Author : PUTRA, SURYA

Ada beberapa cara yang dapat dilakukan untuk berkomunikasi antar ruangan dalam suatu gedung, di antaranya dengan sistem PABX dan komunikasi via radio HT. Pada sistem PABX menggunakan line telepon sebagai perantaranya, dimana terdapat kendala jika terjadi perubahan tata ruang. Sistem yang kedua yaitu dengan menggunakan radio HT. Namun penggunaan HT juga memiliki kelemahan. Di antaranya adalah suara dapat didengar oleh semua pengguna HT pada frekuensi yang sama. Sehingga orang yang tidak berkepentingan akan terganggu. Oleh karena itu perlu adanya suatu sistem komunikasi dalam suatu gedung yang dapat mengatasi masalah tersebut. Sistem Komunikasi Antar Ruangan Suatu Gedung dengan Menggunakan Handy Talky (Selective Call) dibuat untuk mengatasi masalah tersebut. Sistem ini dikendalikan oleh mikrokontroler yang dihubungkan ke sebuah radio modem yang menggunakan HT sebagai media perantaranya. Mikrokontroler yang digunakan adalah AT90S2313, dan untuk modemnya digunakan IC XR2206 dan IC XR2211. Dari hasil pengujian sistem, didapatkan bahwa hanya HT yang dihubungi yang dapat mendengarkan suara yang masuk, sehingga tidak mengganggu pemilik HT lain dengan frekuensi yang sama pada gedung itu. Berdasarkan pengujian yang telah dilakukan, peluang sukses dalam pengiriman data agar dapat berjalan sesuai yang diharapkan sebesar 86 %.

Keyword : handy talky, microcontroller, modem, mobile communication

Sumber : http://repository.petra.ac.id/3481/

Author : SEPUTRO, TOTO

Sebuah KWH meter analog yang biasa digunakan oleh PLN pada rumah tinggal. Mempunyai beberapa kelemahan, diantaranya pengaruh usia dan cuaca membuat penunjuk angka buram dan kurang bisa dilihat, berakibat kesalahan baca pada penggunaan daya listrik dan pencatatan rekening listrik yang bisa merugikan pengguna listrik. Untuk mengatasi permasalahan tersebut dibuatlah sebuah digital KWH meter dengan sistem prabayar, dengan kelebihan tampilan digital yang menyala dan berukuran cukup besar, dengan sistem prabayar menggantikan cara pembayaran umumnya, dengan menggunakan kartu prabayar elektronik pengganti tagihan bulanan. Digital KWH meter ini dikontrol oleh sebuah mikrokontroler dengan tipe AVR90S8515 dan menggunakan sebuah sensor digital tipe ADE7757 yang berfungsi untuk membaca tegangan dan arus (dengan beban mencapai 500 Watt) untuk mengetahui besar energi yang digunakan pada instalasi rumah. Seven Segment sebagai penampil data besaran energi listrik yang digunakan di rumah. Dari komponen-komponen tersebut dihasilkan sebuah KWH meter moderen dengan tampilan digital yang dapat mengukur besaran penggunaan energi, dengan batasan maksimal beban 500 watt. Dengan sebuah sistem pembayaran moderen membeli sebuah voucher elektronik, berisi besaran digital (berfungsi sebagai pulsa) sebagai pembanding besaran energi yang digunakan. Secara otomatis sistem ini memutuskan tegangan rumah bila besaran tersebut mencapai nilai 0. Seluruh rangkaian membutuhkan daya 446,5mW diharapkan tidak merugikan PLN.

Keyword : digitized kwh meter, electric meters, microcontroller

Sumber : http://repository.petra.ac.id/3477/

Author : NINABER, FERDI

Tugas akhir ini dibuat dengan tujuan untuk mengaplikasikan kecerdasan buatan dengan menggunakan metode steeepest ascent hill climbing pada robot mobil. Metode ini digunakan untuk penerapan dalam mencari rute yang terpendek. Dalam aplikasinya posisi tujuan dan posisi awal dari robot harus diketahui terlebih dahulu. Robot yang dipakai dilengkapi dengan penjepit dengan tujuan menjepit dan mengangkat benda yang ada pada posisi tujuan. Benda tersebut kemudian akan dibawa pada posisi awal robot. Dalam pembuatan robot ini menggunakan sebuah mikrokontroler tipe AT89S52 yang berfungsi sebagai pengatur dan pengolah data. Setiap titik persimpangan dalam area dihitung nilai jarak lurus titik tersebut terhadap titik tujuan. Metode steepest ascent hill climbing digunakan untuk mengevaluasi nilai jarak lurus tersebut. Nilai yang didapat merupakan acuan robot untuk mengambil keputusan di setiap titik persimpangan. Pada pengujian yang dilakukan, robot dapat menentukan rute berdasarkan metode steepest ascent hill climbing. Rute yang didapat bukan merupakan rute yang terpendek dikarenakan jarak antar titik persimpangan yang identik.

Keyword : hill climbing, microcontroller

Sumber : http://repository.petra.ac.id/3365/

Author : NOVIANTO, MULYO

Untuk mendapatkan hasil pemotretan yang baik di dalam studio foto, dibutuhkan sinar yang merata. Untuk mencapai tujuan tersebut para fotografer mengarahkan lampu-lampu kilat ke arah obyek sehingga hasil yang didapat lebih baik. Dalam mengarahkan lampu para fotografer harus melakukan secara manual yaitu mengatur posisi lampu dan payung ke arah obyek setelah itu fotografer mengukur intensitas cahaya dengan menggunakan light meter. Tetapi tidak mudah bagi seorang fotografer untuk mengatur posisi lampu kilat sehingga menghasilkan sudut efek cahaya yang baik. Dengan adanya permasalahan di atas maka pada tugas akhir ini di buat suatu sistem untuk mengarahkan lampu secara otomatis menuju obyek. Pada sistem ini terdapat tiga bagian utama yaitu mekanik, hardware dan software. Mekanik terdiri dari dua motor stepper, payung, lampu kilat, dan tempat sensor. Pada hardware terdiri dari sensor LDR, instrumentation amplifier multiplexer, ADC, minimum system 89C5 1. Software didesain untuk membaca sensor dan menggerakkan motor stepper sampai Iampu mengarah pada obyek. Berbagai pengujian telah dilakukan untuk menguji kemampuan dari sistem. Error rata-rata dari sistem ini adalah 12%. Error terkecil yang dicapai adalah 3,3% dan error terbesar adalah 26%.

Keyword : mcs-51, microcontroller, automatic, control, computer, programs, lighting, exposure, photo studio

Sumber : http://repository.petra.ac.id/1959/

Author : , KARTONO

Sistem parkir yang berlaku saat ini masih bersifat manual dengan menggunakan karcis parkir sebagai bukti parkir kendaraan dan pembayaran biaya parkir kendaraan dilakukan secara tunai. Sistem parkir yang demikian memiliki kelemahan antara lain, kurangnya tingkat keamanan dan dapat menimbulkan praktek korupsi pada petugas parkir. Dari permasalahan tersebut, maka timbul ide untuk membuat suatu sistem parkir prabayar yang dapat mengidentifikasikan identitas pemilik kendaraan berupa nama, alamat, nomor pelat kendaraan dan jumlah uang. Metode yang digunakan adalah menggunakan RFID reader pada modul pintu masuk atau keluar untuk membaca tag yang terdapat pada kartu parkir, hasil pembacaan akan dikirimkan secara serial oleh mikrokontroler pada modul pintu masuk atau keluar untuk diidentifikasi oleh mikrokontroler pada modul server. Hasil identifikasi akan dikirimkan ke modul pintu masuk atau keluar untuk ditampilkan pada LCD. Bila tampilan pada LCD sesuai dengan STNK, maka kendaraan dapat memasuki atau keluar dari area parkir. Prototype sistem parkir prabayar ini menggunakan mikrokontroler AT89S52, mampu menyimpan 512 kartu parkir dan identitas pemilik kendaraan dengan menggunakan EEPROM 2864 dan 28256 dan dapat dikomunikasikan pada jarak sejauh 80 meter dengan menggunakan RS485. Sistem telah berjalan dengan baik, terbukti dengan dapat mengidentifikasi identitas pemilik kendaraan berupa nama, alamat, nomor pelat kendaraan dan jumlah uang.

