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Final Project - Enzo Lazo

Page history last edited by Enzo 10 years, 8 months ago

Autonomous Car

Concept

An autonomous car is a self-driving vehicle capable of fulfilling the human transportation capabilities of a traditional car. It is capable of sensing its environment and navigating without human actions (inputs). Fewer traffic collisions, reduce of traffic congestion, higher speed limits and reduction of space required for vehicle parking are possible benefits of utilizing autonomous cars widely.

Verplank Diagram

(better picture available at Final Project photos -> photo-11-VD)

Materials Required:

1 arduino micro board

4 mecanum wheels

4 gear motors

4 gear motor brackets

4 motor drivers (2 dual H-bridges)

1 distance IR sensor

1 slide switch

2 step-ups

2 1.5V batteries

1 Screw Driver kit

8 1/16" Screws

Conectors

Step by Step Details

Controlling the motors: sending 2 signals to each motor, it was possible to control the direction of each motor, as shown on the picture below:

It was not used PWM signals to control the speed of the motors, but it could easily have been implemented utilizing arduino PWM libraries. Explaining better the picture above: If BOUT1 is connected to motor power+ and BOUT2 is grounded, the upper DC motor will spin clockwise. If BOUT1 and BOUT2 have the same logic level, the motor will not spin and if BOUT1 is ground and BOUT2 is connected to motor power+, the upper DC motor will spin counter-clockwise. The same idea was implemented to all 4 DC motors, and it was possible to control the direction each wheel would turn utilizing the H-bridges.

Distance IR sensor

The ease of use of distance IR sensor made possible sensing front walls to avoid collisions. The IR sensor feedback is a known related voltage with distance. When the voltage was below Vwall, it meant it was too close to the wall, then it is time to turn 90 degrees and keep driving forward.

Mounting the hardware: For sure it was the hardest part of the project. Connecting and soldering wires might not be as simple as it seems. A bad soldered wire can take lots and lots of hours for debugging.

Electrical Schematic: Shown below.

Link to the code: http://codeviewer.org/view/code:35eb

Challenges and Conclusion:

The biggest challenge I face was mounting/debugging the hardware. It took 95% of working time. I realized that it is better soldering and connecting pins in a proper way (it will take longer) than rushing and don't even know what do debug.

This project was super relevant to my formation and the concepts I learned while building the car will be used towards my Final Design at my home University.

Video of the Project: