TreadBot

[mackrackit]

this is a neat idea, a little expensive for hobby robotics though....

http://www.robotshop.ca/home/product...ar-system.html

Looks similar to Skimask idea, I was going to suggest sonar also. I have a cheap sonar measuring tape that is pretty accurate. Use two to have a location.

Let us know what you plan to use and we will see if we can help.

[dragons_fire]

i was thinkin about using one of those "laser" measuring tapes.. i had a parallax ultrasonic sensor, which is probably not much different (although mine is only good to about 10 feet). i was thinkin about maybe adding a small servo to it, and mount a distance sensor on top, then it could sweep and it would be able to tell what distance at what angle (by using what pulse is sent to the servo).

my motors and motor controller dont arrive here till tomorrow, thats why its all just 'ideas" right now... when they get here, it will be time to start designing the PCB and putting it all together...

[dragons_fire]

so... i ordered some motors and a motor controller from robotshop.ca, and it gave me 3 shipping options... it could come on monday for $6, friday (3 days before) for $10 or thursday for $28.. i picked friday, so i would have them mto play with over the weekend.. well, guess what i just found in my mailbox (its thursday today for those of you who dont know) !!!

so im sitting here putting it all together and thinking.. i need a way to connect all these things together...
up until now, i have always used .10 headers for all my connections such as servos and sensors.. basically everything uses headers.. so my next question is:

does anyone know of any small 2pin and 3-pin connectors, that are smaller than .1 headers?? preferably with digikey part numbers if possible...

thanks again...
Danny

[skimask]

so im sitting here putting it all together and thinking.. i need a way to connect all these things together...up until now, i have always used .10 headers for all my connections such as servos and sensors.. basically everything uses headers.. so my next question is: does anyone know of any small 2pin and 3-pin connectors, that are smaller than .1 headers?? preferably with digikey part numbers if possible...

I would stick with the .1 headers for now, easy to put together, easy to tear apart if/when you make a mistake or a modification....but that's me, I'm crazy that way... As far as the smaller types go, flat flex cable maybe?
Have fun! Don't fry anything...at least anything that's not replaceable!

[dragons_fire]

SO i got my board designed now, and i used the .1 headers. i managed to fit everything on there, plus 18 I/O pins that can go to anoterh board on top. my issues that im having now, are that i dont think i can easily do thru-hole plating at home (i managed to fit everything on the board, using only 5 vias that i will need to solder a pin through), and i took a copy the design to staples for a copy, and they charged me 4 times as much because i wanted it dark, and its not good enough for me to use. now im looking into either getting my own laser printer, or trying out the inkjet transparencies. (i have about 8 injets lying around, they come free with almost everything now. within the next year or two, im sure we will see them at the bottom of cereal boxes!!!)

[mister_e]

transparencies film work great with inkjet printer. That's what i use here. Set your printer to the best resolution mode... yeah slower but better.

I tried laser printer in the past. i gave up, sometimes the toner don't do a nice and perfect job on 10-12mils traces.

Home made Thru-hole plating would be nice... but not a trivial thing. Sure there's some rivet kit available here and there... but it's a little bit expensive for what it worth. Better to outsource your PCB to some cheap PCB fabs.

Good luck!

[skimask]

transparencies film work great with inkjet printer. That's what i use here. Set your printer to the best resolution mode... yeah slower but better. I tried laser printer in the past. i gave up, sometimes the toner don't do a nice and perfect job on 10-12mils traces. Home made Thru-hole plating would be nice... but not a trivial thing. Sure there's some rivet kit available here and there... but it's a little bit expensive for what it worth. Better to outsource your PCB to some cheap PCB fabs. Good luck!

Inkjet? Really? I didn't think that worked at all! I tried the 'Press-n-Peel' method awhile back, used the good laser printer at OfficeMax, was really careful and all that. But it seemed like my problem was with the toner.
Does the ink actually dry on the transparency or do you have to be fairly careful with it (i.e. don't bend it, etc.)? How small are you able to get reliably on the traces and circles and the like?

[dragons_fire]

i tried a transparency on my injet on the last board i did, it worked amazingly well, nice and dark, with nice edges and all... my printer doesnt have rollers after the printing head, so i dont have to worry about it smudging, i just have to let it dry for 10 minutes after..
unfortunately, with the last board, my overhead got scratched and the board came out bad...

i think what i may try, is getting a laser printer, adn try ironing the toner onto regular (not-presensitized) boards. that way, i can use cheaper boards, and skip some of the chemicals..