My setup is:

• Windows 7 64bit host
• Windows XP x86 guest
• Oracle VM VirtualBox 4.0.4

And here are the steps needed to set up USB device forwarding:

1. Make sure that the guest virtual machine is turned off.
2. Download Oracle VM VirtualBox Extension Pack if you don’t have it already installed. Install it by simply double clicking on the file.
3. Restart VirtualBox application just in case.
4. Select the virtual machine, click Settings button, open USB page and select “Enable USB Controller” together with “Enable USB 2.0 (EHCI) Controller”.

   

5. Add USB device by clicking the button highlighted below.
   
6. Once the device is added, select it and click on the edit button (one button below the add button). Make sure that Remote is set to Yes.
   
7. Start guest virtual machine
8. When it has started, go to Devices -> USB Devices and select the device you want to be available for the VM
   

Your device should now be available to the guest virtual machine.

Open Terminal and copy folder ~/.mozilla-thunderbird to the new location expected by Thunderbird 3:

copy ~/.mozilla-thunderbird ~/.thunderbird

All emails, settings and extensions in ~/.mozilla-thunderbird will be your backup.

Get Ubuntuzilla package signing key to your keyring:

sudo apt-key adv --recv-keys --keyserver keyserver.ubuntu.com C1289A29

Add Ubuntuzilla repositories to the list of your sources either by using main menu System > Administration > Software Sources on the Other Software tab:

deb http://switch.dl.sourceforge.net/project/ubuntuzilla/mozilla/apt all main

Hit Reload button when asked to update software list.

Alternativelly the above step can be done with the following two commands in your terminal:

echo -e "\ndeb http://switch.dl.sourceforge.net/project/ubuntuzilla/mozilla/apt all main" | sudo tee -a /etc/apt/sources.list > /dev/null
sudo apt-get update

And finally you can install the latest version of Thunderbird by running the following command:

sudo apt-get install thunderbird-mozilla-build

Don’t forget that you can erase the folder ~/.mozilla-thunderbird if the upgrade was successful. Have fun using the best email client in the world – Thunderbird 3! You can find it in the main menu Applications > Internet > Mozilla Build of Thunderbird.

Cool Components

www.coolcomponents.co.uk – great resource for Arduino shields, sensors and wireless communication hardware.

Robot Bits

www.robotbits.co.uk – wheels, chassis, gearboxes and various robotic kits ready for you to assemble based on Arduino.

Oomlout

oomlout.co.uk – great store for Arduino stuff, value starter bundles, essential tools, outstanding customer service and prompt delivery. With every component purchased you will get a very nice bonus – printed schematic for breadboard with instructions on how to connect the component to Arduino like this one.

Rapid Online

www.rapidonline.com – if you are more a do-it-yourself guy, this is an ideal resource for you. Store features everything from microcontroler ICs, LEDs to discrete semiconductors, sensors, gearboxes and complete robotic kits. Very competitive prices and free shipping for orders over £40.

I’d be very happy to hear of any resources that you know in the comments. :)

This is a another sample demonstrating Arduino MEGA, LCD screen and SRF05 ultrasonic range finder. The distance measurement from SRF05 is displayed on the LCD screen in centimetres.

Click here to view the embedded video.

Different from Infra Red range finder witch uses IR light to measure distance, ultrasonic range finder sends short high pitch sound pulses and measures the time for the echo to come back to the microphone. Here is a very good comparison of the two types of range finders. The code running on the Arduino:

// include the library code:
#include <LiquidCrystal.h>

#define echoPin 6             // the SRF05's echo pin
#define initPin 7             // the SRF05's init pin
unsigned long pulseTime = 0;  // variable for reading the pulse

// initialize the library with the numbers of the interface pins
LiquidCrystal lcd(12, 11, 5, 4, 3, 2);

void setup() {
 // set up the LCD's number of rows and columns:
 lcd.begin(16, 2);

 // make the init pin an output:
 pinMode(initPin, OUTPUT);
 // make the echo pin an input:
 pinMode(echoPin, INPUT);
}

void loop() {
 digitalWrite(initPin, HIGH);
 delayMicroseconds(10);
 digitalWrite(initPin, LOW);

 pulseTime = pulseIn(echoPin, HIGH);

 lcd.setCursor(0,0);
 lcd.print(pulseTime / 58, DEC);
 lcd.print("cm");

 delay(100);
 lcd.clear();
}

Another application for SRF05 is a basic theremin by LuckyLarry. You can see it in action here:

Click here to view the embedded video.

