Spoke Too Soon

Well all is not as it seems.

Though the Arduino software installed easier than I thought, it turns out a few more extra steps are needed to get to work.

At first I couldn't select any of the serial ports. After giving up for a while, I came across this webpage on the arch wiki. I'm pretty sure I looked before and couldn't find it, oh well.

Turns out it was a permission issue, but giving the user the correct permissions didn't seem to help either.

So what I did was create a launcher that runs the command sudo arduino from the terminal. I have it set to keep the terminal open while the program runs so I can see what TX and RX versions are uploaded. It sometimes comes in handy.

Now there's just one issue I can't seem to get across.

When I upload the program to the board, it blinks as usual, but it doesn't loop for some weird reason.

Well even though I couldn't correctly upload the program, I did finish the program needed for the solar tracker. It's surprisingly easier than I had anticipated.

And here it is.

Note it is copyrighted.


/*
Solar Tracker
This program controls a servo to allow solar cells to always face the source of light
Created 1/18/11
Ian Bohannon
Copyright 2011
*/

#include <*servo.h>

int ServoOut = 9;
int photoPinLeft = 0;
int photoPinRight = 1;
int LeftReading;
int RightReading;
int pos;

Servo myservo;

void setup()
{
myservo.attach(ServoOut);
Serial.begin(9600);
}

void loop()
{
LeftReading = analogRead(photoPinLeft);
RightReading = analogRead(photoPinRight);

Serial.print("Left Reading = ");
Serial.println(LeftReading);
Serial.print("Right Reading = ");
Serial.println(RightReading);

if(LeftReading > RightReading)
{
pos = 65;
}
else if(LeftReading < RightReading)
{
pos = 45;
}
else
{
pos = 55;
}

myservo.write(pos);
delay(120);
}"

What it does is compare the light shining on each sensor, then through the If statement, adjusts the servo speed and direction accordingly. Through experimenting I know the servo sits still at position 55, spins one direction when higher than 55, and the other when lower than 55.

Because I can't upload it from this computer yet, I haven't gotten around to testing it and debugging it. The values may need to change a tad bit.

Arduino on Arch? I think so!

Thank you Yaourt, for giving me the ability to download anything in a heartbeat. Well... when you work.

This time it did. I downloaded the Arduino-0022 front end in a flash. Started it up, copied over my files with a flash drive, worked like a charm.

Before I upload any files to the board, I'm going to get some fresh air. Maybe go to the store and pick up some sharpies and food.

News Update

Well guys, I'm sitting here on my couch taking a break from work and watching some football.

I got the second Arch setup running. Essentially what I did was call the second HDD in the grub boot file, which after the fact seemed really simple. I guess that happens a lot when working in linux.

The Arduino is also coming along nicely. I got 5 photoresistors, 1 force resistor, and a continuous servo in the mail last week. I ordered from SparkFun.com and I must say, I'm not impressed.

I ordered with regular ground shipping, which costs a surprising $8.98. On top of that, it took another 9 days before it finally showed up. I wouldn't be surprised if it came from say; Japan or Australia. But no, it came from Denver, Colorado. I'll be sure not to order from them again.

I haven't forgotten about the solar tracker. I'll work on that when I have some more time.

For anyone interested, I'll be sure to go to this years Indiana LinuxFest. It looks like it's going to be March 25-27 at Wyndam Indianapolis West Hotel. It looks like it's free, but rumor has it there is also a supporters package for around $60 that includes a t-shirt. I'm a little cheap, so I don't think I need a t-shirt for $60. Sorry guys.

Arch Update

After spending a few hours trying to fix this linux issue, I've finally figured out what the issue is.

Appropriately, GRUB doesn't work the way I thought it did, when I installed the second Arch on the new drive, I also installed GRUB again on that same drive with the idea that I would go into the computer BIOS and change the HDD every time I wanted to switch OS's.

Well when I boot into the second Arch install, it's using the same boot options from the first install.

Confusing right?!?

Well even after all this time figuring out what the problem is, I still haven't figured out how to fix the problem, and it's quickly approaching my bed time.

Instead of trying to get this to work, I'm considering partitioning this new 1TB drive into two 500MB pieces with the new Windows 7 I got from school on one, and an Arch install on the other. I can then use the 160GB drive as extra space on either.

I even have an external drive case around here somewhere.

What do you guys think? What should I do?

Christmas Gifts Galore!

Hello all!

I've finished my finals for the semester and now I should have more time for the bucket list!

I have been working on my computer some. I received a new cd/dvd burner which I just installed with no issues. I also got a 1TB Western Digital HDD. Right now I'm working on getting another Arch setup on it.

I had space issues with my first Arch partition. I didn't have much space for anything, including root. It frustrated me to no end, but seeing as how cheap HDD's have been getting, I figured that would work nicely for me!

I just tried to install Arch on my new HDD, but I'm having issues with the new .iso file from the website. The CORE install has the 2.6.33 kernel in it, but for some reason daemons is asking for the 2.6.35 kernel. People are saying that creating a local repository is easy and will do the trick, but I think I'll try a Netinstall tomorrow morning. That seems to be easier.

On a slightly less computer-y note, I also received the wonderful Arduino Duemilanove and I've already started chugging away at it. Luckily, all my previous C knowledge has paid off and I'm not struggling at all with the programming! Just last night a made a solar controlled servo!

I found a few servos in my parents basement. My dad was once into model airplanes, which are filled with servos. As a sensor I used a small solar cell designed for breadboards and protoboards.

I have a few photoresistors and a continuous servo coming in the mail, should be here tomorrow.

I'm going to make a solar cell tracker similar to this,

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ATnnMFO60y8

Though I figure it's possible to do the same with only 2 photoresistors using similar logic.

Once I do that I think I can scratch learning arduino off the list.

My girlfriend has been bugging me to do some haul videos of my gifts, so expect some videos in the future! I'll have to get used to the whole video thing.

I'm using http://www.youtube.com/user/thisweekinlinux as a good reference! You should all check out his blog and channel.

Adding One to the List

Hey guys, sorry for the lack of updates, schools been really busy and I haven't had much time to scratch a few off my list.

But one thing I have done is found a new project I want to work on. It's called Arduino, and it's an open source microchip controller-esc programming package and controller. The board itself can be bought already assembled and the programming language is in C, which I know fairly well.

Once I teach myself how to use use the Arduino, I'll be able to add some more complex projects to the list, and I'll be one step closer to that elusive peristaltic pump!

On a side note, the next PSR solar car is coming along rather nicely. We just got our webcam back up, and you can watch our progress live HERE! We finalized the chassis two weeks ago and we took the carbon fiber panels to WJI Waterjet in Indianapolis. Mike Trapp showed us the ropes and volunteered his time to help us get the car completed.
Next step is to finish the bottom body of the car so we can fit it with the chassis. In the meantime, we'll have to build the front and rear suspension, which we have designed as of last week. Then we'll have a moving car!

Edit: It seems like the webcam is down again. I'll have to look at it again.

Need your ideas!

With all of my school work, I haven't had much time to scratch stuff off my list.
So my solution is to add more!

What I'd like to have is more small projects I can do on the weekends, between my schoolwork and the solar team. I might limit the list a bit, maybe between 3-5 new entries, maybe more if you guys come up with some real good ideas!

There's not much of a theme, but I'm leaning towards techy, maybe nerdy too. I'll except almost all ideas. I'm going to avoid anything that involves playing video games (ie, beat halo on legendary, etc...). I'd also like to keep it fairly cheap, less than $40.

Recently, I've gotten a lot of ideas from Home magazine (no plug intended), so there might be some good ideas there.

Post some ideas below!