Easy robot: light follower http://www.instructables.com/id/Easy-robot-light-follower/?

ALLSTEPS

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No programming or microchips!

Robots, the most awesome thing there is, especially when allot of people can build it!
I got this robot from a friend as a present. thank you Rudolf.

Anyway, this robot uses 2 Light dependent resistors to sense light and drive toward it.

Warning,
Soldering iron->hot->hurts

That said, lets start

the reason this is green: the battery's i used are rechargable, one battery can load 1000 times so i save 1998 battery's in this instructables

PS: you have to have SOME electric knowledge for this.

Step 1: Electrical materials

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R1-4 4 100 ohm resistor

R5-6 2 220 ohm resistor

SW1 1 Switch

RV12 2 10k variable resistors

T12 2 Transistors BC557C

T34 2 Transistors BC547C

LD12 2 LEDs

LDR12 2 Light Dependent Resistors

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1 IN4007 Diode (note: can be replaced by a paperclip, it supports the wheel XD)

*Note: I got this as a present from a friend. Some of the parts can be different, I dont know.

Step 2: Rest materials

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Box to put everything in and a piece of cardboard so you pieces dont go flying / PCB**
Some wires if you dont have a PCB.
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Some electric components
Battery holder
Some motors, I got some open chassis motors
Solder
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Soldering iron
File / sanding paper

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A small screw
Something to make the motors have more grip (heatshrink?)

** : I dont have a digital version of the pcb , as I told you I got it from a friend. If someone has the tools to make a digital version please do.

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Step 3: The building of.

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steps:
1. resistors
2. transistors
3. switch
4. LEDs, these are supposed to bend a bit (looking like bug eyes) i bent them about 90 degrees.
5. light dependent resistors, these are supposed to point forward. (solder them on and then bend them until they lyon the pcb.
6. variable resistors point them forward and next to eachother, that looks fun
7. AAA holder
8. motors, file them down so you can solder/glue them to your pcb/box. put these under an angle so the axis of the motor acts as a wheel
9. put some heatshrink on the motor. this wil get some extra grip and makes it go faster.

Step 4: Operate it

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When I just finished the robot i didn't quite know what to do with it, yes i knew it drives towards light but then what do the variable resistors do?

Turns out that the resistors say how sensitive a light dependent resistor is.
if you turn the one close to the left LDR then the left LDR will become less sensitive. and thus the RIGHT motor will not turn as fast.

PS: you can get this kit at:

http://www.vellemanusa.com/us/enu/product/view/?id=351131 (http://www.vellemanusa.com/us/enu/product/view/?id=351131)

Post Comment

1-40 of 48 Next » (http://www.instructables.com/id/Easy-robot-light-follower/?&sort=ACTIVE&limit=40&offset=40#DISCUSS)

Pranjal Joshi (/member/Pranjal+Joshi/) says: Dec 18, 2011. 2:24 AM Reply (CK9OFK8GW89M4EE)

are u connected left side motor to right LDR or left LDR??

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Pranjal Joshi (/member/Pranjal+Joshi/) says: Dec 18, 2011. 2:23 AM Reply (C95RVDIGW89M4EC)

how wil it turns if light only falls on one side of LDR??

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dynaso7 (/member/dynaso7/) says: Oct 11, 2011. 8:07 PM Reply (CILZ5UQGTMPB40O)

Hi, can you show me how this robot work ? (Share the video)
And this robot does not need wheels?
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thenmozhi (/member/thenmozhi/) says: Mar 14, 2009. 1:52 AM Reply (C9ULG9MFS8O1B2J)

can u plz explain me how this circuit works

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Bongmaster (/member/Bongmaster/) in reply to thenmozhi Jul 8, 2009. 4:43 PM Reply (CGQ7LXOFWMO5A1D)

just lok at the circuit and u should be able to see how it works ;) i knew nothing of circuits til i bought this very kit and once i examined the diagram i
understood what was going on :)
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Gerrles (/member/Gerrles/) in reply to Bongmaster Nov 3, 2010. 12:03 PM Reply (CHUTMX3GFRWQPGI)

can u help me i dont understand the diagram and do u have to have that circuit board???
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dunnos (/member/dunnos/) (author) in reply to Gerrles Nov 3, 2010. 12:12 PM Reply (CQG17LXGFRWQPGZ)