Click here to view the embedded video.

Read on here:

• Arduino: A Basic Theremine
• Arduino: Basic Theremin meets Processing!

<pre>avrdude: stk500_getsync(): not in sync: resp=0x00
avrdude: stk500_disable(): protocol error, expect=0x14, resp=0x51

I had to hit Reset button just before uploading a sketch. This issue was due to some sort of defect in the Reset capacitor. The fix is very simple: just solder a 100nF capacitor on top of the defect one.

(via)

This is a bit enhanced version of the “hello world” blink application for Arduino: traffic lights emulator. The top three LEDs control car traffic and the bottom two are fore pedestrians.

int carRedPin =  13;
int carYellowPin =  12;
int carGreenPin =  11;
int pedestrianRedPin =  10;
int pedestrianGreenPin =  9;

// The setup() method runs once, when the sketch starts

void setup()   {
  pinMode(carRedPin, OUTPUT);
  pinMode(carYellowPin, OUTPUT);
  pinMode(carGreenPin, OUTPUT);
  pinMode(pedestrianRedPin, OUTPUT);
  pinMode(pedestrianGreenPin, OUTPUT);
}

// the loop() method runs over and over again,
// as long as the Arduino has power

void blink(int light)
{
  digitalWrite(light, LOW);
  delay(500);
  digitalWrite(light, HIGH);
  delay(500);
  digitalWrite(light, LOW);
  delay(500);
  digitalWrite(light, HIGH);
  delay(500);
  digitalWrite(light, LOW);
  delay(500);
  digitalWrite(light, HIGH);
  delay(500);
  digitalWrite(light, LOW);
}

void loop()
{
  digitalWrite(carRedPin, HIGH);
  digitalWrite(pedestrianGreenPin, HIGH);
  delay(3000);

  blink(pedestrianGreenPin);

  digitalWrite(pedestrianRedPin, HIGH);
  digitalWrite(pedestrianGreenPin, LOW);
  delay(1000);
  digitalWrite(carYellowPin, HIGH);
  delay(1000);
  digitalWrite(carRedPin, LOW);
  digitalWrite(carYellowPin, LOW);
  digitalWrite(carGreenPin, HIGH);
  delay(3000);

  blink(carGreenPin);

  digitalWrite(carYellowPin, HIGH);
  delay(2000);
  digitalWrite(carYellowPin, LOW);
  digitalWrite(carRedPin, HIGH);
  delay(1000);
  digitalWrite(pedestrianRedPin, LOW);
}

The code above is straightforward: just enabling and disabling LED at certain time. Traffic lights in action:

Click here to view the embedded video.

This was one of my first projects to try out various features of Arduino. I got this 2×16 LCD screen from Oomlout. The breadboard schematics came together with the LCD screen and is relatively simple.

Here is the sample code I uploaded to the controller:

// include the library code:
#include <LiquidCrystal.h>

// initialize the library with the numbers of the interface pins
LiquidCrystal lcd(12, 11, 5, 4, 3, 2);

void setup() {
 // set up the LCD's number of rows and columns:
 lcd.begin(16, 2);
}

void loop() {

 lcd.print("                 arvydas.net");

 lcd.setCursor(16,1);
 lcd.autoscroll();

 for (int thisChar = 0; thisChar &lt; 28; thisChar++) {
 lcd.print(" ");
 delay(250);
 }
 lcd.noAutoscroll();

 lcd.clear();
}

Just a simple scrolling text and here is the video:

Click here to view the embedded video.