Keyword : prepaid park system, identification, RFID tag, RFID reader, microcontroller, RS485, EEPROM

Sumber : http://repository.petra.ac.id/1855/

Author : YOFRI, KRISTIAN

Mikrokontroller merupakan suatu alternatif sistem kendali yang mudah dalam penggunaannya, dikarenakan perubahan dari pengendalian yang diinginkan dapat dilakukan hanya dengan mengubah program yang dimasukkan sehingga tidak perlu lagi mengubah perangkat keras sistem kendali. Dalam Tugas Akhir ini dibuat sistem kontrol pada Mesin pemoles benda kerja dengan menggunakan rnikro kontroller AT89C51 yang dirangkai dalam suatu minimum sistem DT-5I. Pada minimum sistem DT-51 memiliki 3 Port I/O 8 bit yaitu Port A, B dan C yang masing-masing digunakan untuk mengendalikan mesin pemoles tersebut. Pengujian sistem dilakukan untuk mengetahui seberapa jauh performa dari sistem pengendali tersebut, yaitu : ketepatan perhitungan waktu, besar ketidaktepatan pada pemosisian amplas, ketidaktepatan yang terjadi setelah proses dan hasil pemolesan yang didapat berupa waktu proses yang dibutuhkan untuk material kuningan, aluminium dan besi.

Keyword : microcontroller, cast iron, aluminium, bronze

Sumber : http://repository.petra.ac.id/1375/

Mikropengawal (microcontoller atau µC) berbeza dari mikropemproses (microprocessor atau µP).

Ciri utama µC ialah kepelbagaian fungsi periferal dan memori dalam satu cip. Ini mengurangkan jumlah komponen dalam sistem, menjimatkan kos dan meningkatkan reliabiliti sistem.

µP seperti Intel Core i7 dalam PC hanya mengandungi unit pemprosesan pusat (central processing unit atau CPU). Mikropemproses tidak mempunyai memori, fungsi input/output seperti liang selari dsb yang diperlukan untuk membina satu sistem komputer lengkap. µP direka untuk menyediakan fungsi aritmetik dan logik pada tahap paling laju. Komponen lain disediakan oleh cip dan peranti luaran. Ini membolehkan µP disesuaikan dengan pelbagai keperluan pengguna PC.

Sistem komputer beraskan µP

µP 64-bit

Apabila melihat µC, kita akan perhatikan bahawa ia mengandungi memori, liang selari, jam, dan banyak fungsi periferal yang tidak terdapat pada µP. µC selalunya digunakan dalam produk terbenam seperti ketuhar gelombang mikro, pengawal enjin kereta, telefon bimbit dsb. Rekabentuk dan pengaturcaraan bagi produk sedemikian adalah bidang khusus yang dikenali sebagai reka bentuk terbenam (embedded design).

Sistem komputer beraskan µC

µC 8-bit

Perbezaan lain antara µC dan µP ialah µC direka untuk satu fungsi saja manakala µP boleh diprogram untuk melakukan apa saja yang diingini oleh pengguna. Kebiasaannya µC terletak dalam satu peralatan lain, dan pengguna tidak perlu dan tidak boleh menukar fungsi peralatan tersebut. Contonya µC yang mengawal ABS pada kereta hanya boleh melakukan tugas itu sahaja. Sebarang perubahan pada program sebenarnya akan mengundang bahaya.

void baca_ping_1()
{
//====== PING 1 =================================
DDRA=0b00000001;
PORTA=0b00000000;
delay_us(10);
PORTA=0b00000001;
delay_us(10);
PORTA=0b00000000;
delay_us(700);
PORTA=0×00;
DDRA=0×00;
while(PINA.0==0)
{};
#asm(”sei”)
TCCR0|=0×04;
while ((PINA.0==1 && TCCR0==0×04) && TCNT0 <255);
{};
TCCR0 &=0xfb;
ping_1=TCNT0;
TCNT0=0;
delay_ms(20);
/*
lcd_clear();
lcd_gotoxy(0,0);
sprintf(lcd_buff,”%d”,ping_1);
lcd_puts(lcd_buff);
lcd_gotoxy(8,0);
sprintf(lcd_buff,”%d”,ping_2);
lcd_puts(lcd_buff);
delay_ms(10);
*/
}

void ambil_kompas()
{
i2c_start();
i2c_write(0xc0);
i2c_write(1);
i2c_start();
i2c_write(0xc1);
arah=i2c_read(0);
i2c_stop();
delay_us(50);
}

void cek_uv()
{
char j;
for(j=0;j<100;j++)
{
if(uv==0){manuver_padamkan_api();}
delay_ms(10);
}
//time out , brarti gak ada api.
}
*/

Spending some time optimizing my prototyping-tools, i finally got the atmega8-basic-circuit i searched for. i don’t need things like onboard MAX232 or FTDI, because i have modules for that. what i wanted was some AVR-module that is robust, compact and features a crystal, a pullup and ISP. here it is:

i soldered a row of female pin headers directly to the AVR-pins. they have a distance of 0.4″, so you could fit a custom protoboard-shield on top of the module. a 16 MHz-SMD-crystal was glued under the chip and connected to the pins, and so was the pullup. i glued an 6-pin ISP-header to the front of the chip and connected it to the appropriate pins. last but not least  i added an SMD-LED to indicate power-on.  that was it for the electronics. next i filled the space between the female pin headers and above the atmega with hotglue (sticking the led into it). finally i needed a case. i had some lego bricks lying around on the desk and more randomly picked one that seemed to match. amazingly it fit perfect after i clipped the sides of the ISP-header. so i glued the circuit into the hollowed brick and added a label i made in corel draw. that’s about it.

the module is powered by the programmer (USB) and i can access every single pin. i like to use it in prototyping applications where a whole breadboad would be overkill, fragile or simply too large. like when you  just want to create a specific output signal. the module also easily hooks up to a breadboard. here’s another two pics of the lower side and the raw circuit:

A complete microcontroller development kit for little more than the cost of a bare chip? That’s what STMicroelectronics is promising with their STM8S-Discovery: seven dollars gets you not only a board-mounted 8-bit microcontroller with an decent range of GPIO pins and functions, but the USB programmer/debugger as well.

The STM8S microcontroller is in a similar class as the ATmega328 chip on latest-generation Arduinos: an 8-bit 16 MHz core, 32K flash and 2K RAM, UART, SPI, I2C, 10-bit analog-to-digital inputs, timers and interrupts and all the usual goodness. The Discovery board features a small prototyping area and throws in a touch-sense button for fun as well. The ST-LINK USB programmer/debugger comes attached, but it’s easy to crack one off and use this for future STMicro-compatible projects; clearly a plan of giving away the razor and selling the blades.

The development tools are for Windows only, and novice programmers won’t get the same touchy-feely community of support that surrounds Arduino. But for cost-conscious hackers and for educators needing to equip a whole classroom (or if you’re just looking for a stocking stuffer for your geeky nephew), it’s hard to argue with seven bucks for a full plug-and-play setup.

[thanks Billy]

This article’s introduction section may not adequately summarize its contents. To comply with Wikipedia’s lead section guidelines, please consider expanding the lead to provide an accessible overview of the article’s key points. (November 2009)

 

ASIMO, a humanoid robot manufactured by Honda

A robot is a virtual or mechanical artificial agent. In practice, it is usually an electro-mechanical machine which is guided by computer or electronic programming, and is thus able to do tasks on its own. Another common characteristic is that by its appearance or movements, a robot often conveys a sense that it has intent or agency of its own.

Definitions

 

A laparoscopic robotic surgery machine

The word robot can refer to both physical robots and virtual software agents, but the latter are usually referred to as bots.^[1] There is no consensus on which machines qualify as robots, but there is general agreement among experts and the public that robots tend to do some or all of the following: move around, operate a mechanical limb, sense and manipulate their environment, and exhibit intelligent behavior, especially behavior which mimics humans or other animals.

There is conflict about whether the term can be applied to remotely operated devices, as the most common usage implies, or solely to devices which are controlled by their software without human intervention. In South Africa, robot is an informal and commonly used term for a set of traffic lights.

