Mr.Cruz

Just wanted to share a massive code dump that I just uploaded to my github repo. It currently contains hardware PWM generators for controlling Motors and Servos, some untested code for the QEI encoders, and I think has some basic Bluetooth (RN-42) code via UART0 as well. The repo for those that are curious: GitHub. My development environment consists of Arch Linux and vim. There are some smaller tweaks I want to make and some snippets of code I want to clean up, but at the moment, I'm focused at getting the functionality of the BoosterPack working first. Oh, and since the BP

A quick photo on what I've been working on as of late:

Made a post on r/robotics. The gist of it is that I'll be making a few robots with this board to properly test it out.

Congrats on the progress! You might consider either running your refresh rate a bit higher, or using a better servo. Those smaller servos, in particular the one that was in the video, can be a bit jittery. Do you have any of your code online? I've been working on a Robotics Booster Pack, and it also has a MPU6050. I'm able to pull the raw angles from it, but have yet to get the DMP in the IMU to work. Can't wait until I can start working with Quaternions!

Brief update before I switch to CAD for the PnP and another project (Firmware in Linux, CAD in Windows). I've completed some testing w/ the BoosterPack, and here's what I've found: Holy crap did the regulator change help! I connected 5 servos and drove them all at once, keeping an eye on the servo's supply voltage, and that thing was SOLID! The only oscillations that I was able to observe were those of the Multimeter. That being said, I had some weird Mosfet issue with the Mosfet I was trying to use to enable/disable the power supply of the Servos. Removed it for the time being. The solenoid

Whelp, I think I'm about due for an update... Robotics BP v2: Nothing blew up! The 1st board isn't completely assembled (had to take off ICs to track down a short). Amusingly enough, I'll be needing this board to test the Pick and Place (testing out Servo-cased actuation instead of Stepper driven). PNP: I'm on v4 of the CNC hardware now (four iterations in two months isn't too bad, imo). Latest version:~16" cube Steel tube frame with Aluminum inserts Aluminum mounting blocks for Rods & steppers Core XY motion PTFE gantry and carriage blocks (currently testing) Focused on getting

Woo! Happy Thanksgiving weekend everyone! I wanted to post another update, as things are coming along quite nicely. On v2 of the PCB: Routing was long since completed, and the PCB is actually already back and in my hands! OSHPark turnaround times are getting better and better! I have an updated BoM located here. In really low quantities, the components total to ~$65, not including parts Mouser didn't carry (Samtec headers, Inductors, and IMU) and XBee module. The interesting thing is that at 100 boards, the price drops to ~$40 (without Bluetooth, it drops to ~$30). I'll be laser cutting

v2 is complete! And now to switch gears to the PnP while the PCB gets made.

A brief update. Routing is still in progress (~70% completed imo). I'd like to get it completed before this upcoming week ends, but only time will tell on that. @Igm, I'll definitely be posting that somewhere, but most likely not here. Ill probably post it in the Beagle-Fu community since the current plan is to drive it using a BeBoPr cape and BeagleBone Black. However, if I end up using a Tiva Launchpad in the project (I have an idea for ~$5 feeders that involves some creative embedded systems), I'll cross post it here as well Currently aiming to have the mechanics of the machine com

@, I was actually not aware of parts like those, but for a different reason than you might think. Whenever I work on a project, I like to push myself to try new things. Right now, I'm really into SMD, and even have plans to start messing with BGAs and a PnP Machine in the works to help me do even more! It's because of this that I now avoid Through Hole parts like the plague. I'm always concerned about size and efficiency (my full time job involves low power microcontrollers in the Internet of Things market), and I've found that SMD parts overall are just better overall about size and effic

A much needed update: The demobot was able tp prove, that under manual control, and lots of finagling, the competition can be completed. If needed, I could spend another month making it truly autonomous, but hopefully I won't have to do that. If anyone wants to watch some vids, here's where they currently exist. I'm shifting focus back to the PCB, because I really want to test out v2. There are, of course, some more changes coming, but I'm really excited about them! I mirrored the top half of the PCB, such that the XBee is on the left instead of the right. This'll make routing a bit e