Started thinking about the logic for the robot. The first one that I used in my prototype from LuckyLarry’s website seems to be too basic, so I did a quick brainstorm and came up with the flowchart above.  The logic adds the complexity of using a range finder sensor on top of the servo. Robot should drive forward, unless it encounters an obstacle closer than 20cm. Then it should stop, look around and determine the next free path it should go. The most challenging bits are the ones that I colored in red: this requires some sort of sensory “knowledge” of the direction of the robot. If I had a spare accelerometer, everything should seem more simple: just get the data from the accelerometer and calculate the direction of the robot when it turns. All I have now is just SRF05 range finder so another thought came to my mind. At the point after robot scans the surrounding area, it should know the distance to the surrounding area with 10 degree resolution. For example:

1. -90 deg | 70 cm
2. -80 deg | 60 cm
3. -70 deg | 50 cm
4. -60 deg | 50 cm
5. -50 deg | 40 cm
6. -40 deg | 40 cm
7. -30 deg | 30 cm
8. -20 deg | 20 cm
9. -10 deg | 20 cm
10. 0 deg | 20 cm
11. 10 deg | 20 cm
12. 20 deg | 20 cm
13. 30 deg | 20 cm
14. …

According to the logic, robot should choose path (1) by turning -90 degrees. Considering that before the turning head is facing 0 degrees, it should continue turning, until it determines that the distance is more than 70cm to the closes object, so the range finder should read all the way from 20cm to 70cm with a threshold of +-5cm.

Huh, seems that hardware setup was the easiest bit. Building smart software to run the robot is a bigger challenge and that’s what makes this project so interesting. :)

This Saturday I had a chance to attend a fantastic Howduino event in Birmingham – a one day hackers workshop. This was my first experience in this type of event, so I came without any expectations. :) Once the the welcoming announcements were made everybody started hacking either by going to beginners workshops or working on their own projects. Steward from Kre8 joined me at my desk and we had a lot of fun working together.

The task

My task for the day was to transform this R/C toy car from ELC into an obstacle avoiding robot.

I chose this cute little toy, because each side of the wheels is controlled by a separate motor. This allows the car to turn around 360 degrees in one spot. There was one big challenge involved in hacking this toy car: I had to be able to assemble it back again, because my son had already announced the ownership. :)

Let the hacking begin!

Above is the picture of the disassembled car. The quality of the toy is really high, because it is supposed to sustain driving in the mud and water. You can see the wires coming from the two motors on each side of the chassis. Those were cut roughly in the middle and extended with additional wires.

A quick break: above is the picture of my work desk @ Howduino. The only thing that bothered in the event was very poor lighting. Despite that it was great to have so many like-minded hackers around sharing ideas and hardware with each other.

Here you can see the prototype spread on the table: the chassis upside down so it doesn’t dive off the desk together with all electronic parts, breadboard with L293D motor driver, Arduino MEGA, SRF05 ultrasonic range finder on top of a servo. I couldn’t manage to use the servo for advanced range finding, because it would have complicated the software and I wouldn’t have finished the project on time.

The code

I grabbed the essential part of the code from LuckyLarry’s Obstacle avoidance robot and tested it.

const int numOfReadings = 10;           // number of readings to take/ items in the array
int readings[numOfReadings];            // stores the distance readings in an array
int arrayIndex = 0;                     // arrayIndex of the current item in the array
int total = 0;                          // stores the cumlative total
int averageDistance = 0;                // stores the average value
unsigned long distance = 0;

const int motor1Pin1 = 2;    // H-bridge leg 1
const int motor1Pin2 = 3;    // H-bridge leg 2
const int motor2Pin1 = 4;    // H-bridge leg 3
const int motor2Pin2 = 5;    // H-bridge leg 4
const int enable1Pin = 9;    // H-bridge enable pin
const int enable2Pin = 10;   // H-bridge enable pin
const int ledPin = 13;       // LED

#define echoPin 6             // the SRF04's echo pin
#define initPin 7             // the SRF04's init pin
unsigned long pulseTime = 0;  // variable for reading the pulse
long servoAngle = 90;         // variable for reading the pulse
int servoDirection = 1;

void setup() {
  pinMode(ledPin, OUTPUT);

  // set all the other pins you're using as outputs:
  pinMode(motor1Pin1, OUTPUT);
  pinMode(motor1Pin2, OUTPUT);
  pinMode(enable1Pin, OUTPUT);

  pinMode(motor2Pin1, OUTPUT);
  pinMode(motor2Pin2, OUTPUT);
  pinMode(enable2Pin, OUTPUT);

  // set enablePin high so that motor can turn on:
  digitalWrite(enable1Pin, HIGH);
  digitalWrite(enable2Pin, HIGH);