Stories of artificial helpers and companions and attempts to create them have a long history but fully autonomous machines only appeared in the 20th century. The first digitally operated and programmable robot, the Unimate, was installed in 1961 to lift hot pieces of metal from a die casting machine and stack them. Today, commercial and industrial robots are in widespread use performing jobs more cheaply or with greater accuracy and reliability than humans. They are also employed for jobs which are too dirty, dangerous or dull to be suitable for humans. Robots are widely used in manufacturing, assembly and packing, transport, earth and space exploration, surgery, weaponry, laboratory research, and mass production of consumer and industrial goods.^[2]

It is difficult to compare numbers of robots in different countries, since there are different definitions of what a “robot” is. The International Organization for Standardization gives a definition of robot in ISO 8373: “an automatically controlled, reprogrammable, multipurpose, manipulator programmable in three or more axes, which may be either fixed in place or mobile for use in industrial automation applications.”^[3] This definition is used by the International Federation of Robotics, the European Robotics Research Network (EURON), and many national standards committees.^[4]

The Robotics Institute of America (RIA) uses a broader definition: a robot is a “re-programmable multi-functional manipulator designed to move materials, parts, tools, or specialized devices through variable programmed motions for the performance of a variety of tasks.”^[5] The RIA subdivides robots into four classes: devices that manipulate objects with manual control, automated devices that manipulate objects with predetermined cycles, programmable and servo-controlled robots with continuous point-to-point trajectories, and robots of this last type which also acquire information from the environment and move intelligently in response.

There is no one definition of robot which satisfies everyone, and many people have their own.^[6] For example, Joseph Engelberger, a pioneer in industrial robotics, once remarked: “I can’t define a robot, but I know one when I see one.”^[7] According to Encyclopaedia Britannica, a robot is “any automatically operated machine that replaces human effort, though it may not resemble human beings in appearance or perform functions in a humanlike manner”.^[8] Merriam-Webster describes a robot as a “machine that looks like a human being and performs various complex acts (as walking or talking) of a human being”, or a “device that automatically performs complicated often repetitive tasks”, or a “mechanism guided by automatic controls”.^[9]

Modern robots are usually used in tightly controlled environments such as on assembly lines because they have difficulty responding to unexpected interference. Because of this, most humans rarely encounter robots. However, domestic robots for cleaning and maintenance are increasingly common in and around homes in developed countries, particularly in Japan. Robots can also be found in the military.

Defining characteristics

KITT is mentally anthropomorphic, while ASIMO is physically anthropomorphic

While there is no single correct definition of “robot,”^[10] a typical robot will have several, or possibly all, of the following characteristics.

It is an electric machine which has some ability to interact with physical objects and to be given electronic programming to do a specific task or to do a whole range of tasks or actions. It may also have some ability to perceive and absorb data on physical objects, or on its local physical environment, or to process data, or to respond to various stimuli. This is in contrast to a simple mechanical device such as a gear or a hydraulic press or any other item which has no processing ability and which does tasks through purely mechanical processes and motion.

Mental agency

For robotic engineers, the physical appearance of a machine is less important than the way its actions are controlled. The more the control system seems to have agency of its own, the more likely the machine is to be called a robot. An important feature of agency is the ability to make choices. Higher-level cognitive functions, though, are not necessary, as shown by ant robots.

• A clockwork car is never considered a robot.
• A remotely operated vehicle is sometimes considered a robot (or telerobot).^[11]
• A car with an onboard computer, like Bigtrak, which could drive in a programmable sequence, might be called a robot.
• A self-controlled car which could sense its environment and make driving decisions based on this information, such as the 1990s driverless cars of Ernst Dickmanns or the entries in the DARPA Grand Challenge, would quite likely be called a robot.
• A sentient car, like the fictional KITT, which can make decisions, navigate freely and converse fluently with a human, is usually considered a robot.

Physical agency

However, for many laymen, if a machine appears to be able to control its arms or limbs, and especially if it appears anthropomorphic or zoomorphic (e.g. ASIMO or Aibo), it would be called a robot.

• A player piano is rarely characterized as a robot.^[12]
• A CNC milling machine is very occasionally characterized as a robot.
• A factory automation arm is almost always characterized as an industrial robot.
• An autonomous wheeled or tracked device, such as a self-guided rover or self-guided vehicle, is almost always characterized as a mobile robot or service robot.
• A zoomorphic mechanical toy, like Roboraptor, is usually characterized as a robot.^[13]
• A mechanical humanoid, like ASIMO, is almost always characterized as a robot, usually as a service robot.

Even for a 3-axis CNC milling machine using the same control system as a robot arm, it is the arm which is almost always called a robot, while the CNC machine is usually just a machine. Having eyes can also make a difference in whether a machine is called a robot, since humans instinctively connect eyes with sentience. However, simply being anthropomorphic is not a sufficient criterion for something to be called a robot. A robot must do something; an inanimate object shaped like ASIMO would not be considered a robot.

Etymology

 

A scene from Karel Čapek’s 1920 play R.U.R. (Rossum’s Universal Robots), showing three robots

The word robot was introduced to the public by Czech writer Karel Čapek in his play R.U.R. (Rossum’s Universal Robots), published in 1920.^[14] The play begins in a factory that makes artificial people called robots, but they are closer to the modern ideas of androids, creatures who can be mistaken for humans. They can plainly think for themselves, though they seem happy to serve. At issue is whether the robots are being exploited and the consequences of their treatment.

However, Karel Čapek himself did not coin the word. He wrote a short letter in reference to an etymology in the Oxford English Dictionary in which he named his brother, the painter and writer Josef Čapek, as its actual originator.^[14] In an article in the Czech journal Lidové noviny in 1933, he explained that he had originally wanted to call the creatures laboři (from Latin labor, work). However, he did not like the word, and sought advice from his brother Josef, who suggested “roboti”. The word robota means literally work, labor or serf labor, and figuratively “drudgery” or “hard work” in Czech and many Slavic languages. Traditionally the robota was the work period a serf had to give for his lord, typically 6 months of the year.^[15] Serfdom was outlawed in 1848 in Bohemia, so at the time Čapek wrote R.U.R., usage of the term robota had broadened to include various types of work, but the obsolete sense of “serfdom” would still have been known.^[16][17]

The word robotics, used to describe this field of study, was coined (albeit accidentally) by the science fiction writer Isaac Asimov.

Social impact

As robots have become more advanced and sophisticated, experts and academics have increasingly explored the questions of what ethics might govern robots’ behavior,^[18] and whether robots might be able to claim any kind of social, cultural, ethical or legal rights.^[19] One scientific team has said that it is possible that a robot brain will exist by 2019.^[20] Others predict robot intelligence breakthroughs by 2050.^[21] Recent advances have made robotic behavior more sophisticated.^[22]
Vernor Vinge has suggested that a moment may come when computers and robots are smarter than humans. He calls this “the Singularity.”^[23] He suggests that it may be somewhat or possibly very dangerous for humans.^[24] This is discussed by a philosophy called Singularitarianism.
In 2009, experts attended a conference to discuss whether computers and robots might be able to acquire any autonomy, and how much these abilities might pose a threat or hazard. They noted that some robots have acquired various forms of semi-autonomy, including being able to find power sources on their own and being able to independently choose targets to attack with weapons. They also noted that some computer viruses can evade elimination and have achieved “cockroach intelligence.” They noted that self-awareness as depicted in science-fiction is probably unlikely, but that there were other potential hazards and pitfalls.^[23] Various media sources and scientific groups have noted separate trends in differing areas which might together result in greater robotic functionalities and autonomy, and which pose some inherent concerns.^[25][26][27]

Some experts and academics have questioned the use of robots for military combat, especially when such robots are given some degree of autonomous functions.^[28] There are also concerns about technology which might allow some armed robots to be controlled mainly by other robots.^[29] The US Navy has funded a report which indicates that as military robots become more complex, there should be greater attention to implications of their ability to make autonomous decisions.^[30][31] Some public concerns about autonomous robots have received media attention, especially one robot, EATR, which can continually refuel itself using biomass and organic substances which it finds on battlefields or other local environments.^[32][33]
The Association for the Advancement of Artificial Intelligence has studied this topic in depth ^[18] and its president has commissioned a study to look at this issue.^[34]

Some have suggested a need to build “Friendly AI“, meaning that the advances which are already occurring with AI should also include an effort to make AI intrinsically friendly and humane.^[35] Several such measures reportedly already exist, with robot-heavy countries such as Japan and South Korea ^[36] having begun to pass regulations requiring robots to be equipped with safety systems, and possibly sets of ‘laws’ akin to Asimov’s Three Laws of Robotics.^[37][38] An official report was issued in 2009 by the Japanese government’s Robot Industry Policy Committee.^[39] Chinese officials and researchers have issued a report suggesting a set of ethical rules, as well as a set of new legal guidelines referred to as “Robot Legal Studies.” ^[40] Some concern has been expressed over a possible occurrence of robots telling apparent falsehoods.^[41]

