laptop control

[jarjarinks]

i was wondering if there is any way to connect a 3 thrust er, light, and a webcam camera system to be completely controlled by my pc computer. this will be my first rov and it is a very simple sea fox like configuration except i use two motors for forward, backwards, and one motor for up and down

[dna1990]

You will need some type of hardware between the PC and the motors. You can research "serial motor controller", for an example which can accept a serial signal and turn on a motor.

You will need some software. HyperTerminal is OK to 'type' individual serial commands, but I assume you will want something where you can use arrows or even a joystick/mouse. Any development experience (Java, C, .Net)?


Looked at Arduino yet? This is a great starter platform (for lots of technical devices). Get a starter kit and go thru some of the Blum tutorials on YouTube. You will build up some knowledge and can better zero in on your ideas.

Looked at OpenROV yet? This is a good platform that is PC centric and has a large following. Open source, can buy a full kit, or they even publish the Bill of Materials to let you go buy/build your own. Software and interface hardware already figured out.



Are you a student? Look harder at SeaPerch, ROV-in-a-Bucket, and MATE. Follow some of their ideas, I think they also have tutorials on YT.



Either way, "dive" in.

[rossrov]

Hi jarjarinks. Good to see someone else considering computer control. The simplest way to do it is to use a cheap IP camera.

ipcam.jpg (6.77 KiB) Viewed 7852 times

I posted some details a while back in viewtopic.php?f=15&t=997#p5037 Have since improved the Javascript and added another 2 motors to the microcontroller.
In summary, the IP camera with simple microcontroller attached to it allows you to control motors and things. As a bonus, the camera can record to your PC, with no additional software or hardware required. I'm using Javascript for control by mouse, but could also be done using a joystick. Very happy with how this is working, considering it is my first use of Javascript and IP.

Ross

[njs552]

My friend wrote software to run on a computer and be able to control 3 relays, 2 servos, and 3 or 6 motors in a tank or vector drive setup.
http://sourceforge.net/projects/rov-sui ... =directory

His newest version (yet to be released), is going to add IP camera support in the main control interface.
This software runs on OSX, Windows, and Linux. It uses the UDP ethernet protocol for communication, so you would need to have a Cat5 line in your tether.

You need an Arduino Uno or mega with an Ethernet shield, or a Arduino Board Ethernet, in the ROV. All the code is already written including the Arduino code for the ROV, but chances are you will need to modify it slightly for your design. I would be willing to help with the programming if needed.

Thanks,
njs552

[jarjarinks]

njs, with this software to you just plug an cat5 ethernet cable into your computer and an Adruino board and build the rov around that setup? and does this setup support a computer webcam? Also would i need an adrino board like this: http://store.arduino.cc/ww/index.php?ma ... cts_id=197

[njs552]

Yes. You plug the Cat5 cable from the tether into the computer, and have the Arduino (the one you linked to in your post) in the ROV, and connect motor controllers, relays, servos, etc to the control pins on the Arduino.

The software supports an IP camera like this: http://www.ebay.com/itm/NEW-GEN-WIRELES ... 2572ba8894
or anything similar that sends video using the ethernet protocol.

If you wanted to instead use a Rasperry Pi in your ROV, you could use a regular USB webcam. My friend who wrote the software just tested this camera (http://www.ebay.com/itm/Genius-WideCam- ... 53f9f00604) steaming to his ROV software computer application and only had 99ms of delay between when we moved his hand and he saw the movement in the software. The bad part is the webcam + slow USB connection = only 10fps, the IP camera is 25fps.

Thanks,
njs552

[fireslayer26]

This setup looks great! Could you elaborate on what motor controllers and relays he used? Maybe a wiring diagram for say... 4 motors, led lights, IP camera.

Thanks!

[njs552]

You can use any motor controller you want. The software that goes on the ROV Arduino will be customized based on how the ESC's are controlled. Usually the ESC's are either PWM, PPM, or digital, and it is easy to modify the software.

This is the brushless ESC I am using, and I am controlling it using an Arduino: http://hobbyking.com/hobbyking/store/__ ... verse.html
Here is a update post I made with this ESC when I did my thruster test. viewtopic.php?f=3&t=1163

For relays, the Phidgets dual SSR relays are good, and they only need one control wire and a ground. http://www.robotshop.com/productinfo.as ... lang=en-US

There is a wiring diagram here: http://chrisstechblog.blogspot.com/ that is pretty much exactly what you would need, minus the Raspberry Pi.

Let me know if you have any questions, and if you want you can PM user "chriskon149" if you have more questions. He is the one who wrote the Monterey software.

Thanks,
Nick

[fireslayer26]

Thanks for the reply! Also, would this Arduino board work without the need for external power as it is POE?
http://store.arduino.cc/ww/index.php?ma ... cts_id=201

This is the diagram your talking about?
http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-GlTyDFS9cCo/U ... Wiring.png

If I don't want to use the RaspberryPi and power the ROV from the surface, would I just remove the Pi and the Ubec from the diagram and run power directly to the Arduino? (at the appropriate voltage)

[njs552]

That Arduino Ethernet with POE board would work great, but the POE spec is 802.11af, which means you need about 48v down your cat5 to power the arduino.

Depending on how you are powering your ROV or where you are operating, you will either need a POE injector: http://www.ebay.com/itm/UNIVERSAL-48V-W ... 2a24ce790c

Or a step up converter to step 12v to 48v: http://www.ebay.com/itm/Boost-Power-Sup ... 20d52c26a5

This will depend on if you have access to 120vac power, or if you are using car batteries or similar.


Yes. That is the diagram. And you would do exactly that. Run power to the Arduino at the right voltage, and that would be it.

Please let me know if you have any more questions along the way, I am more than happy to help.

Thanks,
Nick