This is the final update for the project, for this season. Unfortunately I was slacking and didn’t update this blog during the process.
Instead of separate posts I’ll dump the images and some describing words on this one. Next year I’ll update the Robocutter with adjustable front wheel, since it goes a little bit too low and gets stuck on the high grass.
Part I – The plastic wheels
Click the images to see them in full size.
Some pictures from the build. Attaching cables, relays, battery and the main controller unit.
…Well it kinda did, but the plastic backwheels are very slippery…
So, it was time to make some improvements!
Part II – Rubber tires!
I ordered some new tires from Ebay which are basically for smaller ATVs.
Also my buddy at work re-designed the placement for the motors, since the chain was bit loose and jumped off very easily.
The battery has been moved to back as well, to add some weight on the wheels and that gave some more grip.
I tested it slightly in August, but as mentioned at the beginining of this post, it “floats” too low and needs some adjustments…
(There is no video of it in action, because the July was so dry and hot here, all the grass was burned basically, as you can see in the 3rd and 4th picture.)
Here is a test video from the workshop floor, after the rubber tires and motors were attached.
The whining noise you can hear is motor coils from the PWM which is running at 7812.5Hz.
Part III – The future
The motors drains high currents and voltage drop around 1-2V can be seen on the meter on top.
So I’m bit keen to test the system with 24V and see how fast it disappears at the horizon…
Also some minor changes to the controller code. Something is not quite right at the algorithm when doing slow cornering for example. I need to check that out.
Last words:
Thank you for checking out this blog and hopefully you can get some inspiration to build something your own.
Arduinos are really fun and easy to learn. Only space is the limit how far you can go with them!
I haven’t published the code yet, but as it is still under development, I don’t want to release any buggy thing for you to have headaches with!