I can try to explain how the circuit works... What do you know about electronics right now? Do you know how transistors work? And what do you
mean by do you have that circuit board?
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Gerrles (/member/Gerrles/) in reply to dunnos Nov 3, 2010. 12:30 PM Reply (C0HG8ESGFRWQPJD)

yea i know how transistors work and for the circuit board i mean that do u need a bread board
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dunnos (/member/dunnos/) (author) in reply to Gerrles Nov 3, 2010. 2:20 PM Reply (C9AEDWCGFRWQPTT)

you can use a breadboard if you want, you can also buy the kit or do it freehand, whatever your preference is.
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Gerrles (/member/Gerrles/) in reply to Gerrles Nov 3, 2010. 12:50 PM Reply (CLU23F3GFRWQPK4)

can u post some pictures of connecting the transistor and stuff if u do that will really help
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dunnos (/member/dunnos/) (author) in reply to Gerrles Nov 3, 2010. 2:21 PM Reply (CH4KHGGGFRWQPTY)

what exactly do you want to see? do you want to know wich pins go where?
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Gerrles (/member/Gerrles/) in reply to dunnos Nov 3, 2010. 3:41 PM Reply (CECZ03BGFRWQQBJ)

yea which pin goes where thnx

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dunnos (/member/dunnos/) (author) in reply to Gerrles

Let me make this a learning experience:
for the pins of the bc557c: click here (http://en.lmgtfy.com/?q=bc557c+datasheet)

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Nov 4, 2010. 8:31 AM Reply (CWE2784GFRWQSI5)
for the pins of the bc547c: click here (http://en.lmgtfy.com
/?q=bc457+datasheet)
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Gerrles (/member/Gerrles/) in reply to dunnos Nov 4, 2010. 1:09 PM Reply (CFRNNAWGFRWQTCW)

u know im only 12 im doing this for my project and i dont know the bc557c or the bc547c because my PDF donesn't have english
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dunnos (/member/dunnos/) (author) in reply to Gerrles Nov 5, 2010. 6:53 AM Reply (CFLXODYGFRWQYKU)

What do you mean with: my pdf donesn't have english? you mean you can't read an english datasheet? Or is adobe reader not cooperating?
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also, do you have the kit or are you doing this on a breadboard?
/dunnos/)

flat side facing you:

BC557C: the leftmost pin is the collector

the middle pin is the base
the rightmost pin is the emitter

Same goes for the BC547C.

On the image the flat side is the bas
the line going right and up is the collector
de line on the right downside is the emitter.

Can you figure it out now?

Gerrles (/member/Gerrles/) in reply to dunnos Nov 5, 2010. 2:58 PM Reply (CY4KEL8GFRWQZNW)

adobe reader is not cooperating and i dont have kit or breadboard. Im building it free hand and not really, can u try the diagram from
http://www.instructables.com/id/How-to-Build-a-Robot---The-BeetleBot/ step 16
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dunnos (/member/dunnos/) (author) in reply to Gerrles Nov 6, 2010. 1:36 AM Reply (C20U55AGFRWR10X)

I already built that one, I really liked that build :) I suggest the beetlebot V2.
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Gerrles (/member/Gerrles/) in reply to Gerrles Nov 4, 2010. 1:17 PM Reply (COY35Y3GFRWQTDI)

so if u just put picture of which pin to which pin would be fine and my teacher keeps saying im not talented
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dunnos (/member/dunnos/) (author) in reply to Gerrles Nov 5, 2010. 6:53 AM Reply (C8JKQ13GFRWQYKZ)

What a nice teacher you have -_-

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Gerrles (/member/Gerrles/) says: Nov 2, 2010. 5:48 PM Reply (CPCLGCCGFRWPLF2)

HELP i dont know how to read the diagram

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cupnoodles2 (/member/cupnoodles2/) says:

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Hey wsup i was wondering u asked for 4 transistors but u only used 2 on the Sep 28, 2010. 5:31 PM Reply (C9AOJIXGELSQE85)
diagram. Is there anything wrong with the diagram or is it just me that i cant
understand it? thanks for replying
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srinandhana (/member/srinandhana/) says: Aug 27, 2010. 1:45 AM Reply (CW0H8LSGDBF9JX1)

could u explain the circut ahd u can give the source code.......for light following robot
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srinandhana (/member/srinandhana/) says: Aug 27, 2010. 1:42 AM Reply (CCN3XI6GD2J2O1X)

could u explain the circut ahd u can give the source code.......for light following robot
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/srinandhana/)

salahaddam (/member/salahaddam/) says: Jan 9, 2010. 5:04 PM Reply (CDE9T1VG43EBORP)

