how to use cube explorer for my robot - robot

I am planning to do a cube solving robot in our college science fair
I will be using cube explorer in my PC which uses webcam and gives optimal solution in just 21 moves
I can program my microcontroller to solve the cube by using these notations
but the problem is how to pass these notations from PC to microcontrolle through USB
my dev board is something like the one in the link
http://btechproject.com/index.php/products/development-boards/multi-purpose-usb-based-avr-board-atmega8-detail
I am beginner to this MC's so plss give me detailed answer

probably better you post the question at https://arduino.stackexchange.com/. Also you can try to search on the net for tutorials on how to proceed, looking for arduino-based similar projects.
However having the L293 on board, with which you can drive one bipolar stepper motor only (see here for example ) I'm not convinced that's enough: probably some more external stepper driver needed. Not an expert on this however (yet :) ) - hope you find more precise help.

Related

Playstation Eye with Labiew

Does anyone know how to integrate the Playstation Eye with Labview? Can a driver somehow be used to allow Labview to recognize it as a webcam?
You should be able to do this with vision (install IMAQdx and Vision Dev Module)- it seems to be DirectShow, which IMAQ can do- or try out the code found on this page: http://www.labviewforum.de/thread-21279.html - it uses the original dlls.
as there are NO official dll´s for the PS3 Eye on Windows, the ONLY Option is to use the 3rd Party drivers from Code Laboratries or directly interface the Hardware via USB-RAW commands. Code Laboratries PS3 Implementation however does not seem to be 100% conform with the Direct Show standard. You can get a PS3 Eye to work with Labview (via Direct Show and IMAQ), but you will be limited by the usable framerates.
I tried to interface the dll from code laboratries directly, but got stuck on a stange error with the second function i tried (see the already referenced Thread http://www.labviewforum.de/thread-21279.html). However it seems as for now there is a Vi Package available for the PS3 Eye to support LabView under OSX with the full available framerate. More Information can be found here:
http://labview.epfl.ch/
Hope this helps.
Best Regards,
Jan

Open source tablet computer

I'm an experienced software engineer in the telecomm industry, lately I've been interested in working on a hardware project.
One of the ideas that floated around in my head is the concept of an open source tablet computer. I'm inspired by the success that the Arduino has made, and it is my personal belief that if this device was open source it could be a great platform for inspiring new projects, and become a cheap device for schools!
Can any of you give me suggestions where an idea like this has been tried before, what went right, and what went wrong?
Well I agree with Casio (this is probably not the place to ask such a question: not sure what is, though), but a significant effort with something similar was made as a part of the OLPC project: it is as open as you could hope, low cost...I would say that is as good a starting point as any: replace the screen with a touch screen and hack away!
On the other hand, there's a company selling kits for basically exactly what you described. Let us know if you go anywhere with this...I'd like to know. :)
Check out the Open Compute Project which started back in 2011 building vanity free open source hardware (servers) for data centres.
If you want to campion an idea for open source hardware then get involved in the global community
www.opencompute.org
https://youtu.be/-uJ9n1HEBBY

IDE for GPSS language

GPSS stands for General Purpose Simulation System. And it looks like that the language is more dead than alive (I didn't find good and actual blog or web site).
I began studying this language a few weeks ago, and faced with the lack of good IDE. I have to work with GPSS World and a don't like this system.
Does anyone know if there is any IDE or IDE-like system to work with GPSS? My dream is about intellisense, good run-time debugger, etc.
P.S. Sorry, but i can't create a new tag 'gpss'.
Thanks.
FastForward to 2016: I have used Wolverine's GPSS\H professional and student version. There are several variations of GPSS and there are many other non-GPSS alternatives.
AGPSS has a GPSS has IDE. A Toolbox GPSS-version exists for MATLAB (subset of commands).
GPSS's (Wolverine version) strength lies in that is computationally very efficient (lean) because it precedes Win-Tel \ DOS. The successor to GPSS\H is Wolverine's SLX and both are considered to be at the forefront of speed and capability. The student versions are available for download and evaluation
Ok, It's time to answer and finally close the question. As I told to lak-b, there are some companies in Russia, but I didn't see their result.
However, I found the one solution - WebGPSS. But I do not know if the development is in progress, or the project already died. You can figure it out by yourself. As to me, I would choose AnyLogic instead of GPSS.
Thanks.
I'm studing in UBA. We are using SNAKE in the Simulation course.

