Re: [mowbot] Web exploration

Dave Everett (Deverett nospam at vir.idx.com.au)
Fri, 25 Oct 1996 15:49:52 +1000

robin nospam at acm.org wrote:
>
> Here are some more mobile robot sites I have found very interesting
> and maybe worthy of inclusion as links on the Mowbot pages:

They have now been added to the links page. I've also added another
robot lawnmower site I found a few days ago.

> I am hoping to start playing with an old commercial tracked chassis
> which will be useful for some sensor experiments. Unfortunately the
> manufacturer is no longer around, so this isn't a good basis for the
> future. Does anyone know of any cheap mobile platforms we could adopt?

A cheap mobile platform is the holy grail of amateur robotics, unless
you consider $300 cheap ;-) I'm seriously thinking about getting some of
those motors from All Electronics Corp and giving them a go. I was going
to use the drive system from my old Hero Jr (a stepper steered, DC
driven wheel, but there are some positional problems I don't want to
face yet.

The part I need to interface the Weed eater head to my motor is being
finished today, so I should have pictures of the experiments on the web
by Tuesday next week.

And the ultrasonic sensor system is working excellently, I have a few
more mods and experiments to make before I commit it to the site. I
found a cheap source for transducers here in Sydney that will allow me
to extend it significantly. The original transducers I bought cost $10 a
pair, I have found a source at $3 a pair.

I think I've found a good source for the inclinometer system also,
Servo-Gyros. They are used in RC helicopters to stop the chopper
spinning around in a circle. Two of these will provide 3D incline
information.

-- 
Dave Everett                                Email: deverett nospam at idx.com.au
(c) 1996 - Copyright remains with the author unless explicitly stated