Technological trends

Technological development

Overall trends

Japan hopes to have full-scale commercialization of service robots by 2025. Much technological research in Japan is led by Japanese government agencies, particularly the Trade Ministry.^[42]

As robots become more advanced, eventually there may be a standard computer operating system designed mainly for robots. Robot Operating System (ROS) is an open-source set of programs being developed at Stanford University, the Massachusetts Institute of Technology and the Technical University of Munich, Germany, among others. ROS provides ways to program a robot’s navigation and limbs regardless of the specific hardware involved. It also provides high-level commands for items like image recognition and even opening doors. When ROS boots up on a robot’s computer, it would obtain data on attributes such as the length and movement of robots’ limbs. It would relay this data to higher-level algorithms. Microsoft is also developing a “Windows for robots” system with its Robotics Developer Studio, which has been available since 2007.^[43]

New functions and abilities

The Caterpillar Company is making a dump truck which can drive itself without any human operator.^[44]

Research robots

While most robots today are installed in factories or homes, performing labour or life saving jobs, many new types of robot are being developed in laboratories around the world. Much of the research in robotics focuses not on specific industrial tasks, but on investigations into new types of robot, alternative ways to think about or design robots, and new ways to manufacture them. It is expected that these new types of robot will be able to solve real world problems when they are finally realized.^{[citation needed]}

 

A microfabricated electrostatic gripper holding some silicon nanowires.^[45]

• Nanorobots: Nanorobotics is the still largely hypothetical technology of creating machines or robots at or close to the scale of a nanometer (10⁻⁹ meters). Also known as nanobots or nanites, they would be constructed from molecular machines. So far, researchers have mostly produced only parts of these complex systems, such as bearings, sensors, and Synthetic molecular motors, but functioning robots have also been made such as the entrants to the Nanobot Robocup contest.^[46] Researchers also hope to be able to create entire robots as small as viruses or bacteria, which could perform tasks on a tiny scale. Possible applications include micro surgery (on the level of individual cells), utility fog,^[47] manufacturing, weaponry and cleaning.^[48] Some people have suggested that if there were nanobots which could reproduce, the earth would turn into “grey goo“, while others argue that this hypothetical outcome is nonsense.^[49][50]
• Soft Robots: Robots with silicone bodies and flexible actuators (air muscles, electroactive polymers, and ferrofluids), controlled using fuzzy logic and neural networks, look and feel different from robots with rigid skeletons, and are capable of different behaviors.^[51]
• Reconfigurable Robots: A few researchers have investigated the possibility of creating robots which can alter their physical form to suit a particular task,^[52] like the fictional T-1000. Real robots are nowhere near that sophisticated however, and mostly consist of a small number of cube shaped units, which can move relative to their neighbours, for example SuperBot. Algorithms have been designed in case any such robots become a reality.^[53]

 

A swarm of robots from the Open-source Micro-robotic Project

• Swarm robots: Inspired by colonies of insects such as ants and bees, researchers are modeling the behavior of swarms of thousands of tiny robots which together perform a useful task, such as finding something hidden, cleaning, or spying. Each robot is quite simple, but the emergent behavior of the swarm is more complex. The whole set of robots can be considered as one single distributed system, in the same way an ant colony can be considered a superorganism, exhibiting swarm intelligence. The largest swarms so far created include the iRobot swarm, the SRI/MobileRobots CentiBots project^[54] and the Open-source Micro-robotic Project swarm, which are being used to research collective behaviors.^[55][56] Swarms are also more resistant to failure. Whereas one large robot may fail and ruin a mission, a swarm can continue even if several robots fail. This could make them attractive for space exploration missions, where failure can be extremely costly.^[57]
• Haptic interface robots: Robotics also has application in the design of virtual reality interfaces. Specialized robots are in widespread use in the haptic research community. These robots, called “haptic interfaces,” allow touch-enabled user interaction with real and virtual environments. Robotic forces allow simulating the mechanical properties of “virtual” objects, which users can experience through their sense of touch.^[58] Haptic interfaces are also used in robot-aided rehabilitation.

Varying cultural perceptions

Roughly half of all the robots in the world are in Asia, 32% in Europe, and 16% in North America, 1% in Australasia and 1% in Africa.^[59] 30% of all the robots in the world are in Japan.^[60] This means that Japan has the most robots in the world out of all the countries, and is in fact leading the world’s robotics.^[61] Japan is actually said to be the robotic capital of the world.^[62]

In Japan and South Korea, ideas of future robots have been mainly positive, and the start of the pro-robotic society there is thought to be possibly due to the famous ‘Astro Boy‘. Asian societies such as Japan, South Korea, and more recently, China, believe robots to be more equal to humans, having them care for old people, play with or teach children, or replace pets etc.^[63] The general view in Asian cultures is that the more robots advance, the better, which is the opposite of the Western belief.

“This is the opening of an era in which human beings and robots can co-exist,” says Japanese firm Mitsubishi about one of the many humanistic robots in Japan.^[64] South Korea aims to put a robot in every house there by 2015-2020 in order to help catch up technologically with Japan.^[36][65]

Western societies are more likely to be against, or even fear the development of robotics, through much media output in movies and literature that they will replace humans. Some believe that the West regards robots as a ‘threat’ to the future of humans, partly due to religious beliefs about the role of humans and society.^[62][66] Obviously, these boundaries are not clear, but there is a significant difference between the two cultural viewpoints.

Contemporary uses

At present there are 2 main types of robots, based on their use: general-purpose autonomous robots and dedicated robots.

 

TOPIO, a humanoid robot developed by TOSY that can play ping-pong.^[67]

Robots can be classified by their specificity of purpose. A robot might be designed to perform one particular task extremely well, or a range of tasks less well. Of course, all robots by their nature can be re-programmed to behave differently, but some are limited by their physical form. For example, a factory robot arm can perform jobs such as cutting, welding, gluing, or acting as a fairground ride, while a pick-and-place robot can only populate printed circuit boards.

General-purpose autonomous robots

It has been suggested that Open-source robotics#Uses be merged into this article or section. (Discuss)

General-purpose autonomous robots are robots that can perform a variety of functions independently. General-purpose autonomous robots typically can navigate independently in known spaces, handle their own re-charging needs, interface with electronic doors and elevators and perform other basic tasks. Like computers, general-purpose robots can link with networks, software and accessories that increase their usefulness. They may recognize people or objects, talk, provide companionship, monitor environmental quality, respond to alarms, pick up supplies and perform other useful tasks. General-purpose robots may perform a variety of functions simultaneously or they may take on different roles at different times of day. Some such robots try to mimic human beings and may even resemble people in appearance; this type of robot is called a humanoid robot.

 

A general-purpose robot acts as a guide during the day and a security guard at night

Dedicated robots

In 2006, there were an estimated 3,540,000 service robots in use, and an estimated 950,000 industrial robots.^[68] A different estimate counted more than one million robots in operation worldwide in the first half of 2008, with roughly half in Asia, 32% in Europe, 16% in North America, 1% in Australasia and 1% in Africa.^[69] Industrial and service robots can be placed into roughly two classifications based on the type of job they do. The first category includes tasks which a robot can do with greater productivity, accuracy, or endurance than humans; the second category consists of dirty, dangerous or dull jobs which humans find undesirable.

Increased productivity, accuracy, and endurance

 

A Pick and Place robot in a factory

Many factory jobs are now performed by robots. This has led to cheaper mass-produced goods, including automobiles and electronics. Stationary manipulators used in factories have become the largest market for robots. In 2006, there were an estimated 3,540,000 service robots in use, and an estimated 950,000 industrial robots.^[68] A different estimate counted more than one million robots in operation worldwide in the first half of 2008, with roughly half in Asia, 32% in Europe, 16% in North America, 1% in Australasia and 1% in Africa.^[69]

Some examples of factory robots

• Car production: Over the last three decades automobile factories have become dominated by robots. A typical factory contains hundreds of industrial robots working on fully automated production lines, with one robot for every ten human workers. On an automated production line, a vehicle chassis on a conveyor is welded, glued, painted and finally assembled at a sequence of robot stations.