Which IDE to use for ATMega32 micro controller coding

I am involved in a project which requires designing a mini rover (mars rover types). I am using ATMega32 micro controller. I have other hardware like DC motors, IR sensors etc. My query is that is there any IDE that I can use to code the micro controller? It must be user friendly since I am new to the concept of micro controller coding, and also it must have simulators. I did look it up on the net, but there are so many terms associated with it, that it confused me in the end. I think a simple IDE where I can write code, test it using simulator would be enough. Any suggestions?
I would try the Arduino's IDE: http://www.arduino.cc/en/Main/Software
It supports a lot of things such as building and debugging and interfacing with avrdude all from inside the IDE, so definitely a good one for embedded work, though I've never used it myself.
Also, while you are there, you may want to give the Wiring libraries a try. They are really nice for new people and are specifically for the ATMega32(I think).
There's no silver bullet.
Start here http://www.atmel.com/dyn/products/tools_v2.asp?family_id=607
Look for some videos on Youtube to learn.
Arduino is also a very good choice like Earlz wrote.
The best IDE to use would be ATMEL STUDIO 6. You can find it here http://www.atmel.com/microsite/atmel_studio6/. Also you would need a ICSP programmer to burn the .hex file into the Atmega32. Note: The ICSP programmer can also be use to program other atmega chips

3d files in vb.net

I know this will be a difficult question, so I am not necessarily looking for a direct answer but maybe a tutorial or a point in the right direction.
What I am doing is programing a robot that will be controlled by a remote operator. We have a 3D rendering of the robot in SolidWorks. What I am looking to do is get the 3D file into VB (probably using DX9) and be able to manipulate it using code so that the remote operator will have a better idea of what the robot is doing. The operator will also have live video to look at, but that doesn't really matter for this question.
Any help would be greatly appreciated. Thanks!
Sounds like a tough idea to implement. Well, for VB you are stuck with MDX 1.1(Comes with DirectX SDK) or SlimDX (or other 3rd party Managed DirectX wrapper). The latest XNA (replacement for MDX 1.1/2.0b) is only available for C# coder. You can try some workaround but it's not recommended and you won't get much community support. These are the least you need to get your VB to display some 3d stuffs.
If you want to save some trouble, you could use ready made game engine to simplified you job. Try Ogre, and it's managed wrapper MOgre. It was one of the candidate for my project. But I ended up with SlimDX due to Ogre not supporting video very well. But since video is not your requirement, you can really consider it. Most sample would be in C# also, so you need to convert to VB.Net to use. It won't be hard.
Here comes the harder part, you need to export your model exported from SolidWorks to DirectX Format (*.x). I did a quick search in google and only found a few paid tools to do that. You might need to spend a bit on that or spend more time looking for free converter tools.
That's about it. If you have more question, post again. Good Luck
I'm not sure what the real question is but what I suspect that you are trying to do is to be able to manipulate a SW model of a robot with some sort of a manual input. Assuming that this is the correct question, there are two aspects that need to be dwelt with:
1) The Solidworks module: Once the model of the robot is working properly in SW, a program can be written in VB.Net that can manipulate the positional mates for each of the joints. Also using VB, a window can be programmed with slide bars etc. that will allow the operator to be able to "remotely" control the robot. Once this is done, there is a great opportunity to setup a table that could store the sequencial steps. When completed, the VB program could be further developed to allow the robot to "cycle" through a sequence of moves. If any obstacles are also added to the model, this would be a great tool for collission detection and training off line.
2) If the question also includes the incorporation of a physical operator pendent there are a number of potential solutions for this. It would be hoped that the robot software would provide a VB library for communicating and commanding the Robot programatically. If this is the case, then the VB code could then be developed with a "run" mode where the SW robot is controlled by the operator pendent, instead of the controls in the VB window, (as mentioned above). This would then allow the opertor to work "offline" with a virtual robot.
Hope this helps.