein3dimensionalspaceandalsoroll,pitch,yawmovementssothats6

DOF.

Eachfingercanmovein3dimensionalspacethemselves,sothats3*5=15DOF

Eachofmyfingershas2joints,sothats10DOF.

Sototal

31

DOF

Yes,youcancontroleachofthemindependently.Although,somemovementsofthepinkiefingercause

minormovementinthenextfinger.

2.Whichofthetwojointtypeswediscussed,rotationalandprismatic,ismorecommonlyfoundin

biologicalbodies?Canyouthinkofexamplesofspecificanimals?

Biologicalbodiestypicallyhavearotationaljoint.Theyhavemusclesaroundajointactingasactuators

toallowthemtofreelymovearoundanaxisonthejoint.Forexampleadagcanmoveitsheadfreely

aroundanaxisparalleltoitslineofsightwhenlookingstraightahead.

3.Areastronautsuitsexoskeletons?Whataboutalevercontrolledbackhoe?

Yes,astronautsuitsareexoskeletons,becausetheywearitanditisanouterstructurethatprovides

protection.Backhoesarenotexoskeletonsbecauseeventhoughapersoncansitinone,theydont

exactlywearit.


13/23

4.Imagineanexoskeletonwhichhasitsownsensors,makesitsowndecisions,andactsonthem.Thisis

definitelyarobot,yetitisalsocontrolledbyahumanandattachedtothehumansbody.Canyou

imaginewherethiscouldbeuseful?

Thiscouldbeusefulinhazardousconditions,suchaswarzones,areaofachemicalspill,etc.Thesuitcan

senseexternal

dangers

and

react

accordingly

without

the

wearers

direction.

It

can

for

instance

automaticallysenddatabacktoacentralcomputer,etc.

5.Whataretheendeffectorsofthedogsinthatcase?Arethedogsnowpurelymobilerobots?

Ithinkthattheendeffectorsinthiscasearethedogfronttwolegs,becausethosearethemainlimbs

makingtheimpactonitsgoals.Thebacktwolegsarejustgettingthefronttwolegstotheirtarget.The

dogsarenotpurelymobilerobotsbecausetheirfronttwolegscanbeusedtoperformtasksotherthan

walking.

Unit3Exercises

DesignQuestion

Howmanymotors,andofwhattype,wouldyourequiretomakeafullyfunctionalroboticarmthat

hadaworkingelbow,wrist,andendaffector(i.e.asimpleclamp)?Whatcomponentswouldyouadd

ifyouwantedtheclamptobeabletotellhowharditwasgrabbinganobjectsuchasanegg(i.e.to

avoidcrushingit)?Discussyourdesigninyourweblogindetail,especiallydescribingthechoiceof

motorforeachjoint,thedegreesoffreedomandtherangeofmotion.

In

the

following

passage,

when

I

saw

a

joint

rotates

in

one

axis

,

I

mean

the

arm

moves

along

in

one

axis

likehowafoldedpocketknifeopensup.

Soweneedtosimulateshoulder,Elbow,wrist,clamp

Sofordegreesoffreedom:

1)Clamp:2DOFsincetheneedtobeabletorotateincircularmotionANDgraspthings

2)Wrist:1DOFtorotateinoneaxis

3)Elbow:1DOFtorotateinoneaxislikewrist

4)Shoulder:2DOF,1forrotatinginoneaxislikeelbow,andtheotherDOFforrotatingwholearm

(aroundthebase)

Sototal

6DOF,

so

we

would

need

6Servo

motors

to

implement

this.

Theclampjointcanrotate360degrees.

TheWristjointcanrotate180degrees,whichisrealisticandenoughsincetheelbowcanalsomove

allowingthewristtoreachmore

Theelbowcouldbemadetorotateinarangeof180degrees,butitispossibletomaketogoalltheway

aroundupto300degrees(cantdo360sinceitwillcollidewithbaseofarm),itdependsonhowone

wouldwanttoimplementit.Iwoulddo300degreestomakeitmoreversatile


14/23

Theshouldercanrotate180degrees,basicallystartingparalleltothefloorononesideandgoingallthe

wayover180degreestobeingparalleltotheflooragainonotherside.