• Packaging: Industrial robots are also used extensively for palletizing and packaging of manufactured goods, for example for rapidly taking drink cartons from the end of a conveyor belt and placing them into boxes, or for loading and unloading machining centers.

• Electronics: Mass-produced printed circuit boards (PCBs) are almost exclusively manufactured by pick-and-place robots, typically with SCARA manipulators, which remove tiny electronic components from strips or trays, and place them on to PCBs with great accuracy.^[70] Such robots can place hundreds of thousands of components per hour, far out-performing a human in speed, accuracy, and reliability.^[71]

• Automated guided vehicles (AGVs): Mobile robots, following markers or wires in the floor, or using vision^[72] or lasers, are used to transport goods around large facilities, such as warehouses, container ports, or hospitals.^[73]

• • Early AGV-Style Robots were limited to tasks that could be accurately defined and had to be performed the same way every time. Very little feedback or intelligence was required, and the robots needed only the most basic exteroceptors (sensors). The limitations of these AGVs are that their paths are not easily altered and they cannot alter their paths if obstacles block them. If one AGV breaks down, it may stop the entire operation.

• • Interim AGV-Technologies developed that deploy triangulation from beacons or bar code grids for scanning on the floor or ceiling. In most factories, triangulation systems tend to require moderate to high maintenance, such as daily cleaning of all beacons or bar codes. Also, if a tall pallet or large vehicle blocks beacons or a bar code is marred, AGVs may become lost. Often such AGVs are designed to be used in human-free environments.

• • Newer AGVs such as the Speci-Minder,^[74] ADAM,^[75] Tug^[76] and PatrolBot Gofer^[77] are designed for people-friendly workspaces. They navigate by recognizing natural features. 3D scanners or other means of sensing the environment in two or three dimensions help to eliminate cumulative errors in dead-reckoning calculations of the AGV’s current position. Some AGVs can create maps of their environment using scanning lasers with simultaneous localization and mapping (SLAM) and use those maps to navigate in real time with other path planning and obstacle avoidance algorithms. They are able to operate in complex environments and perform non-repetitive and non-sequential tasks such as transporting photomasks in a semiconductor lab, specimens in hospitals and goods in warehouses. For dynamic areas, such as warehouses full of pallets, AGVs require additional strategies. Only a few vision-augmented systems currently claim to be able to navigate reliably in such environments.

Dirty, dangerous, dull or inaccessible tasks

 

A U.S. Marine Corps technician prepares to use a telerobot to detonate a buried improvised explosive device near Camp Fallujah, Iraq

There are many jobs which humans would rather leave to robots. The job may be boring, such as domestic cleaning, or dangerous, such as exploring inside a volcano.^[78] Other jobs are physically inaccessible, such as exploring another planet,^[79] cleaning the inside of a long pipe, or performing laparoscopic surgery.^[80]

• Telerobots: When a human cannot be present on site to perform a job because it is dangerous, far away, or inaccessible, teleoperated robots, or telerobots are used. Rather than following a predetermined sequence of movements, a telerobot is controlled from a distance by a human operator. The robot may be in another room or another country, or may be on a very different scale to the operator. For instance, a laparoscopic surgery robot allows the surgeon to work inside a human patient on a relatively small scale compared to open surgery, significantly shortening recovery time.^[80] When disabling a bomb, the operator sends a small robot to disable it. Several authors have been using a device called the Longpen to sign books remotely.^[81] Teleoperated robot aircraft, like the Predator Unmanned Aerial Vehicle, are increasingly being used by the military. These pilotless drones can search terrain and fire on targets.^[82][83] Hundreds of robots such as iRobot’s Packbot and the Foster-Miller TALON are being used in Iraq and Afghanistan by the U.S. military to defuse roadside bombs or Improvised Explosive Devices (IEDs) in an activity known as explosive ordnance disposal (EOD).^[84]

• Automated fruit harvesting machines: are being used to pick fruit on orchards at a cost lower than that of human pickers.

 

The Roomba domestic vacuum cleaner robot does a single, menial job

 

The ANATROLLER ARI-100 is a modular mobile robot used for cleaning hazardous environments

• In the home: As prices fall and robots become smarter and more autonomous, simple robots dedicated to a single task work in over a million homes. They are taking on simple but unwanted jobs, such as vacuum cleaning and floor washing, and lawn mowing. Some find these robots to be cute and entertaining, which is one reason that they can sell very well.
• Elder Care: The population is aging in many countries, especially Japan, meaning that there are increasing numbers of elderly people to care for, but relatively fewer young people to care for them.^[85][86] Humans make the best carers, but where they are unavailable, robots are gradually being introduced.^[87]
• Duct Cleaning: In the hazardous and tight spaces of a building’s duct work, many hours can be spent cleaning relatively small areas if a manual brush is used. Robots have been used by many duct cleaners primarily in the industrial and institutional cleaning markets, as they allow the job to be done faster, without exposing workers to the harful enzymes released by dust mites. For cleaning high-security institutions such as embassies and prisons, duct cleaning robots are vital, as they allow the job to be completed without compromising the security of the institution. Hospitals and other government buildings with hazardous and cancerogenic environments such as nuclear reactors legally must be cleaned using duct cleaning robots, in countries such as Canada, in an effort to improve workplace safety in duct cleaning.

Potential problems

Fears and concerns about robots have been repeatedly expressed in a wide range of books and films. A common theme is the development of a master race of conscious and highly intelligent robots, motivated to take over or destroy the human race. (See The Terminator, Runaway, Blade Runner, Robocop, [[Replicator (Stargate)the Replicators in Stargate]], the Cylons in Battlestar Galactica, The Matrix, THX-1138, and I, Robot.) Some fictional robots are programmed to kill and destroy; others gain superhuman intelligence and abilities by upgrading their own software and hardware. Examples of popular media where the robot becomes evil are 2001: A Space Odyssey, Red Planet, … Another common theme is the reaction, sometimes called the “uncanny valley“, of unease and even revulsion at the sight of robots that mimic humans too closely.^[88] Frankenstein (1818), often called the first science fiction novel, has become synonymous with the theme of a robot or monster advancing beyond its creator. In the TV show, Futurama, the robots are portrayed as humanoid figures that live alongside humans, not as robotic butlers. They still work in industry, but these robots carry out daily lives.

Manuel De Landa has noted that “smart missiles” and autonomous bombs equipped with artificial perception can be considered robots, and they make some of their decisions autonomously. He believes this represents an important and dangerous trend in which humans are handing over important decisions to machines.^[89]

Marauding robots may have entertainment value, but unsafe use of robots constitutes an actual danger. A heavy industrial robot with powerful actuators and unpredictably complex behavior can cause harm, for instance by stepping on a human’s foot or falling on a human. Most industrial robots operate inside a security fence which separates them from human workers, but not all. Two robot-caused deaths are those of Robert Williams and Kenji Urada. Robert Williams was struck by a robotic arm at a casting plant in Flat Rock, Michigan on January 25, 1979.^[90] 37-year-old Kenji Urada, a Japanese factory worker, was killed in 1981; Urada was performing routine maintenance on the robot, but neglected to shut it down properly, and was accidentally pushed into a grinding machine.^[91]

Timeline

History

Many ancient mythologies include artificial people, such as the mechanical servants built by the Greek god Hephaestus^[96] (Vulcan to the Romans), the clay golems of Jewish legend and clay giants of Norse legend, and Galatea, the mythical statue of Pygmalion that came to life. In Greek drama, Deus Ex Machina was contrived as a dramatic device that usually involved lowering a deity by wires into the play to solve a seemingly impossible problem.

In the 4th century BC, the Greek mathematician Archytas of Tarentum postulated a mechanical steam-operated bird he called “The Pigeon”. Hero of Alexandria (10–70 AD) created numerous user-configurable automated devices, and described machines powered by air pressure, steam and water.^[97] Su Song built a clock tower in China in 1088 featuring mechanical figurines that chimed the hours.^[98]

 

Al-Jazari’s programmable humanoid robots

Al-Jazari (1136–1206), a Muslim inventor during the Artuqid dynasty, designed and constructed a number of automated machines, including kitchen appliances, musical automata powered by water, and the first programmable humanoid robots in 1206.^{[citation needed]} The robots appeared as four musicians on a boat in a lake, entertaining guests at royal drinking parties. His mechanism had a programmable drum machine with pegs (cams) that bumped into little levers that operated percussion instruments. The drummer could be made to play different rhythms and different drum patterns by moving the pegs to different locations.^{[citation needed]}

Early modern developments

 

Tea-serving karakuri, with mechanism, 19th century. Tokyo National Science Museum.

