You can’t build a line follower without a test track to run it on. The proposed UK rules for this competition specify the track to be on a 300mm grid with fixed turn radii of 150mm. Well, I don’t have room for that and I don’t want to make tiles either so a little lateral thinking is called for…
The simplest arrangement for a line follower is probably two sensors with digital outputs. As long as one can see the line and the other can see the background, the controller is happy otherwise it must turn left or right as appropriate. I was after something a bit more sophisticated for Bob the Line follower…
Once all the parts have been chosen and the schematics drawn, it is just a case of getting on with building the bits…
Line followers are a perennial favourite of the small robot builder. It is not hard to make something that will bumble about and follow a line marked out on the floor. the technology can be very simple but the same basic idea is used in sophisticated robots on factory floors. The tricky part is in making the line-follower fast and smooth in its response. Whether or not I can do that remains to be seen but I am going to have a go …
There has been some talk of changing the schools micromouse competitions. I am in favour of a more flexible line-following class of competitions. While doing a bit of research, I found many examples of the kind of thing I had in mind. Given that these competitions are much more popular…