Simple Robot Base

Creating robots can be very interesting, but trying to build a rigid base for a robot can be tough. In this instructable I will show you how to build a rigid robot chassis.

• Arduino
• 2 continues rotation servos
• Wheels that directly connect to servos
• box or enclosure
• 4 AA battery holder

First, start with the enclosure. You will need to drill holes for the two servos and the battery pack. After this is completed you can either glue, bolt, or use double sided tape to secure the servos and battery pack to the enclosure. You will need to add a nub to the back of the robot to keep its butt from dragging on the ground.

The red wire of the battery holder goes to the arduino pin vin and the black wire goes to ground. The continuous rotation servos have three wires.

Brown - Gnd

Red - 5v

Orange - D9 (right servo) and D10 (left servo)

To start you will need to upload a calibration file to the arduino that is down below. As the program is running use a screwdriver to turn the trim potentiometer of both servos. turn the screwdriver until both servos stop moving. You have just calibrated the servos!

#include <Servo.h>

Servo right
Servo left

void setup()
{
  right.attach(9);
  left.attach(10);
}

void loop()
{
  right.write(90);
  left.write(90);
}

To program this robot I expect that you are familiar with the arduino Servo library. A continuous rotation servo acts like a normal servo except for the fact that where you would put the degrees of the servo you put the speed. (180 is full forward, 0 is full backward, and 90 is not moving). This simple arduino program has the robot go forward at top speed for 1 second and backward for 1 second.

#include 

Servo right
Servo left

void setup()
{
  right.attach(9);
  left.attach(10);
}

void loop()
{
  right.write(180); // go forward
  left.write(180);
  delay(1000);
  right.write(0);   // go backward
  left.write(0);
}

You can attach anything to this robot base. For example, you could put an ultrasonic sensor on the front and create an autonomous robot.

Please feel free to comment about any questions or suggestions you have about my project.

I Hope You Enjoyed!