Leonardo da Vinci (1452–1519) sketched plans for a humanoid robot around 1495. Da Vinci’s notebooks, rediscovered in the 1950s, contain detailed drawings of a mechanical knight now known as Leonardo’s robot, able to sit up, wave its arms and move its head and jaw.^[99] The design was probably based on anatomical research recorded in his Vitruvian Man. It is not known whether he attempted to build it. In 1738 and 1739, Jacques de Vaucanson exhibited several life-sized automatons: a flute player, a pipe player and a duck. The mechanical duck could flap its wings, crane its neck, and swallow food from the exhibitor’s hand, and it gave the illusion of digesting its food by excreting matter stored in a hidden compartment.^[100] Complex mechanical toys and animals built in Japan in the 1700s were described in the Karakuri zui (Illustrated Machinery, 1796)

Modern developments

The Japanese craftsman Hisashige Tanaka (1799–1881), known as “Japan’s Edison” or “Karakuri Giemon”, created an array of extremely complex mechanical toys, some of which served tea, fired arrows drawn from a quiver, and even painted a Japanese kanji character.^[101] In 1898 Nikola Tesla publicly demonstrated a radio-controlled torpedo.^[102] Based on patents for “teleautomation”, Tesla hoped to develop it into a weapon system for the US Navy.^[103][104]

 

The first Unimate

In 1926, Westinghouse Electric Corporation created Televox, the first robot put to useful work. They followed Televox with a number of other simple robots, including one called Rastus, made in the crude image of a black man. In the 1930s, they created a humanoid robot known as Elektro for exhibition purposes, including the 1939 and 1940 World’s Fairs.^[105][106] In 1928, Japan’s first robot, Gakutensoku, was designed and constructed by biologist Makoto Nishimura.

The first electronic autonomous robots were created by William Grey Walter of the Burden Neurological Institute at Bristol, England in 1948 and 1949. They were named Elmer and Elsie. These robots could sense light and contact with external objects, and use these stimuli to navigate.^[107]

The first truly modern robot, digitally operated and programmable, was invented by George Devol in 1954 and was ultimately called the Unimate. Devol sold the first Unimate to General Motors in 1960, and it was installed in 1961 in a plant in Trenton, New Jersey to lift hot pieces of metal from a die casting machine and stack them.^[108]

Literature

 

A gynoid, or robot designed to resemble a woman, can appear comforting to some people and disturbing to others^[88]

Robotic characters, androids (artificial men/women) or gynoids (artificial women), and cyborgs (also “bionic men/women”, or humans with significant mechanical enhancements) have become a staple of science fiction.

The first reference in Western literature to mechanical servants appears in Homer’s Iliad. In Book XVIII, Hephaestus, god of fire, creates new armor for the hero Achilles, assisted by robots.^[109] According to the Rieu translation, “Golden maidservants hastened to help their master. They looked like real women and could not only speak and use their limbs but were endowed with intelligence and trained in handwork by the immortal gods.” Of course, the words “robot” or “android” are not used to describe them, but they are nevertheless mechanical devices human in appearance.

The most prolific author of stories about robots was Isaac Asimov (1920–1992), who placed robots and their interaction with society at the center of many of his works.^[110][111] Asimov carefully considered the problem of the ideal set of instructions robots might be given in order to lower the risk to humans, and arrived at his Three Laws of Robotics: a robot may not injure a human being or, through inaction, allow a human being to come to harm; a robot must obey orders given to it by human beings, except where such orders would conflict with the First Law; and a robot must protect its own existence as long as such protection does not conflict with the First or Second Law.^[112] These were introduced in his 1942 short story “Runaround”, although foreshadowed in a few earlier stories. Later, Asimov added the Zeroth Law: “A robot may not harm humanity, or, by inaction, allow humanity to come to harm”; the rest of the laws are modified sequentially to acknowledge this.

According to the Oxford English Dictionary, the first passage in Asimov’s short story “Liar!” (1941) that mentions the First Law is the earliest recorded use of the word robotics. Asimov was not initially aware of this; he assumed the word already existed by analogy with mechanics, hydraulics, and other similar terms denoting branches of applied knowledge.^[113]

See also

Robotics portal

Main list: Topic outline of robotics

For classes and types of robots see Category:Robots.

Notes and references

Further reading

• Cheney, Margaret [1989:123] (1981). Tesla, Man Out of Time. Dorset Press. New York. ISBN 0-88029-419-1
• Craig, J.J. (2005). Introduction to Robotics. Pearson Prentice Hall. Upper Saddle River, NJ.
• Needham, Joseph (1986). Science and Civilization in China: Volume 2. Taipei: Caves Books Ltd.
• Sotheby’s New York. The Tin Toy Robot Collection of Matt Wyse, (1996)
• Tsai, L. W. (1999). Robot Analysis. Wiley. New York.
• DeLanda, Manuel. War in the Age of Intelligent Machines. 1991. Swerve. New York.
• Journal of Field Robotics

External links

Wikibooks has a book on the topic of   Robotics

Wikiversity has learning materials about Anthropomorphic Robotics

Wikimedia Commons has media related to: Robots

Look up robot in Wiktionary, the free dictionary.

General news and developments

• robots.net general robot-related news and technological developments.

Research

• International Foundation of Robotics Research (IFRR)
• International Journal of Robotics Research (IJRR).
• Robotics and Automation Society (RAS) at IEEE
• Robotics Network at IET
• Robotics Division at NASA
• Human Machine Integration Laboratory at Arizona State University

Other links

• Robotics at DMOZ at the Open Directory Project
• List of robots at Communist Robot

Description

With serial communication you can exchange data with the AVR-microcontroller and your PC. Allmost all AVR-microcontroller have a UART (Universal Asynchronous Reciever/Transmitter) on board of the chip (accept for the AT1200 and some ATTiny microcontrollers). The data transmission between the PC and the microcontroller is serial and asynchronous, serial means that the bits are send one after the other and asynchronous means that there is no clock signal to clock in the data that is send or recieved. One byte is transmitted in 10 bits, 1 start bit, 8 data bits and one stop bit, as you can see in the figure below.

The serial data transmission has a standard that is called RS232. According to this standard a logical “0″ has a voltage level between -15V and -5V and a logical “1″ has a level between +5V and +15V. The AVR-microcontrolers use 5V (TTL-level) to transmit signals. So the signals needs to be converted, this can be done with the MAX232, that only needs a 5V power supply to convert the signal from TTL-level to RS232 level and reverse.
Transmission between two RS232 devices can take place with a maximum distance of 15 meters.

Hardware

Below you can see the schematic of how the RS232 convertor is connected to the AT microcontroller.

Software

With BASCOM you can easily write software to communicate with the AVR-microcontroller, because BASCOM has several commands for the serial communication. Below is an example program, as you can see it takes little effort with BASCOM to implement serial communication into your microcontroller system. The program will print text in the terminal program. To test the program you can use the BASCOM terminal emulator or Hyperterminal, or my own terminal program. The settings for the COM port are: COM1,9600,N,8,1.

Downloads

File	Description	File size	Downloads	Last Modified
Serial Com~.bas	AVR BASCOM source file	1 Kb	212	26/05/2009 12:47
Serial Com~.hex	hex file	2 Kb	95	26/05/2009 12:48

Source: http://www.avrprojects.net

mbed is a next-generation 32-bit microcontroller platform. It’s a prototyping and teaching tool somewhat along the lines of Arduino. On steroids. With claws and fangs. Other contenders in this class include the MAKE Controller, STM32 Primer and Primer 2, Freescale Tower, and Microchip’s PIC32 Starter Kit. The mbed hardware has a number of advantages (and a few disadvantages) compared to these other platforms, but what really sets it apart is the development environment: the entire system — editor, compiler, libraries and reference materials — are completely web-based. There is no software to install or maintain on the host system.

The Hardware

The mbed board is sensibly priced at $60; about middle of the road among its peers. mbed’s size (or lack thereof) is among its greatest assets, measuring only about 1″ by 2″ (26 x 52mm) in a stout 40-pin DIP package that just barely manages to fit in a breadboard…a major win.

