Setup
1. Batteries.
The Multipurpose Mobile Manipulator is powered by two 12V 8AH SLA batteries. Under normal load, these batteries are expected to last roughly 4-6 hours, and can be recharged by a standard 12 volt sealed lead acid battery charger. Because these batteries can provide a lot of current, you should be careful with the polarity of the batteries; flipping them around will cause a very bad short circuit. As an additional safety measure, these batteries are protected with yellow XT60 connectors to prevent accidental flipped connections.
To remove/insert the batteries, partially unscrew the side plates on the robot's base, and slide the plate off.
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To charge the battery, disconnect the yellow XT60 connectors and connect the battery to a 12 volt sealed lead acid battery charger.
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2. Switches.
The Multipurpose Mobile Manipulator is split into the chest and the base, both of which can be run independently of the other. The chest has 3 switches: the left switch powers the left arm, the right switch powers the right arm, and the middle switch powers the entire chest. The base has a large red button that powers the wheel motors, which can be powered off by pushing it down, and powered on by twisting it up.
The Multipurpose Mobile Manipulator is split into the chest and the base, both of which can be run independently of the other. The chest has 3 switches: the left switch powers the left arm, the right switch powers the right arm, and the middle switch powers the entire chest. The base has a large red button that powers the wheel motors, which can be powered off by pushing it down, and powered on by twisting it up.
The left switch powers the left arm, the right switch powers the right arm, and the middle switch powers the entire chest.
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Wheel motors can be powered off by pushing the big red button down, and powered on by twisting it up.
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3. USB and COM Ports
The Multipurpose Mobile Manipulator's actuators and sensors are controlled by an Arduino Mega 2560, which is connected to the robot's laptop-for-a-face with a standard USB A-to-B serial cable (this effectively makes the robot a giant USB peripheral). To send serial commands through the USB cable using a programming language like Python 2.7, you need to find the COM port of the Arduino, which can be found using using the Arduino IDE.
The Multipurpose Mobile Manipulator's actuators and sensors are controlled by an Arduino Mega 2560, which is connected to the robot's laptop-for-a-face with a standard USB A-to-B serial cable (this effectively makes the robot a giant USB peripheral). To send serial commands through the USB cable using a programming language like Python 2.7, you need to find the COM port of the Arduino, which can be found using using the Arduino IDE.
The electronics can be viewed by lifting the top plate. Notice an Arduino Mega is connected to a USB A-to-B cable on the left.
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This images demonstrates how to find the connected Arduino Mega's COM Port address using the Arduino IDE.
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