MyMouse - a.k.a M2 by Walter A. Martinez

description 
This robot was designed to possibly compete in the MicroMouse competition or 
just to experiment with.  For MicroMouse general info
see
http://nis-www.lanl.gov/robot/html/rules/micromouse.html

Functions
I tried to create this robot based on the Lego theory of being able to 
interchange parts (in this case sensors) to suit the task of
the robot.  I created modules of sensors (light detectors, sonar, IR, 
whiskers or switched, potentiometers and others)that can be
inserted on any I/O of the Cricket board and depending on the software 
it would have different reactions to its environment.  This
allows me to experiment more and test for different scenarios.  The 
robot will be able to do collision avoidance, light
tracking/avoidance and other  random behaviors  

Specifications 
small - smaller than a CD.  Appox 10cm x 11cm

Parts used 
Many parts from the Digi-Key catalog, including
Plexiglass for the chassis, plastic and metal stand-offs, nicad batteries, 
old (very old) servos, tires from an old 1980's toy,
and most important the Cricket Microcontroller and IR Whiskers - detects 
left and right obstacles for collision avoidance (soon to
be installed, not shown on picture)
For information on this excellent and mulitfunctional board see:
http://home.earthlink.net/~henryarnold/
The board was originally designed for a cricket robot, but it can be 
easily modified to work on any kind of robot.


Problems encountered 
Since the servos I used are very old, they were more difficult to modify 
and calibrate to work with the new electronics that I
interfaced it with.  

Time to build 
3 weeks (2 to 3 nights a week)

Cost 
$180

Any other important information 

The robot is not complete but it will be by the middle of April
Web site URL 
http://www.csulb.edu/~wmartinz

Email: wmartinz@csulb.edu