1. Dennis C. Erickson ~ Senior Mentor for
Teams 1510 and 2898
1

2. A
Wide
Variety
of
Sensors
can
be
Used
to
enhance
the
operation
of
the
Robot
Primarily
used
in
the
Offensive
Mode
but
are
also
used
in
Defensive
Operations
as
an
Environment
Monitor
(e.g.,
Something’s
Coming)
2

3. 3

4. Input
devices
used
to
aid
in
driving
the
robot
and
to
make
autonomous
decisions
4

5. • Photoelectric
Sensor
• Shaft
Encoder
Sensor
• Yaw
Rate
Gyro
Sensor
• 3-­‐Axis
Accelerometer
Sensor
• Ultrasonic
Detector
Sensor
• Gear
Tooth
Sensor
• Misc
Pneumatic
Sensors
Also
joysticks
and
video
cameras
could
be
considered
sensors
5

6. Use
to
determine
distance
to
friend
or
foe.
Good
from
about
8
inches
to
20
feet
Suggest
using
a
software
filter
to
smooth
the
data
Operates
at
42kHz
with
readings
every
50ms
6

7. The
Block
Diagram
and
the
Front
Panel
Used
in
the
Main
Robot
Application
7

8. Yaw
Rate
Gyro
Senses
angular
changes
about
the
top
surface
axis
of
the
device
and
provides
an
output
voltage
proportional
to
the
instantaneous
angular
rate
change.
The
output
is
useful
for
guidance,
stability,
rate
of
closure
and
control
of
the
robot
platform.
Inertial
guidance
Especially
useful
in
designing
“smart”
Autonomous
software
Best
to
mount
flat
near
the
robot’s
center
of
rotation
8

9. Front
Panel
and
Diagram
9

10. Use
to
determine
rate
of
closure,
vibration,
dynamic
or
static
motion
10

11. Sample
code
used
to
read
the
sensor
and
apply
bounds
to
the
data
for
alarming
11

12. Knowing
the
instantaneous
robot
angle
and
distance
traveled
at
that
angle,
the
position
on
the
field
can
be
determined.
12

13. Hall
Effect
sensor
used
for
detecting
and
counting
magnetic
fields
from
ferrous
gear
teeth
related
to
a
robot’s
drive
operations.
For
example,
it
can
count
teeth
on
a
gear
to
measure
and,
through
the
RC,
control
robot
speed.
Use
counter
VIs
for
analysis.
13

14. Use
to
determine
rate
of
closure,
count
events
(wheel
rotations),
monitor
chain
health
Used
in
conjunction
with
the
counter
VIs
Mostly
located
on
a
gear
box
or
a
motor
14

15. Diagram
and
Front
Panel
Example
15

16. Two
types:
• Reflective
–
A
light
beam
is
reflected
off
an
object
and
that
reflection
detected
by
a
photo
sensitive
device
• Transmissive
(Beam
Break)
–
A
light
beam
is
interrupted
by
an
object
Use
to
determine
the
presence
or
absence
of
objects
(balls,
etc)
16

17. Essentially
a
sensor
that
provides
for
a
User
interface
to
the
control
system
Two
types
of
data:
• Robot
direction
control
(Forward,
reverse,
turning)
• Up
to
12
User
defined
switches
(Program
modifications,
belt
controls,
etc.)
Uses
USB
connections
and
can
have
up
to
4
joysticks:
• In
Tank
mode,
2
joysticks
are
needed
• In
Arcade
mode,
one
joystick
is
needed
• If
switches
are
required,
a
joystick
is
a
simple
way
to
control
belts
and
other
robot
motors,
relays,
solenoids,
etc.
17

18. Front
Panel
and
Diagram
18

19. 19

20. Front
Panel
and
Diagram
20

21. Dennis C. Erickson - dcerickson1@comcast.net