The top of the board is dominated by the microcontroller itself: a 60MHz NXP LPC1768 based on the eminently capable 32-bit ARM Cortex-M3 core, sporting 64K of RAM and 512K flash, and rounded out with an embarrassment of peripheral riches: Ethernet, USB (host, device, and to-go), CAN bus, multiple serial, I2C and SPI buses, 12-bit A/D and even a 10-bit D/A converter and realtime clock/calendar. Also on top is the USB connector (mini-B), some power regulation circuitry (operating on 4.5 to 9 volts DC, or USB power), several indicator LEDs, and the reset button (a plain vanilla tactile switch on our purchased unit, not the candy-like blue button seen in product shots).

The underside conceals an Ethernet transceiver chip (requiring only the addition of an RJ45 jack to get the board on a network) and a DiskOnChip-style component that provides a small (about 2MB) FAT filesystem when attached to a host system through USB, much like a thumb drive.

This latter feature — the FAT filesystem — is half of the key to mbed’s software-free, cross-platform magic. Getting new code onto the device is simply a matter of copying the compiled program (as a .bin file) to this drive. Press the reset button, and the new code is copied to the MCU’s internal flash and run. No special programming hardware dongle, no special bootloader software, just drag and drop. This has some serious implications. Pretty much any system these days can mount a FAT filesystem. We’re not just talking about getting Mac and Linux users into the fold alongside Windows…there’s also the impending wave of featherweight netbooks with ARM and VIA chips running peculiar, instant-on operating systems. Or the OLPC XO-1. Or older PowerPC Macs. The computers in the school’s lab that you’re not allowed to install any software on. Game consoles.

The Software

“Cloud computing” is still the hot buzzword this week, and the mbed project has adopted the concept wholeheartedly, comprising the other half of their softwareless strategy. Everything with mbed — everything, even your own source code — resides on their servers and is accessed through a web browser. This carries with it all of the good and bad points of any other network-based service such as Google Docs. There’s the potential for this to be a fantastic tool for teaching and collaboration, and in fact they’ve created such an online community for mbed, with forums and publicly-shareable code libraries. One can move between home and office, or travel around the world, and resume editing code on any system with a solid ’net connection. No need to check for software updates; the server will always be current.

mbed programs are written in C++ (yes, thankfully it’s “programs” and “C++,” not “sketches” or “the mbed language”) using their JavaScript-based online editor. When ready, click the Compile button. The compiler and linker run on the back end, on the server at the other end of the network connection. Provided your code is all syntactically valid, a compiled .bin file will then be downloaded to your computer…save this to the mbed USB disk, press the reset button, and you’re good to go. In Arduino-like fashion, the mbed device also appears as a virtual COM port, so you can monitor a program’s serial output using any terminal program.

The Good

We were taught that you should always say something kind before criticizing, so we’ll point out that the above process does, in fact, work exceedingly well, and has proved to be both quick and reliable. Once you get into the groove, the sequence of operations is no more onerous than with Arduino or any other microcontroller-specific programmer dongle.

To their credit, unlike some microcontroller evaluation kits, there are no artificial limitations to the mbed compiler; the full code and memory space of the processor is available to your code. The editor has realtime syntax coloring and multiple undo levels. And double-clicking on an error message in the compiler output will take you directly to the offending line, as in any decent IDE. You can import existing code from your local system to the mbed “cloud,” or likewise export individual files or an entire project. All good stuff.

The real saving grace of this setup is the libraries, both the official functions in what they call the “Handbook,” and community-contributed code in the “Cookbook.” A tremendous amount of functionality has been implemented in a concise and usually object-oriented manner. It’s almost comical sometimes, after having worked with other microcontrollers and girding for some expected coding nightmare, only to find that the corresponding library handles a task in a couple of lines (browse through the Handbook and Cookbook for examples). There’s a tendency also to follow stdlib or “UNIX-like” conventions for file access, character I/O, realtime clock access, etc., so existing systems programmers new to microcontrollers will feel right at home, no weird function names or syntaxes.

The mbed’s FAT filesystem is also accessible to the microcontroller, making it useful for more than just program storage. Web pages can be served from this space, or a data logging program can store results here. If the two megabyte capacity is too limiting for your needs, have a look at the SDCard library in the Cookbook — it’s almost trivial to wire up and use. Pretty much all of the libraries are like that!

The Bad and the Ugly

Hardware-wise, there are just a few minor nitpicks:

First is with the local FAT filesystem. Even though this is one of the device’s most unique features, and the very thing that enables its platform neutrality, the implementation just seems a bit anachronistic. The aforementioned SDCard library demonstrates how readily that format can be used. It’s faster, with the potential for far greater capacity, and cards could be easily swapped out for different code or data files. Not a major disappointment, just seems like an opportunity was missed to make this product even better.

Second is with the indicator LEDs on the board. Four of them, scant millimeters apart, all blue…making them pretty much worthless as status indicators from across the room, where they all blur into a singular blob. Ten years ago, blue LEDs were novel. Five years ago, they were mainstream, festooning every last USB hub, mouse, flash drive and imported piece of crap. Today they’re just tired, let’s get over it. Different colors would indicate status at a distant glance.

Finally, not a problem with the mbed board itself, but it would be nice to see one of the Cookbook projects, the “BoB2” breakout board, made into an available product. The blank board can be ordered through BatchPCB, but after postage and handling the price for just the empty board — no components — is $33. Have this populated and mass-produced, bundle it with the mbed in a $100 package, and it sounds like a winning setup, ready to go head-to-head with the MAKE Controller.

But really, those are just nitpicks. Our real beef is with the software…the code editor specifically. If you find the Arduino editor aggravating, the mbed editor will have you seeing red (or maybe purple if you factor in all those blue LEDs). Like Arduino, there’s no true tab formatting; everything’s expanded to spaces, like it or not. Auto-indent cannot be disabled, and there’s seemingly no command to increase or decrease the indentation of a block of code. If you’re accustomed to anything more than arrow keys to move and click-and-drag to highlight text, the editor disregards a lot of system-native editing behaviors that may be deeply ingrained in your muscle memory (such as shift-clicking to select a range of text, or triple-click-and-drag for multiple contiguous lines). What’s more, the quirky behaviors are a little different across each browser and operating system. Don’t even try that triple-click-and-drag in Firefox for Mac…you won’t get your text cursor back without a complete reboot (seriously, just restarting the browser isn’t sufficient). And at present, only the most common browsers are supported; all others are currently shut out.

The closed-source nature of the tools may also be off-putting to some. If one finds the Arduino editor distasteful, there are options: get in there and change the code, or simply use a different editor and link with the Arduino libraries manually…it’s all legal and encouraged. With mbed, there are no alternatives. Access to the compiler and libraries is “free as in beer,” but not “free as in speech.” There’s little recourse should the service ever be taken down, or if they should suddenly start charging a subscription fee (there’s no indication this is planned, just a hypothetical scenario).

The good news, at least with regard to the former, is that software is of course infinitely more malleable than hardware, and it’s almost certain the tools will improve with time. The site is under active development…new “Home” and “Notebook” features were added for registered users just yesterday. Perhaps, given time, they’ll get the Command key working properly on the Mac. The selection of user-submitted code will expand regardless, making it progressively easier to do more and different things with this board.

In Summary

The mbed Tour page is frank about what the platform is good for, and what it’s not. mbed was intended as a quick prototyping and educational tool, and at that it excels. A lack of features such as a debugger or offline compiler keep this from being a professional-strength development platform, which is okay. Think of it as Arduino: The Next Generation. Although the mbed board costs more up front than Arduino, there are capabilities here that would otherwise require costly “shields” and strain every last byte and CPU cycle of the 8-bit ATmega328 processor: Ethernet, USB, SD cards…mbed handles these tasks with aplomb.

mbed is not without its flaws, and the “cloud” development approach may never sit right with some. For a product that’s just weeks out of beta testing, the results thus far are extremely encouraging. There’s immense potential here: a seriously powerful chip, easy to interface and to program. If the online tools can be improved, or if open source alternatives become available, mbed could be a major player. We expect to be seeing a lot more of this device in future hacks.

Describes a simple project to develop a count down timer using PIC microcontroller. To download your copy click here.

