How to build an LED Display Robot Part #1

Materials Needed:

- Wires
- LED's
- PC Board
- Shift Registers (model #74VHC595N)
- Soldering Wire
- Solder Iron
- Wire Cutters

Step 1: Prepare a HUGE stash of wires (approx. 1' each).



Step 2: Solder!

a. Insert LED on one side of the PC Board.
b. Solder a piece of wire on the other side.
c. Repeat over and over. Don't burn yourself!




Step 3: Connect to board using Shift Registers

Robot Progress

What is a Robot?

A robot is a mechanical device that can perform preprogrammed physical tasks. A robot may act under the direct control of a human (eg. the robotic arm of the space shuttle) or autonomously under the control of a pre-programmed computer.
-Extracted from Wikipedia





Mindmap 1:



This mindmap shows a connection between the physical components and the more abstracts such as purpose, how, why. etc.

Mindmap 2:



This is a more updated mindmap, showing more in general all the aspects that really interest me for this project.
- Programming
- Robotics
- Film (Movies)
- Building Things
- Toys

Joystick/Controller:



Servos (Hands and Legs):




LED display (Face):



Prototype a:



Prototype b:





Things to do:

- Research Robot concept, terminology, definition.
- Adjust the project to this Robot definition.
- Conceptualize and do mindmaps on more specific concepts.

Finally... Progress!

After spending many days in the DT lab trying to figure out how to work Shift Registers and ADC chips, I finally managed to understand how they work.

First, I connected a round flex cable to the ADC in order to convert the analog signal to a digital one, so that the BS2 could understand it. Once I managed to do this successfully, I connected the shift register into the BS2. I programmed the BS2 so that depending on where the flex cable is pressed (from 0 to 255), 4 different LEDs would light up.



All I need to do now is replace the flex cable with a joystick, figure out how to make it work, make a bigger LED array, control the flow of lighting LEDs with the joystick, and do some cool design.

sigh.