Theshouldercanthenalsorotatealonganaxisperpendiculartothefloor,whichallowsthewholearm

totwist.

Grip:

Wewillalsoneedonemotorfortheclamptogripsomething.Ithinktherewouldbesometypeforforce

feedbacksensorsthatcanbeused.Suchsensorsfromthegripcanrelayinformationbacktothecontrol

unitwhichcanthencontroltheforcebeingapplied.Iamnotsurehowexactlytocontroltheforce,

perhapsthereiswaytovarythetorque.

Programming/CircuitTask

Soobviously

we

will

need

aservo

to

implement

this.

So

Ifirst

reviewed

circuit

8from

the

SIK

again

to

recaphowIusedtheservo.Nowtoimplementourelbowmovement,Ijustneedtogettheservoto

movetoaparticulardegreeinputfromuser.(startsat0degree,elbowfullyextended).SoobviouslyI

needaloopthatkeepscheckingforuserinputandmovestheservoaccordingly.GiventheSIKcircuitsI

did,thisisprettystraightforward.Iusedthecircuit8codeasatemplatetoworkfrom.Iknewthepin

assignmentsfortheservo.Iconnectedthepower,groundleadsandtheinputfromtheservotopin9

justasIdidbefore. Everythingworkedrightaway.Ijusthadanif structuretomakesureuserinputwas

withinlimits.Refertocodecommentsbelowforexplanation.

Testing:Ienteredlimitsoutofrange,andgottheappropriateresponse.IfIentersamedegreevalue

twice,

the

arm

just

stays

put,

which

is

fine.

CODE:

#include //servolibrary

Servoservo1; //servocontrolobject

voidsetup()

{

servo1.attach(9); //servoatpin9

Serial.begin(9600); //setbaudrate

servo1.write(0); //moveservoto0degrees

Serial.println("Enteradegree

value

to

contract

the

elbow

to

(0

170)");

}

voidloop()

{

intinput; //holdsuserinput

if(Serial.available()){

delay(1000); //Pausetoletservomove(includingwhenitsetsinitial0)


15/23

input=Serial.parseInt(); //getuserinput

if(input>=0&&input


16/23

Ofcoursenot,sensorsarenotthelimitingfactor.Nomatterhowmanysensorsyouhave,thecontroller

wouldstillneedtodobetterprocessing.SoIthinkthecontrolleristhelimitingfactorasevenwithfewer

processors,thecontrollerscouldprocessinformationmoreefficiently.Butofcourse,addingmore

sensorsdoesmakeiteasierforthecontrollerastherewillbebetterinformation,butsensorsarenotthe

limitingfactor.

3.Whatdoyouthinkitwilltaketogetrobotstobeselfawareandhighlyintelligent?Andifsomeday

theyareboth,whatwilltheirintelligencebelike,similartooursorcompletelydifferent?

Idontthinkrobotswilleverbeselfawarethewayweare.Ithinkwithenoughtechnological

advancement,theycansimulateselfawarenessorbeselfawaretosomedegree.Samegoesfortheir

intelligence.Themainissueisweourselvesdontfullyunderstandeverythingaboutourconsciousness.

Weknowwhenbabiesareborntheyarenotselfawareorintelligent.Thenafterafewyearsthey

becomeselfawareandtheirintelligencegrowsandtheylearnconstantly.Wedontfullyunderstandthe

underlyingprocessthatmakesallthishappen.Andsincewedontgetit,wecantexpecttobuildrobots

tobethatway.


1.Whymightyoupreferapassivetoanactivesensor?

Imightpreferapassivesensortosaveenergyorpower.Someremoteapplicationsthathavenoaccess

topowerbenefitfrompassivesensorsduetotheirlowenergyusage.

2.Arepotentiometersactiveorpassivesensors?

Potentiometersarepassivesensorsbecausetheydontprovidetheirownsignalorstimuli,theydon't

havean

emitter.

They

measure

the

resistance

from

the

user

turning

the

knob.

3.Whatrobotsensorswouldyousayaremostsimilartosuchstretchreceptors?Aretheysimilarinform

(mechanismofhowtheydetect)orfunction(whattheydetect)?Whymightstretchreceptorsbeuseful

torobots,evenwithoutstomachsandeating?

