SmallBot - Complete Plans - Computer (Basic Stamp II)

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| September 02, 2010

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smallbotproject
step 6. computer

Step 6.

This page will help you hook up the Basic Stamp to the SmallBot.

I chose the Basic Stamp II for the microcomputer (or as I like to call it.... the brain!!!) of SmallBot for a few reasons.. The small size was a good thing (especially when you think of the size of SmallBot!) It's easy to program.. And it has a lot of capability (re-programmable, non-volatile, 2048 bytes of memory, up to 5 million instructions a second, and so on..)

The Stamp:

You should download the Basic Stamp Manual for a better grasp of the stamp (noone knows the stamp better than the guys that made it!) It has hookup info, specs, schematics, examples, and more. Download it from the parallax website at http://www.parallaxinc.com/stamps/stampdocs.htm.

Pin	Name	Description	Comments
5-20	P0-P15	I/O Ports	Input/Output ports. From 0-15.
21	+5V	+5V supply	5-volt input or regulated output
22	RES	Active-low reset	Pull low to reset; goes low during reset
23	GND	System Ground	You must have all grounds connected together.
24	PWR	Regulator Input	Voltage regulator input; takes 5-15 volts.

Electronics:

Nothing but the bare necessities.. When hooking up the basic stamp, there are a few things that you can't neglect to do.

1. Every power supply on the robot must be grounded to each other. There must be a common ground. The stamp gets grounded via pin 23.

2. If you have a regulated power supply of +5 volts, connect it to pin 21. If you DO NOT have a regulated power supply of +5 volts, connect it to the regulator via pin 24 (5-15 volts only.)

3. The carrier boards don't have an off switch, and that battery can get drained very, very fast! I've installed an on-off dpdt toggle switch between the battery, and pin 24 (PWR) so it turns the power on and off.

Mounting:

In all honesty, I actually haven't mounted the basic stamp to my robot platform. It's on a carrier board I picked up from DC Kits (the board didn't fit within the constraints of the bolts sticking through the upper level, so I had to take off about a 1/2") and it's just laying on top the platform. This works very well because I often have to turn it upside down to get to the pcb side so I can solder on a sensor or something. Also, since I've added a circuit board over top of the stamp, the carrier board isn't even able to escape. It's held in place pretty well.

introduction | platform | motors | batteries | third 'wheel' | second level
computer | sensors | interfacing | programming | parts & suppliers

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