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1. Check all parts are present
- 1 x Main plate in transparent blue acrylic with paper covering
- 1 x Front plate (acrylic)
- 2 x Gear motor supports (acrylic)
- 1 x 6V Gear motor
- 1 x 65mm diameter rear wheel
- 2 x 50mm diameter front wheels with stub axles
- 1 x Standard S3003 servo with screws and servo horns
- 4 x M3 6mm screws
- 4 x M3 10mm screws
- 2 x M3 30mm screws
- 6 x M3 nuts
- 2 x M3 25mm hex spacers
- 1 x 6-cell battery holder
- 1 x 24cm tie-wrap
Electrics Pack
- 1 x 2.1mm jackplug and wires
- 30cm 2-core cable
- 1 x 100nF ceramic capacitor
- 4 x Female-Male Dupont wires (20cm)
- 1 x HC-SR04 Ultrasonic sensor
- 1 x 170 tie-point mini-breadboard with self-adhesive backing
Optional Boards
- 1 x Arduino UNO or compatible
- 1 x Motor & Servo shield (Adafruit or compatible)
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2. Fit the Motor and Drive Wheel
- Remove paper backing from the acrylic parts
- Requires the 30mm M3 screws and 2 nuts
- NB. ENSURE you mount the motor on the correct side (or the Arduino cannot be fitted)
- Pass the 30mm screws through the motor supports and the holes in the motor with the screw head on the inside
- Push the wheel onto the inner side of the motor
- Clip the 2 motor supports into the gaps on the side of the main plate (this will require some jiggling around)
- Then add the M3 nuts and tighten. You can pass a small screwdriver through the spokes of the wheels to the screw heads
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3. Add the steering servo
Make sure you attach it to the bottom of the plate (same side as the motor)
- From the bottom, feed the servo cable through the hole in the main plate
- Push the servo into the mounting hole (it is a little tight, but does fit)
- Make sure the servo shaft is at the front as shown in the photo
- Use 4 x M3 10mm screws and 4 x nuts to fit in place
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4. Add the pillars for the Arduino and Motor Shield
- Use 2 x M3 6mm screws and 2 x M3 hex pillars
- Screw the M3 screws into the pillars from the bottom of the main plate
- The other 2 x M3 6mm screws are used to fit the Arduino to the pillars
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5. Assemble Front (steering) Plate
- Use the 4 small black self-tapping flange-head screws (in the servo pack)
- The round servo horn is mounted, facing up, on the top of the plate and screwed into from below
- The two wheels (one Left wheel, one Right wheel) are mounted on the bottom of the plate and screwed into from above
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6. Connect The Front and Rear Frames together and add Mini-Breadboard
- Ensure that the servo is in its mid position by gently turning the shaft
- Push the servo shaft into the servo horn
- Use the servo mounting screw (in the servo pack) to fasten the horn to the servo
- Remove the self-adhesive backing from the mini-breadboard and place it on the top of the plate, just behind the 5 small holes at the front
- The breadboard can be used to mount the ultrasonic sensor as well as light sensors
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7. Add Noise suppressor and wires to Motor
- Solder the 100nF capacitor (orange blob marked 104) across the motor terminals
- Solder the 2-core white cable to the motor terminals
- Feed the white cable through the hole in the main plate
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8. Complete the Wiring
- Solder three 6-way header strips to the motor shield as shown in photo for A0..A5
- IMPORTANT: Remove and throw away the jumper labelled PWR on the motor shield (near the power terminals)
- Carefully plug the motor shield onto the Arduino
- Plug the servo cable into SER1 plug, ensuring the Black wire is in the corner of the board as shown
- Plug the ultrasonic sensor into the breadboard, near the front
- Connect the Ultra-Sonic sensor using the Female-Male wires provided:
- Vcc goes to the +5 (on Arduino)
- Trig goes to A4
- Echo goes to A5
- Gnd goes to Gnd
- Connect the black wire from the battery box directly to the GND terminal on motor shield
- REMOVE and THROW AWAY the jumper on the PWR - leaving this on WILL damage the Arduino
- Cut the Male-Female wire provided in two pieces:
- Connect one bare end to the Red wire from the battery box
- Connect the other bare end to the +M terminal on motor shield
- You can now use the Male-Female jumper as a crude switch to turn off motor power
- Connect the Arduino power connector to the M+ and GND terminals on Motor Shield
- Take the twin-core wire from the motor and connect to the 2 M4 terminals on the motor shield
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The Completed Robot
- You should first download and install the Adafruit motor shield library from >Here<
- if you're not sure how to install a library, then please check the Arduino tutorial
- Download some demo code from >HERE<
- Add in 6 good quality AA batteries. We prefer Energizer Rechargeable Extremes
- Switch it on by plugging together both halves of the Male-Female wire
- You can add light sensors (LDRs) mounted on the breadboard so the robot follows (or avoids) light
- Use the small holes add the front to add line detector modules (we sell a pack containing three line detectors and mounted pillars)
- Do let us know how you get on
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