Itishardtothinkofthetypeofsensorswithoutknowinghowtheexpandablestomachwillbe

constructed.GiventhetypeofsensorsIhavelearnedthusfar,flexsensorsseemthemostappropriate.

Youcanlinearobotstomachwithablanketofflexsensors,anddetecttheamounttheybend.Such

sensorswouldbeusefulforrobotsbecausetheycanavoidphysicalstressdamageoftherobot.


1.Whatisthespeedofsoundinmetricunits?

Thespeedofsoundinmetricunitsis300m/s.


17/23

2.Howmuchgreateristhespeedoflightthanthespeedofsound?Whatdoesthistellyouaboutsensors

thatuseoneortheother?

Thespeedoflightinmetricunitsis 299792458m/s.Thereforethespeedoflightisgreaterthanthe

speedofsoundby299792458300=299792158m/s.Thistellsusthatwithlightsensorsyoucanget

informationmuch

faster

than

sound

sensors.

Therefore

processing

can

be

faster

with

light

sensors,

whereaswithsoundsensoryouneedtohavedelaysinbetweenprocessing.

3.Whathappenswhenmultiplerobotsneedtoworktogetherandallhavesonarsensors?Howmight

youdealwiththeirsensorinterference?InChapter20wewilllearnaboutcoordinatingteamsofrobots.

Onewayistotreattheuseofsonarasasharedresource,whereeachrobottransmitsasignalthatitis

pinging.Sotheonerobotexclusivelylockstheuseofsonar.Insteadoftransmittingasignal,Iguess

otherrobotscanlistenforanactiveping,butitcouldbenoisefromtheenvironment.

4.Whydontweuseshiftinfrequenciesbetweensentandreflectedsoundwavesinrobotics?

Iamguessingithastodowiththefactthatitischeaperandsimplertocalculatethetimeofflightas

opposedtoashiftinfrequency.

5.Sincetwoeyesaremuchbetterthanone,arethreeeyesmuchbetter,orevenanybetter,thantwo?

Twoeyesaresignificantlybetterthanoneeyebecauseitgivesasenseofdepth,andthereforelotmore

information.Thirdeyeinthesamedirectionwouldntaddmuchmorebenefit,ifitisveryclosetothe

other2eyes.Ifitisawayfromtheother2eyesinthesamedirection,itcanoffertheadvantageofa

differentangle.Ifthethirdeyeisfacinganotherdirectionthantheother2eyes,thenitcangive

significantlymoreinformationandthusismuchbetter.

Unit5


1.Whathappenswhenyouhavesensorerrorinyoursystem?Whatifyoursensorincorrectlytellsyou

thattherobotisfarfromawallbutinfactitisnot?Whataboutviceversa?Howmightyouaddress

theseissues?

Whenthereisasensorerrorinasystem,therobotwillnotbehaveasexpected.Iftherobotfailstotell

youcorrectlythatitisclosetoawall,itcancollidewithit.Ifitincorrectlytellsyouthatisclosetowall,

thenitcouldstopevenifitissafetomoveforward.Itiscommonforsensorstofailnowandthen,and

weshouldevenaccountforapermanentfailure.Onewaytoaccountforincorrectsensordataistohave

thesensortakemultiplereadingsandaveragetheresults.Thiswilleliminateanyanomalies.Ifthey

sensorrepeatedlygivesincorrectdata,thenwecanhaveabackupsensortopreventacollision.For

instance,ifadistancesensor(IR)ismalfunctioning,aflexsensorinthefrontofarobotcanprevent

collisionbydetectingawall.


18/23

2.Whatcanyoudowithopenloopcontrolinyourrobot?Whenmightitbeuseful?

Withopenloopcontrol,arobotexecutescommandsbasedonwhatwaspreviouslypredictedas

opposedtorelyingonsensoryfeedback.Thiscouldbeusefulforrobotswhentheirsensorseitherdonot

orcannotrelyontheirsensors


1.Howimportantistheprogramminglanguage?Coulditmakeorbreakaparticulargadget,device,or

robot?

