I have used PicAxe Basic to read TV remote commands in a number of line-following and wall-following robots.
We need to “tune” variables like speed,proportion, and derivative to get the best results.
I propose building a PicAxe 8-pin board that receives TV commends and outputs a single analogue signal to be received by a Crumblebot input. That way we can at least tune 1 parameter at a time while the robot is running.
A feature that is useful alongside this is, the non-volatile storage of the tuning variables. Thus, there is no need to enter the tuning variables every time you switch on.
You would need a different class of variables for this.
These features are very good educationally. Students can see the effect of Derivative control immediately.
The features are also essential for the quick turn-round needed in competitions.
I haven’t implemented my PicaXe IR Crumb yet, but I propose to set 3 parameters in the picaxe. These can be sent to the crumble as 3 pulses, the voltage of which convey the parameter value, and the duration can indicate which parameter is being sent. I think 20 distinct voltages can be used, and 3 distinct durations.
All 3 parameters can be sent at start-up (from EEPROM stored in the picaxe, and individual changes sent with a single pulse.
It does mean the crumble code must scan the input continually however.
.
