IMakr Arduino Projects Guide Car

iMakr Arduino Projects - Car
SineadW
September 2014
The following is an instruction manual into the assembly and development

of the iMakr Arduino toy car. The guide includes an introduction into using the
Arduino and includes all necessary links, resources and code to help get your
car up and running and your programming off to a great start ! The following
project is aimed towards 7-14 year olds however a this hands on introduction
to programming is suitable for any age. This toy car is the first in the series
of Arduino based projects combining all the fun or Arduino with the fantastic
world of 3D printing to make some really interesting projects.
1
1 Equipment
To begin you will need the following equipment.
1.1 Electronics
(a) Arduino Uno or similar compatible Arduino board- £18. Here’s a link to
component supplier Farnell.
Figure 1: The Arduino Uno
(b) Arduino servos- £13.14 each. Two servos are needed for this car project.
These can be purchased on Spiratronics .
Figure 2: The Arduino servo modules
(c) Jumper Wires. This is how you will connect the servos to the Arduino
board.These simple wires can be bought on the high-street in an electronics
stores such as Maplins.
2
Figure 3: Jumper wires
1.2 3D Printed Car

(d) iMakr 3D printed car set. This includes the base,two front wheels,two back
wheels,one wheel support and a customisable lid. These files can be down-
loaded and printed use or purchased over the website. Don’t forget you can
customise these designs to make whatever you want!
Figure 4: 3D Printed car parts
In addition to this just a screw driver will be needed.Now for the Software.
3
2 Software
The Arduino can be used as an interactive way to get into programming.
The Arduino board is designed to work alongside hardware to build creative
and interesting physical projects. The Arduino community online is full of
talented and helpful people . The official sitegives an overview of the product
as well as starting projects and help forums. More project inspiration can
be found through the various community websites or even a quick look on
Youtube. This guide uses the Scratch platform to provide an easy way for
beginners to learn the basic concepts of programming and program in a fun
interactive way.
We will follow these simple steps:
• Download the Arduino programming software

• Download Scratch software
• Make Arduino board communicate with Scratch and get started!
Arduino
Download the development platform Arduino IDE here. Follow the links
provided to download for your own computer system requirements.
Figure 5: Arduino official website
4
When complete this should leave a program file called Arduino on your
computer. Opening the file will allow you to open the Arduino application,
which will open this screen in the platform.
Figure 6: Basic sketch in Arduino IDE
Scratch
Connect the USB cable with the Arduino Board, this should start a green
LED blinking on the Arduino board.Next download and install the Scratch
software. You can find the program here and also a quick guide to installing
the compatibility file on to your Arduino board to make the Scratch program
and Arduino communicate. Scroll down the page to find the quick fix guide.
Figure 7: Scratch official website
Nearly there ! Now just upload the file named ’S4A compatibility file’ which
can be found on the S4A website or among the iMakr downloads for this
5
project.Don’t forget to select the correct port and board type in the tool
bar.
Figure 8: S4A upload code
Open the scratch platform to begin programming. Make sure the Arduino
board is connected via the USB cable as the software will search for the
board to read its inputs. You can begin programming yourself or use the
iMakr, QuickfixCarCode which can be found in the download package on
the website.
6
3 Making the Car
So now that you have the equipment and the software up and running all you
need to do is put the car together. Firstly , position the servos and Arduino
base in position like so.
Figure 9: Integration of servos and arduino board
Next connect the back wheels by screwing the gear face, which comes in the
servo pack onto the wheels. Then place them over the servos.
The Front wheels pass through the hole at the front wheels and clip onto
each other.
Figure 10: Arduino base with wheels
7
Next connect the wires. The servo has 3 coloured wires, the red is power,
the black is ground and the white is the command signal which tells the motor
what to do. Connect the left servo to the 5v, ground and 4 output. The right
servo is connected to the 3.3v , ground and 7 output.
Figure 11: The connection of the left hand servo
Figure 12: The connection of the right hand servo
8
The S4A software will be able to detect your Arduino board and with the
Quickfix code you can get started moving your new toy car through obstacles
and courses.
Figure 13: The S4A software
Finally place the lid on top and there you go ! One car rearing to go. We
found that adding a few loom bands around the wheels provides extra grip to
really get the car moving. HAPPY CODING!!
Figure 14: The final product!!
4 Future developments
Coming soon will be the blue-tooth wireless toy cars and also a selection of
customised lids for the car. More projects for the Arduino are coming soon
including 3D robotic animals and puppets.
For more information about this and future Arduino projects, or to send us
your feedback please contact sinead@myminifactory.com .

IMakr Arduino Projects Guide Car

Uploaded by

Copyright:

Available Formats

IMakr Arduino Projects Guide Car

Uploaded by

Document Information

Copyright

Available Formats

Share this document

Share or Embed Document

Sharing Options

Did you find this document useful?

Is this content inappropriate?

Copyright:

Available Formats

IMakr Arduino Projects Guide Car

Uploaded by

Copyright:

Available Formats

iMakr Arduino Projects - Car

The following is an instruction manual into the assembly and development

Figure 1: The Arduino Uno

Figure 2: The Arduino servo modules

1.2 3D Printed Car

Figure 4: 3D Printed car parts

• Download the Arduino programming software

Figure 5: Arduino official website

Figure 6: Basic sketch in Arduino IDE

Figure 7: Scratch official website

Figure 8: S4A upload code

Figure 9: Integration of servos and arduino board

Figure 10: Arduino base with wheels

Figure 11: The connection of the left hand servo

Figure 12: The connection of the right hand servo

Figure 13: The S4A software

Figure 14: The final product!!

You might also like