Anyprogramminglanguagecanbeusedtoimplementsoftwareforarobot.Whatismoreimportantis

howthecontrolarchitectureisusedtoimplementthecontroller.However,certainprogramming

languagescanbebettersuitedforaparticularimplementation.Thiscanmaketheprogrammingeasier,

andthereforethesoftwarepotentiallybetter.Forinstance,theprogramminglanguagePrologcouldbe

wellsuitedforachattingrobot.Thischoiceofprogrammingwillmakethesoftwareimplementation

easierand

potentially

better.

So,

while

the

choice

of

programming

language

might

not

necessarily

break

arobotordevice,itcouldinhibititspotentialperformance.

2.Withtheconstantdevelopmentofnewtechnologiesthatusecomputation,doyouthinktherewillbe

increasinglymoreorincreasinglyfewerprogramminglanguages?

Ithinkwithdevelopmentofnewtechnologieswewouldseemanynewprogramminglanguages.

However,Ithinkmostofthesenewlanguageswouldbevariantsofcurrentprogramminglanguages,

withminorchanges.Thesenewprogramminglanguageswouldbebeneficialbecausetheycouldbe

tailoredtonewtechnologies,andtherebymakingsoftwaredevelopmentmoreefficient.

Unit6


1.Doyouthinkanimalsuseinternalmodels?Whataboutinsects?

Ithinkanimalsdouseinternalmodels.Whenanimalsareborn,theyhaveunderlyinginstinctstoguide

them.ButIthinkastheyage,theydevelopinternalmodelsbasedontheirexperiences.Iamnotsure

aboutinsects;Ithinktheyarelesscapableofdevelopinginternalmodelsbecauseoftheirbrainsize.

Theystill

may

have

primitive

internal

models.

2.Whymightyounotwanttostoreanduseinternalmodels?

Storingandusinginternalmodelscouldbetaxingintermsofprocessing.Alsoforexample,ifthe

environmentisdynamicorchanging,thebenefitofstoringinternalmodelsactuallybecomesaburden.

Itwouldbebettertonotstoreinternalmodelsandinsteadforexample,userealtimesensorsand

processingtoachievethesamegoal.


19/23

Unit7


1.Canyouusedeliberativecontrolwithouthavingsomeinternalrepresentation?

NoIdontthinkyoucandeliberativecontrolwithoutsomeinternalrepresentation.Because,ifarobot

needstobeabletodeliberateorthinkhardaboutwhatitneedstodo,itneedsinformationtoprocess.

Thisinformationhastobestoredinsomemannerwithintherobot,whichwouldbesomesortof

internalrepresentation.However,itispossibleforarobottoreacttorealtimesensoryinputbasedona

setofruleswithoutanunderstandingofitssurroundings.

2.Cananimalsplan?Whichones,andwhatdotheyplan?

Yesmostanimalscanplans,whentheyhavebrainsdevelopedtoacertaindegree.Thisisusually

correlatedwithbrainsize.Forinstance,Lions,KillerWhales,etc.canplanandhuntinapack.

3.Ifyouhadperfectmemory,wouldyoustillneedtoplan?

Ifwehadperfectmemory,Ithinkwewouldstillneedtoplaninsomecasesbecausewemightnothave

experiencedallscenariosinthepasttopurelyrelyonourmemory.Wemighthavetoextrapolate

informationfromourmemorytoplanforacurrentscenariothatisunexpected.


1.Canyouchangethegoalofareactivesystem?Ifso,how?Ifnot,whynot?

No,youcannotchangethegoalofareactivesystembecausetheyhaveaspecificsetofrulesthatcouple

specificscenarios

to

specific

actions.

Since

these

factors

dont

change,

the

goal

cannot

ultimately

change.

2.Canyoualwaysavoidusinganyrepresentation/worldmodel?Ifso,how?Ifnot,whynot,andwhat

couldyoudoinstead?

Youcanavoidusingarepresentationmodelbyhavingtherobotrelyonsensoryinput.Gathering

informationinsuchmannerwouldalsoalleviateburdenontherobothavingtostorelargeamountof

data.

3.Canareactiverobotlearnamaze?

Yes,arobotcanlearnamazebystoringaninternalmodelonwhatitencounterswhileexploringallthe

pathwaysofthemaze.Itispossiblefortherobottotraverseallcornersofthemazeiftheyare

accessible,althoughitwouldtakealongtimeandalotofprocessingbytherobot.