There's a BEAM type similar to this at

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www.middlecreekmerchants.etsy.com (http://www.middlecreekmerchants.etsy.com)
/salahaddam/)

freerunnin1 (/member/freerunnin1/) says: Dec 22, 2009. 5:34 AM Reply (CODF2YNG3IE0ZH1)

i got this from maplin and made it in 4 mins :P lol

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AndyGadget (/member/AndyGadget/) says: Dec 11, 2009. 8:00 AM Reply (CB43GF2G32A7VX4)

I've just linked this Instructable from 'answers' so here's a bit of info as to how the circuit works . . .
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The variable resistor should be adjusted so the motor is just below the point of turning on in normal light. When a light is shined on LDR1, it's resistance
drops and a current begins to flow in the base of T3 causing it to start to turn on and draw a current from the base of T1 (through R3). This in turn, causes
/AndyGadget/)
a larger current to flow through T1 and into the motor M1. The LED (LD1) will also begin to light up. The brighter the light on the sensor, the more the
transistors will turn on and the faster the motor will spin.
The full robot is two identical circuits, and each half turns on the motor on the other side of the robot, so if, for example, the LHS sensor sees light, the
RHS motor will spin and the robot will turn towards the light.
If the light is equal on both sensors, both motors will turn and the robot will go straight towards the light.

Wesley666 (/member/Wesley666/) says: Aug 25, 2009. 12:06 PM Reply (CEP3TWBFYSVG3HX)

FIX THE VIDEOS!

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derbert (/member/derbert/) says: Aug 4, 2009. 10:26 AM Reply (CIXUJDBFXXPKSSN)

couldn't i just use photodiodes. i have a couple lying around...

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Kiteman (/member/Kiteman/) says: Mar 1, 2009. 5:35 AM Reply (C3A5FK7FROAGHQE)

I've tidied up the keywords for you, and moved the project into Tech rather than Craft.

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(One thing you forgot to mention is where other people can buy the same kit.)
/Kiteman/)

freerunnin1 (/member/freerunnin1/) in reply to Kiteman

you can get them from maplins :P

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Aug 2, 2009. 10:20 AM Reply (CI4FRJJFXV3A0YK)

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dunnos (/member/dunnos/) (author) in reply to Kiteman Mar 1, 2009. 7:00 AM Reply (CZ4J6VQFROAAPQ0)

thank you for doing that, i am quite bad at keywords. and i must've been half asleep putting it into craft O_o
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i put in where to find it in step 4
/dunnos/) (http://www.vellemanusa.com/us/enu/product/view/?id=351131)

derbert (/member/derbert/) in reply to dunnos Aug 5, 2009. 12:20 AM Reply (CJ2A6K2FXXPL4EZ)

CRAZY FOOL!!! your videos don't work. FIX IT!!

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dunnos (/member/dunnos/) (author) in reply to derbert Aug 5, 2009. 4:29 AM Reply (C57YLQMFXXPL5UU)

uhm... aren't we supposed to be nice to eachother on instructables? anyway, i kinda removed my youtube account...
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derbert (/member/derbert/) in reply to dunnos Aug 5, 2009. 5:10 AM Reply (CEYS8B1FXXPL61T)

Yes we are supposed to be nice. Have you got it posted anywhere else?
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dunnos (/member/dunnos/) (author) in reply to derbert Aug 5, 2009. 8:47 AM Reply (C3BHSIYFXXPL8P9)

No, i am sorry.
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dunnos (/member/dunnos/) (author) in reply to dunnos Mar 1, 2009. 7:01 AM Reply (CWNN2REFROAAPQJ)

oh, and could you tell me what you thought of this instructable? please? =]
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derbert (/member/derbert/) in reply to dunnos Sep 19, 2009. 5:55 AM Reply (CC5AXJQFZQ1FPOA)

now the video's gone, it's not an instructable.

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dunnos (/member/dunnos/) (author) in reply to derbert Sep 19, 2009. 7:27 AM Reply (CNAWK3PFZQ1FQE4)

OMG could you just SHUT UP!?

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Kiteman (/member/Kiteman/) in reply to dunnos Mar 1, 2009. 7:37 AM Reply (CCWZEJ5FROA0P1O)

It's OK - a bit lacking in actual instructions, though. Tips on soldering, ways to position components, what needs trimmed to size etc. would have
been useful.
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dunnos (/member/dunnos/) (author) in reply to Kiteman Mar 1, 2009. 9:04 AM Reply (CNE2Q7CFROAGIAE)

yes, but soldering can be fouund in other articles, i have given some tips but i guess not enough(positioning) and i can't quite get what you
mean by trimming to size
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/dunnos/)but thanks, i like it when people can say these kind of things without going all: this sux and this is **** and you *** ****** and**** know what i
mean? (of course not on instructables due to the be nice policy but still)

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