by Erin RobotGrrl | Feb 27, 2020 | News, Progress Logs
Since on our system everything has been installed from various experiments and projects, we had to go back and be diligent in tracing the steps to install everything properly. The goal is to install all the software and Bowie libraries properly to get to a first blink. Today, the initial descriptions were written for this process. The next step will be to gather and make the thumbnail images for the steps. Then, running the .csv through the python script to publish as a page on the site.
by Erin RobotGrrl | Feb 18, 2020 | News, Progress Logs
The chassis build instructions are now live. Check it out here. Many thanks to Beck for writing the descriptions for the steps.
The nice photos of the CAD models with annotations and arrows on them, these were made before the kit log began. The most of that work was done in September, October, and some November 2019.
There will also need to be an additional page for the build instructions, consisting of all the pieces. This is also logged in the google sheet. Python to parse this and then output html is what will be needed next.
by Erin RobotGrrl | Feb 15, 2020 | News, Progress Logs
In addition to posting the backlog of kit log and various updates today since the beginning of February, we also updated the chassis instructions in google sheets to include the proper image file names. As well, we updated the brain kit instructions in google sheets with the most recent bugs that were found. Next kit log we will be revisiting the mega list about progress on all the electronics kits, to see what is remaining to complete.
by Erin RobotGrrl | Feb 12, 2020 | News, Progress Logs
In between progress on the collaborations on Wednesday night (Wednesday night = Robot Missions meets), we were outlining the programming instructions. We also made a very simple sketch to test the assembly of the Bowie Brain Kit, without the need of all the libraries. So far, here are what the software instruction outline looks like:
- Software Instructions
- 1. Install Arduino IDE
https://www.arduino.cc/en/Main/Software
- 2. Install Teensyduino
https://www.pjrc.com/teensy/td_download.html
- 3. Download BowieLib
https://github.com/RobotMissions/BowieLib
- 4. Install BowieLib
Move BowieLib folder to your Arduino libraries folder. Eg, on Mac it is: ~/Documents/Arduino/libraries
- 5. Open Arduino IDE
- 6. Open BowieBrainBlink in Arduino
File > Examples > BowieLib > BowieBrainBlink
https://github.com/RobotMissions/BowieLib/blob/master/examples/BowieBrainBlink/BowieBrainBlink.ino
- 7. Change the board to Teensy 3.6
Tools > Board > Teensy 3.6
- Here are the other settings, they should be fine by default, but it’s good to double check.
- 8. Plug in micro usb cable to the Teensy 3.6 on the Bowie Brain board and your computer. Note that this must be a ‘sync’ cable (because it needs to send data back and forth). If it’s just a ‘charge’ cable, it won’t work.
- 9. Press verify on the code
- 10. Press upload on the code
- 11. Verify that the LEDs are blinking!
It should be the big green LED on the Brain Board and the little LED on the Teensy 3.6. They will be on for 1 second, then off for 1 second.
- 12. If something is not working, please send us an email
We will have to go through it again and verify that no steps are missing. Often times this step can be the most frustrating one when things are missing or not explained properly. After this, we will need to make instructions for it – mainly making the images. The process will be pretty similar to the electronics instructions on google sheets.
Oh yeah, just placing this image here for the board settings, in case it gets forgotten…
Hopefully we will complete this before Wednesday, because have a hunch that Beck and Brenda might be able to reach this far after the last of the soldering! That’s exciting
by Erin RobotGrrl | Feb 11, 2020 | News, Progress Logs
In order to copy the CAD model of Bowie as an assembly to a folder that the Eng. design group can access, we need to break the dependent links of each sub-assembly. This is because Fusion360 doesn’t have the functionality yet to send all the associated files in an assembly when copying it. When trying to do so, it was taking such an incredible amount of computational time. The “preparing for compute” would just slowly progress. For one operation of breaking the link, I decided to leave my computer going all night to see if it will process it. In the morning it showed the error.
To overcome this, exported the assembly as a STEP, and importing it worked fine. The smaller pieces of the sub-assembly were easy to copy over. Even though there was no forward progress made on this, it certainly did take a lot of time and patience to work on this one.