Unit8



20/23


21/23

However,suchinstinctscanalsoleadtoimperfections,justlikeinhumandecisionmaking.So,perhaps

wewouldavoidsuchrobotsincertaincriticalapplicationswhereweneedamorerigorouscontrolover

decisionmaking.

Unit10


1.Besideswallfollowing,orfollowing(servoingtosometarget),whichisanaturalbehaviortoproduce

viaemergence,canyouthinkofothersyoumightwanttoimplementthisway?

Anotheremergentbehaviorissearching.Ifyougivearobotasetofrulestoavoidwallsandobjectsina

randommanner(i.e.randomizethedirectionafteravoidingobstacles),thentherobotwouldtechnically

bemappingitsentireenvironmenteventually.Iamnotsurethisisagoodexample,butwithout

explicitlytelling

the

robot

to

follow

aset

of

directions

to

map

it

environment

or

give

it

an

internal

model,randomlyavoidingitsobstaclescouldintheoryeventuallyhavetherobotmapitsentire

environment,thoughinanextremelytediousandinefficientway.

2.Canyouthinkofwaysofusingemergentbehaviortodosomethingquitecomplicated,suchasbuilda

bridgeorawallorabuilding?Antsdoitallthetime,seeChapter20.

Wecanhaveateamofrobotsworkingtogethertoachieveacomplexgoallikebuildingawall.Each

robotcouldbeassignedasimpletasksuchaspassingabrickorlayingabrick.Overall,buildingthewall

wouldthen

be

an

emergent

behavior.

Unit11


1.Antsaretremendouslyeffectiveatdeadreckoning,findingtheirwayinthevastopenspacesofthe

desertthroughodometry.Theyseemtobemuchbetteratitthanpeople,basedonsomestudiesthat

havebeendone.Ofcourse,nostudieshaveactuallypittedahumanagainstanantinthedesert,but

comparableexperiments

find

people

lost

and

confused,

and

ants

on

anearly

straight

path

back

home.

Antsaresuperiorinnavigationduetotheirinternalcompassandamechanismbywhichtheycanjudge

thedistancetravelled.Itispossibleforhumanstonavigatealmostasgoodasants,althoughnot

naturallyatfirst.Humanscouldusecelestialnavigationtechniquestodeterminetheircurrentlocation

totheirstartinglocation.Theycouldalsokeeptrackofthenumberofstepstheywalkortimetheywalk,

eithermentallyorrecordingitsomewhere.ButIguesstonavigatelikeanant,itwouldhavetobe


22/23


23/23

goalshouldtocompletejobxinthemostefficientwaypossible.Ifthatmeansrobotstakingover

humanlabor,thenthatshouldbetheway.Economicstellsusthatthenthehumanworkforcewould

eventuallyadapttosuchshiftsinthemarketbyperhapstrainingmorehumansinskilledjobsthatrobots

cantperform.However,thereisaplaceforethics,andsoIthinkweshouldsoftenthenegativeimpact

onthelaidoffworkforcethroughvariousmethods.Forinstance,wecouldhaveagradual

implementationof

robots

as

opposed

to

asudden

massive

overhaul.

This

would

give

the

workforce

moretimetoadapt.

2.Somephilosophershavearguedthatoncerobotsbecomesufficientlyintelligentandselfaware,they

willbesomuchlikepeoplethatitwillbeunethicaltohavethemworkingforus,asitwillcreatearaceof

slaves.Whatdoyouthinkaboutthat?

Thisishardtothinkaboutasitisveryphilosophical.Itdependsonwhatexactlysufficientlyintelligent

means.Ifweassumethatarobotcanbeassmartashuman,havememories,etc.thentheyare

intelligent.Now

would

this

intelligent

robot

have

free

will

or

asense

of

itself?

Would

it

have

a

conscience?Suchthingsaretoocomplextoevenimaginearobotacquiring,soIwouldassumethatthey

wouldnothavetheseabilities.Inthatcase,sincewewouldbeabletohaveacleardistinctionbetween

humansandtheserobots,itwouldbeOKtonotgivethemequalrights.However,theycouldhaveas

muchrightsasapetwouldhave,whichisinterestingbecausemanypetsarealsointelligent.We

basicallykeeppetslikeslavesinsomemanner.

arduino coursework outline

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