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Netbook Arduino Robot with Network Control
Built off of my last project (Arduino powered Vex Robotics platform), I put together a netbook-powered robot that is driven by an Xbox controller attached to another PC. A wireless network connection transmits the joystick data from the laptop that the joystick is plugged into to the netbook, which interprets the data and feeds it to the Arduino by USB. The Arduino outputs pulse-width signals to 2 Vex Motor Modules (which are continuous rotation servos). The base is powered by a 12V NiMH battery pack I salvaged from a very old laptop but the netbook is powered by its own battery. Since the netbook has a web cam, it is possible to set up video streaming so that the netbook sends back a live video feed, allowing the robot to be controlled from a different room. The netbook is my new Lenovo IdeaPad S10 (Atom 1.6GHz, 1GB RAM, Intel GMA950 graphics, 1024×576 10.1″ LCD, 160GB HDD) and it is currently running Ubuntu 9.10 Desktop Edition (which does work fine on netbooks).
Video Rating: 4 / 5
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But can it run Crysis?
It does have a webcam, I use VLC to stream it to my PC and it works great, it’s just not shown in this video. I don’t have any Apple products but if I figure out how to program Windows Mobile I do have an old Axim PDA that would make a decent controller.
that’s really well done! does it have a camera on the monitor? if so you might want to try using something like skype to stream video and sound. if you have an ipod touch and can write a program to read mouse movements then you can use something like jumi or airmouse to control it as well.
I would recommend a microcontroller platform (the Arduino is good for beginners and works well for small robots, more advanced users can use a plain AVR microcontroller [what the Arduino is based around, though simplified], and if you need more power then go with ARM) and either a network interface (like Ethernet or Bluetooth module) or a basic PC (either a netbook laptop or a small, low power motherboard with network connection).
really cool
but which hardware do you need to make a network controlled robot?
lmao thats amazing
then, if you keep the networking through the laptop, you might let it check if it still has a connection. and if it has not, it gives a signal to stop the wheels
Right now the Arduino just sits in a loop, it starts by looking for a series of start bytes in the serial buffer, if it finds one reads 3 more bytes, and sees if the “frame” is valid, then if so it either changes speed or sets speed limit. The motors keep spinning if the computer doesn’t send a new command, need to implement some sort of timeout though so it doesn’t crash into stuff when the network drops.
yes, but when you make the moving fully by the arduino, the laptop doesnt have to run a extra program so, has more cpu power left for giving the image etc…
There really isn’t any lag other than the network, the netbook-Arduino link is very reliable. The netbook is also a lot faster than the Arduino considering it is full x86 instead of an AVR microcontroller.
controlling it with only the arduino might get rid of some lag in the pc (seeming netbooks aren’t that fast…
you might want to check out this vid:
watch?v=aSMj-evshlo
it could help you building it so to chase something
The point of using the laptop (netbook) is that it can do more advanced networking. The netbook has a webcam that can stream info back to the controlling PC and if I had a data plan I could use the broadband modem to drive it from anywhere. Maybe after I get better at programming I’ll give OpenCV a try, it’s an advanced computer vision library, could maybe make the robot follow lines or chase a ball or something.
portable laptop!
you can also make your own controller on batteries with the Xbee…
then you can controll it without controlling it through a laptop (so, you control it with your own-mad controller, platform receives it, and starts moving).
you should do a UStream based on what you can do with the IdeaPad’s built-in webcam.
You are a genius!
That really is a wireless laptop
This is awesome!!!!!