Well - i've got the Lego-bot assembly to the point where i can now do something with it.
Now that i have access to the software, i've been experimenting with motion, loops, sound, the little screen that's on the Lego-bot controller, & generally i think i've got a handle on it.
Now to make it do something interesting!
.
This is about robots & automation. It's a companion blog to JaneMareesTech, which is about the Arduino microcontroller system & related electronics
Tuesday, October 26, 2010
Wednesday, October 20, 2010
Task: Start "Mr General" Assembly..
..which has turned out to be harder than i thought it'd be!
The following problems have emerged:
1) we no longer have an electronics lab - the heavy-duty electrical engineering people
now have that room for their stuff;
2) i'm using a make-shift lab-spot, sharing with all the people
in the 3rd-year project room;
3) the lighting's bad in there & i can't see f**k-all;
4) there's a trick to soldering components into those teeny-tiny holes in the PCBs,
& it took me ages to work out how to do that & to fix my c**k-ups;
5) i'm missing a little pack of 8 small nylon washers,
which i normally wouldn't worry about except that they look as if they're for
insulating metal spacers from the main PCB surface
Possible solutions (in no particular order):
1) i have a $2 cyclist's 'headlight' to illuminate the work i'm doing;
2) i have a $2 magnifying glass whose handle i can wedge into the 'headlight' strap,
so i can see better;
3) "Mr General" is no longer essential to my project - Peter says
i can use the Lego-Bot for both project items;
4) any number of hardware-y places must surely sell
little nylon washers of some kind;
5) I still think i can do this!
That must count for something (psychologically if not marks-wise)..
.
The following problems have emerged:
1) we no longer have an electronics lab - the heavy-duty electrical engineering people
now have that room for their stuff;
2) i'm using a make-shift lab-spot, sharing with all the people
in the 3rd-year project room;
3) the lighting's bad in there & i can't see f**k-all;
4) there's a trick to soldering components into those teeny-tiny holes in the PCBs,
& it took me ages to work out how to do that & to fix my c**k-ups;
5) i'm missing a little pack of 8 small nylon washers,
which i normally wouldn't worry about except that they look as if they're for
insulating metal spacers from the main PCB surface
Possible solutions (in no particular order):
1) i have a $2 cyclist's 'headlight' to illuminate the work i'm doing;
2) i have a $2 magnifying glass whose handle i can wedge into the 'headlight' strap,
so i can see better;
3) "Mr General" is no longer essential to my project - Peter says
i can use the Lego-Bot for both project items;
4) any number of hardware-y places must surely sell
little nylon washers of some kind;
5) I still think i can do this!
That must count for something (psychologically if not marks-wise)..
.
Thursday, October 14, 2010
Task: continue with Lego Robot Assembly_part 2
Aha!! When all else fails (where have i heard that before..?),
read the instructions (so far, so OK)..
..from the beginning!!
As in Start at the first page (duh!)!
On the first & subsequent pages were instructions for connecting the Battery Pack.
And YES, there was a detachable lid covering the opening for the battery pack.
I plugged it in..
..didn't follow the instructions carefully enough..
..wondered why certain components wouldn't fit back together again..
..took it apart..
..seated the battery pack properly this time..
..reassembled it &..
..Bob's Yer Auntie!!
It didn't do anything to begin with, then suddenly came right, took it into its tiny little brain to switch on, & now all i have to do is work out how to program it!!
YAY!!
read the instructions (so far, so OK)..
..from the beginning!!
As in Start at the first page (duh!)!
On the first & subsequent pages were instructions for connecting the Battery Pack.
And YES, there was a detachable lid covering the opening for the battery pack.
I plugged it in..
..didn't follow the instructions carefully enough..
..wondered why certain components wouldn't fit back together again..
..took it apart..
..seated the battery pack properly this time..
..reassembled it &..
..Bob's Yer Auntie!!
It didn't do anything to begin with, then suddenly came right, took it into its tiny little brain to switch on, & now all i have to do is work out how to program it!!
YAY!!
Wednesday, October 13, 2010
Task: continue with Lego Robot Assembly
Well, I've assembled as much of the Lego robot as i can, but there's a snag:
---the battery pack doesn't fit on, & i don't know why {grrr!!}..
..it just won't. I suspect that:
--(1) the programming panel is the wrong sort;
--(2) there's a panel on the bottom of the above which is stuck;
--(3) the battery pack is the wrong sort;
--(4) i'm making some unknown c**k-up in the assembly!
Given the fact that the previous user left bits assembled,
& the parts all over the shop (which meant i had to do
an inventory before i even got started on assembly!),
& there seem to be 1 or 2 spare little bits (small part redundancy?),
maybe it's just an unsorted mess!!
I'm miles behind, & getting anxious :-(
I just need to get this sorted!
Tomorrow, in class maybe..
..meanwhile there are other things to do:
"Mr General" for one. Due to my notorious inability to mentally
attune myself to calendars (having spent a good part of my working life
with irregular hours, irregular holidays, irregular jobs), i decided to
stay home sick (snuffly) for what turned out to be the last day of the term.
Missed Ashley-the-Tech..
Came in on Monday - workmen, darkness, welding & painting..
..done it again! I just don't get with holidays, as in i-never-know-until-it's-too-late!
(not the first time either). So..
..no "Mr General" until tomorrow!
{si-i-i-igghhh}.. :-( :-(
Problems, problems..
---the battery pack doesn't fit on, & i don't know why {grrr!!}..
..it just won't. I suspect that:
--(1) the programming panel is the wrong sort;
--(2) there's a panel on the bottom of the above which is stuck;
--(3) the battery pack is the wrong sort;
--(4) i'm making some unknown c**k-up in the assembly!
Given the fact that the previous user left bits assembled,
& the parts all over the shop (which meant i had to do
an inventory before i even got started on assembly!),
& there seem to be 1 or 2 spare little bits (small part redundancy?),
maybe it's just an unsorted mess!!
I'm miles behind, & getting anxious :-(
I just need to get this sorted!
Tomorrow, in class maybe..
..meanwhile there are other things to do:
"Mr General" for one. Due to my notorious inability to mentally
attune myself to calendars (having spent a good part of my working life
with irregular hours, irregular holidays, irregular jobs), i decided to
stay home sick (snuffly) for what turned out to be the last day of the term.
Missed Ashley-the-Tech..
Came in on Monday - workmen, darkness, welding & painting..
..done it again! I just don't get with holidays, as in i-never-know-until-it's-too-late!
(not the first time either). So..
..no "Mr General" until tomorrow!
{si-i-i-igghhh}.. :-( :-(
Problems, problems..
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