micromouse techfest 2006
15 Oct 2k5 : Started designing the circuit board in Eagle
- Microcontroller: AtMega32[ 16MIPS, 16K Bytes of In-System Self-Programmable Flash, 2K Byte Internal SRAM, 1K Bytes EEPROM, Two 8-bit Timer/Counters, One 16-bit Timer/Counter, 8-channel 10-bit ADC ]
- Stepper Motor Driver: ULN2803 [ high-voltage ( 50V ), high-current (500 mA ) transistor array of eight npn Darlington pairs ]
- Voltage regulator: PT78HT205S[ Integrated Switching Regulator, efficiency up to 90%, output 5V 2Amps ]
- Sensors: IR LED ( Transmitter ) and photodiode ( Receiver ). 3 pairs for front, left and right.
- Few LEDs, resistors, switches, capacitors, connectors and wires here and there.
Yup ! that's all folks it needs in a micromouse circuit board.
28 Oct 2k5 : Finished up with soldering the board, took around 3 Hrs.
29 Oct 2k5 : Done with writing code for driving stepper motor using timer0. The stepper motor has four coils which, when energized in sequence, cause the permanent magnet attached to the shaft to rotate. Reversing the order of the steps in a sequence will reverse the direction of rotation. I am using single coil excitation, i.e. each successive coil is energized in turn.The design is a wheelchair drive where a pair of wheels are driven independently on either side of the mouse. Turning one of them faster than the other and the mouse will execute a turn. Turns of any radius are possible.
1 Nov 2k5 : I am using Infrared reflective sensors ( transmitter / receiver photodiodes ), side-looking sensors that return an analogue signal representing distance to the wall. The intensity is proportional to one divided by the square of the distance. The ADC (analog to digital converter ) of the microcontroller then returns a number that is used in the algorithm as a measure of distance.
25 Dec 2k5 :
Batteries are very crucial in micromouse
or for that matter in any machine. They should be capable enough to
provide power for at least 10min.
To know more into different kinds of batteries
click here. I am using Li-Ion batteries ( those which are used in
laptops and are chemically the same as your mobile phone
battery).Specifications:
Qty: 2
Voltage: 4.2V on full charge and
3.6V on near discharge
Capacity: 1700mAmpHr
Charging time: about 1
Hr.
1 Jan 2k6 : The final product I am using the same code that I used in last years contest. It is based on Floodfill algorithm for solving mazes. Here is the source code for it, compile this file in Turbo C++ MM4.cpp
20 Jan 2k6 : Contest day Won the 2nd position, with a run time of 122 seconds on the maze. Video 16.6 MB