While messing around with twi (that’s what atmel calls i2c) some time ago, i built this little device that does nothing more than listening to the bus and display all the bytes it receives on a two-digit 7-segment-display in hex-format. the motivation for this project was not only “i need this thing” but also “i’m tired of coding and want to solder something. and i have to get rid of these displays anyway”. the schematic and layout was done in eagle. an atmega8-controller (overkill) handles bus and display. the whole device is powered by the bus.

here’s two pics:

yes, i forgot one line

Recently revealed in Detroit at the annual Devils Night Party put on by DTM and BT12 October 30, 2009.  Detronik revealed a new breed of visual implementation beginning a transistion from shadow to forefront.  The Vision Blaster is a retro-fitted stormtrooper blaster modified and assimilated with more inpirational circuitry then which was originally intended for child play.  The Vision Blaster is a tool for Detronik to use for his coined term “vision assaults”.  Detronik does not just hide behind his mainframe of gear, but stands up blasting the controller which ultimately provides the visual output on the screens.  The controller was designed with a small camera, ultra bright UV LED, Rotary knob for access to stored Visual Clips in which the trigger actuates, clip reversal button, and a Tilt Control for unexpexted close combat scenerios.  The small Chip camera embedded in the scope area motion tracks the feedback from the UV LED which is utilized for mobile blob tracking.

Detronik's Vision Blaster I

The Elektor Magazine article, Automotive CANtroller: Car electronics exposed, published in issue 4, April 2009 states:

“This universal microcontroller board was designed, in the first instance, for use by students studying automotive technologies, but it can also be used for other applications, of course. The heart of this board is an Atmel AT90CAN32 with a fast RISC core.

In collaboration with the Timloto o.s. Foundation in the Netherlands, Elektor designed a special controller PCB, which will be used in schools in several countries for teaching students about automotive technologies. Particular attention was paid to issues such as universal design, cost, connection options, expandability and the availability of free development software for various platforms.”

The full article plus schematics can be ordered and downloaded at http://www.elektor-usa.com/magazines/2009/april/automotive-cantroller.879015.lynkx?tab=5

Here’s a simple operating system for a microcontroller application. It’s not your full-blown OS or RTOS, but more of an implementation of a CPU scheduler. If you are a hobbyist building mobots for fun, or a student doing a project with intermediate to advanced level of embedded systems applications, then this post is for you.

Note that there are no reference for this CPU scheduler implementation since I was able to come up with it through experience. OS and MCU programming resources are abundant and I’m sure you’ll come across something similar to what I’ve done.

Some reasons why you want this CPU Scheduler

- You want to execute more than one program in your microcontroller like how a good old OS does for you.

- You want better response time for your microcontroller applications.

On to writing our CPU scheduler!

The following concepts are prerequisites for you to understand how the CPU scheduler works:

- MCU Programming in C (any manufacturer)

- TIMER Peripherals. The TIMER peripheral is the lifeblood of the CPU scheduler as it generates the interrupts and continously produces the OS ticks (more on this later).

- Interrupt Handling. Operating systems are interrupt-driven by nature, so it is important that you understand how interrupts work.

- Basic OS CPU Scheduling. This what our program is all about isn’t it?

Program at a glance

In a nutshell, your CPU scheduler-enabled program would look something like this:

UINT32 ticks;

void timerISR () {

// Interrupt service routine of your timer

ticks++;

}

void main() {

// Your main program

ticks = 0;

// Initalization commands go here. Don’t forget to initialize the timer!

while(1) { // CPU Scheduler Loop Block

// CPU scheduling algorithm goes here

} // End of end-less loop. CPU scheduler continuously runs and checks value of ticks

} // End of main program, will never be reached

How it works

In this setup, the ticks variable is incremented every time the timer generates an interrupt. Usually the timer is configured to trigger every 1 to 100 milliseconds, and effectively defines your ticks resolution per second. For example, if timer triggers every 1 ms, then you have 1000 ticks per second. If timer triggers every 100 ms, then you have 10 ticks per second. The ticks variable is given an unsigned long int data type to accommodate for millions of ticks which you can use for timestamping purposes.

The ticks variable can be used as reference variable when running a function. This can be done by inserting this code inside the CPU scheduler loop block:

if (ticks % PERIOD == 0) { // Periodically run process

myFunc();

}

else if (ticks % PERIOD2 == 0) {

myFunc2();

}

else if(ticks == 4000) { // One-shot process

myFunc3();

}

else if(ticks > 4000 && ticks % PERIOD3 == 0) { // Some other possible combination of conditions

myFunc4();

}

Where PERIOD defines the period of your function in ticks. For example, if you have a ticks resolution of 10 ticks per second, having PERIOD = 10 runs your function every 1 second. Why so? The ticks value is divisible by PERIOD at multiples of PERIOD, so this effectively runs the function everytime the modulo-division results to zero.

Pretty straightforward huh? There are some caveats, though.

One, priority is simply based on the order of your  IF-ELSE block.

Two, your function should finish before the start of the next period to prevent starvation of other processes at the latter part of the IF-ELSE block.

Three, this is inefficient in terms of power consumption since the MCU is always executing the CPU Scheduler Loop Block even if there’s significant time before the next function is run. Better switch to IDLE or SLEEP mode if the CPU is not doing any useful work.

Four, modulo division is slow, especially if the MCU doesn’t have a divide instruction.

Yeah, it has problems. But it does the trick.

Up next: CPU Scheduler Version 2! Let’s solve some problems and improve the CPU scheduler.

Noriel Mallari is a Full-Time Instructor at DLSU-M, Philippines. He is involved with several embedded systems design projects and is teaching Electronics and Communications, and Computer Engineering major courses. You can contact him via e-mail at noriel.mallari at gmail.com.

This project won me the first prize at the mini project exhibition held on the eve of Engineers day (September 15 2007). The concept behind the project is the use of a microcontroller to control the actuation of two single acting spring return cylinders.  For starters, I am explaining the entire project with the help of circuits that is hand drawn.

I am starting with the explanation of the electronic circuitry involved.

I used a 8051 microcontroller. The power supply circuit and the microcontroller pin diagram is shown in the figure below.  I have explained the same using a PIC16F877A. Two pins of the controller were used as the control for the relay actuation sequence.

PIC16F877A based circuit to actuate relays

The pins were connected to the base of a BC547 transistor. Here, the BC547 transistor acts a switch. When the base of the controller is provided a “high” signal from the controller, the circuit closes and the 12V relay is actuated. As soon as the relay is actuated, the “normally closed” contact of the relay “opens” and the “normally open” contact of the relay “closes”. Two 3/2 solenoid operated direction control valves were used in the setup.  The terminals of the solenoid which is responsible for extending the cylinder are connected to the normally open ends of the relay. The pneumatic circuit diagram is shown in the figure below: The single acting cylinders could be replaced by two double acting cylinders. An interlocking circuit where one cylinder remains retracted while the other is extended could also be developed easily. This circuit could be controlled for any timing sequence altering the delay between the extension of the cylinders. This is controlled in the program.

Update: The practical application of this circuit could be in a CNC machine. The clamping of a job and the door lock could be interlocked with a simple program using a similar circuit with double acting cylinders.

Some of my students bought a MCU development kit from a nearby electronics shop.  Everything was going well until they put out the MCU packaged with the development board and replace it with their own. Voila! “No bootloader found.”

The question now is, what is a bootloader? And how does it affect MCU development?

Bootloaders allow programming of the MCU on-the-fly using a common serial interface like UART or USB. This is very convenient because you can use your PC directly without the need to buy a separate programmer device or other special circuitry to program the MCU. Moreover, on a plus-side, these bootloaders come with a user-friendly programming GUI which makes programming the MCU a lot easier.

The downside of bootloaders is that they are just like any other MCU program: they should first be burned into the MCU before they work. If your MCU is not programmed with a bootloader then you’re back to square one. No bootloader means programming the MCU the old-fashioned way using specialized devices or special circuitry.

My advice on this: avoid development kits that use bootloaders to program the MCU. If the MCU programmed with the bootloader got busted, you’re dead. Good luck finding a copy (probably proprietary, closed-source) of the bootloader from your supplier. Oh you’re lucky to have one? Better buy your own programmer device! Oh, you don’t need the bootloader anymore…

Noriel Mallari is a Full-Time Instructor in DLSU. He is involved with several embedded systems design projects and is teaching Electronics and Communications, and Computer Engineering major courses. You can contact him via e-mail at noriel.mallari at gmail.com.