Another brief update: Still working on the v2 PCBAdding option to conenct Servos directly to the battery Adding option to run Motors off of 5v Removing option to parallelize Motor Controllers (too niche for the difficulty in routing) Added rectifiers for protection all around (FETs, 5v -> VBUS) Modified FET header Remapped some pins Completely avoiding using mm while routing (instead using 6.25 mil for traces, 25 mil for parts I'm currently working on a demo bot for a competition I'm helping run, and am aiming for a completion date of Oct 12th.For anyone that's curious, here's the link to

Brief update. I can get a bit OCD when messing with circuits. I'm trying a different routing strategy involving using only mils (I use to do 25 mil for placement, .25 mm for traces), and have decided to ripup all of the traces and start from scratch. I've changed the factory reset pin for Bluetooth to a tiny solder jumper, so that you can effectively put it in reset with a random piece of metal. The button was awkward to reach. Fixed a few power domain issues, specifically one where if a XBee was plugged in and power was being supplied only from USB, the reset pin would be held low. I was

Heheh, actually, I haven't given price that much of a thought. The initial plan was to make as many of the parts samplable from TI, cutting down on the cost as much as possible. If I had to guestimate, I think I would aim for this board's price point to be ~$60 w/o Bluetooth. With Bluetooth would be an extra ~$20. Also, just got Bluetooth working today

Another Update! This past weekend, I participated in a Hackathon, where I primarily worked on the software for the board, which can now be found here. Things that went right: Software was moved out of a the large blob and made much more modular. I'll have to retest things to make sure everything still works The SPI Encoders worked! Software QEI Encoders work as well! ADC pins are now up and running Things that need more work: The SPI Encoders I designed worked, but not in the way that I needed them to. They can only provide absolute angle output as opposed to total revolutions. Oh well. QEI

Updates! I did a few more things on the Second PCB, and made some PCB and schematic changes (check the repo). Among them: Added a blocking diode from 5v -> VBUS. Now, when only the USB connector is plugged in, the Motors and Servos don't actually draw power from the USB cable. (Too much power drawn from the USB port will disable it) Fixed a pin naming issue Moved the IO and FET inputs. The USB HID connector was in the way. (Actually, now that I look, I think they still might be in the way...) Changed the UART select headers for Bluetooth/XBee modules to SMD Make silkscreen corrections Al

Just gauging interest, but would anyone like to see an BBB Arduino Cape? Or does one already exist?

Pictures? Pictures! Pictures. https://plus.google.com/117104116706660321116/posts/Zp5z1x4UBAh (Yes, I'm to lazy to upload them to the forum...)

Hello one and all! I'm a freshly graduated EE from UT Austin, and specialized in Embedded Systems. I'm a projects-oriented learner, and as such have worked on many projects, usually focused around robotics. I started learning how to design PCBs before college, and have many PCBs in the pipeline, some of which are BoosterPacks. Be seeing ya around! -Cruz M.

Wow, I had forgotten about this post. So a few updates: First PCB:Very little worked. The 5v regulator worked once or twice, but due to bad reflowing it didn't ever work again. The 3.3v Regulator has too much paste and shorted out. I got the wrong package of IO Expander, and had to solder directly to the Motor Enable signal to test out motors. They worked. The IMU and Power Monitor both respond with I2C Acks The 100uF capacitor was larger than I thought, and had to leave them out. for this PCB. Indicator LEDs would not be tested due to faulty power rails. Second PCB:Much more working. Re

Yeah, it's just that the list is quite long: 5v Regulator (TPS53318) 3.3v Regulator (TPS62082) 4 Motor Controllers (DRV8800) 4 SPI Magnetic Encoders (ADS5050) 6 Servos 6 ADC Pins 4 GPIO (PCA9557) 2 N-Channel Mosfets (FDMA1024) 6DoF IMU (MPU6050) XBee Header Bluetooth (RN-41) Micro SD Card Power Monitor (INA220) A few notes: There's a separate 3.3v regulator on this board because with so many things using the 3.3v rail, I wanted to make sure that I wouldn't run into the 400mA max rating on the Launchpad regulator. The motor controllers have an interesting feature where they can be paralleled

Just thought I would put this here for now. I'm currently working on assembling the PCB that I have right now. It uses just about all of the pins, which means that it can't really work with any other boards, and technically isn't a BoosterPack because of the form factor, but I digress. Because the resolution of the image that I have is too large, here's a link.