Tools – logic and protocol analyzers
STM32 internal oscillator
The internal oscillator on the STM32 processors can be tuned so that an external crystal or oscillator isn’t necessary.
Simpler sensor emitters
Simpler is often a good thing. For the new mouse, I wanted to make the sensor arrangement as simple as possible. One way is to drive the emitters from the battery supply… (more…)
Bit Banding in the STM32
Wondrous though the STM32 (ARM Cortex M3) might be, it makes something of a meal of atomic access to individual bits in memory. The technique used is called bit-banding. Although it is simple enough in concept and pretty friendly to the assembly language programmer, it is easy enough to get lost in C. Or should that be at C?
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Calibrating Reflective Sensors
By far the most commonly used micromouse sensors are simple reflective types that give an indication of distance by measuring how much light is reflected from the maze wall. While the response is repeatable and related to distance, it is quite difficult to get an accurate answer. This is how the sensor readings can be converted into an actual distance… (more…)
UK Micromouse 2010
On June 26th 2010, Birmingham City University hosted the UK micromouse championships as part of their robot festival event. Along with the micromouse event, there were wall follower, line follower, sumo, ant weight, biped robots and much more. With the welcome presence of St Joseph’s Institute from Singapore, this year’s…
2010 UK Micromouse Update
After a shaky start, Decimus 2 wins the day in Birmingham at the 2010 UK micromouse contest. After all the hours of preparation and lost sleep, the time had come for the new mouse to prove itself. Decimus 1 (D1) was a relatively know quantity in that it had won…
UK Micromouse 2010 – Register Online Now
The 2010 UK micromouse contest will take place at Millenium Point, Birmingham on June 26th. Online registration is possible now…
Sensors and shiny maze walls.
Among the various thing you will hear said by contestants at a micromouse contest, the topic of walls will frequently come up. Generally in some disparaging way that indicates that the walls are in some sense to blame for their misfortune. I have certainly said so more than once but…