  // make the init pin an output:
  pinMode(initPin, OUTPUT);
  // make the echo pin an input:
  pinMode(echoPin, INPUT);

  for (int thisReading = 0; thisReading < numOfReadings; thisReading++)
  {
    readings[thisReading] = 0;
  }

  // blink the LED 3 times. This should happen only once.
  // if you see the LED blink three times, it means that the module
  // reset itself,. probably because the motor caused a brownout
  // or a short.
  blink(ledPin, 3, 100);
}

void loop() {
  digitalWrite(initPin, HIGH);              // send 10 microsecond pulse
  delayMicroseconds(10);                    // wait 10 microseconds before turning off
  digitalWrite(initPin, LOW);               // stop sending the pulse
  pulseTime = pulseIn(echoPin, HIGH);       // Look for a return pulse, it should be high as the pulse goes low-high-low
  distance = pulseTime/58;                  // Distance = pulse time / 58 to convert to cm.
  total= total - readings[arrayIndex];      // subtract the last distance
  readings[arrayIndex] = distance;          // add distance reading to array
  total= total + readings[arrayIndex];      // add the reading to the total
  arrayIndex = arrayIndex + 1;              // go to the next item in the array                                

  // At the end of the array (10 items) then start again
  if (arrayIndex >= numOfReadings)  {
    arrayIndex = 0;
  }

  averageDistance = total / numOfReadings;      // calculate the average distance
  delay(10);

  // check the average distance and move accordingly

  if (averageDistance < = 20){
    // go backwards
    digitalWrite(motor1Pin1, HIGH);
    digitalWrite(motor1Pin2, LOW);
    digitalWrite(motor2Pin1, HIGH);
    digitalWrite(motor2Pin2, LOW);   

  }

  if (averageDistance <= 60 && averageDistance > 20) {
    // turn
    digitalWrite(motor1Pin1, HIGH);
    digitalWrite(motor1Pin2, LOW);
    digitalWrite(motor2Pin1, LOW);
    digitalWrite(motor2Pin2, LOW);
  }

  if (averageDistance > 60)   {
    // go forward
    digitalWrite(motor1Pin1, LOW);
    digitalWrite(motor1Pin2, HIGH);
    digitalWrite(motor2Pin1, LOW);
    digitalWrite(motor2Pin2, HIGH);    

  }

}

/*
blinks an LED
*/
void blink(int whatPin, int howManyTimes, int milliSecs) {
  int i = 0;
  for ( i = 0; i < howManyTimes; i++) {
    digitalWrite(whatPin, HIGH);
    delay(milliSecs/2);
    digitalWrite(whatPin, LOW);
    delay(milliSecs/2);
  }
}

The code above keeps checking the distance to the closest object and calculates the average. If distance is more than 60cm, robot runs forward, when distance is between 20cm and 60cm robot turns left. When distance is less than 20cm, robot runs back.

Mission accomplished!

Tested and working! Final assembly on the desk:

You can see the little car running on the floor :)

Click here to view the embedded video.

Thanks to Nikki for this video!

What’s next?

There is still a lot to do:

• Use the servo to move the range finder for better “view” of the objects around;
• Resolve battery drain, because quickly switching the direction of the motor is not good;
• Make it a bit smarter to stop and look around;
• Investigate surrounding area and draw a map in the memory;
• Try to find docking station to recharge all by itself;
• Make it light loving/phobic;

You can find more pictures from the event in the Howduino Flickr group and a blog post. Big thank you goes to fizzPOP for organizing the even and hope to see all of you next year!

Let me quickly introduce myself. I am Arvydas – a software developer and electronics hobbyist based in Hertfordshire, UK. I was born in Lithuania and just a few years ago moved to work in UK. I have been into software development for more than 15 years and have significant experience in PHP, Ruby on Rails, C# (Mono/Microsoft.NET) and Delphi. I am a huge fan of Open Source initiative and love Linux even though my primary desktop is Windows due to the majority of my day-to-day work involved in the latter OS. Quite recently I got a chance to work with Arduino open source hardware and was very impressed by the openness and easy of use of the platform.

I am not new to blogging and have been writing arvydas.net in Lithuanian, but decided to finally spread my thoughts to a wider audience in English. :) So what can you expect to find here? Just on top of my head in no particular order the topics might be:

• Software development in general;
• Arduino and other electronics projects;
• Development with Ruby on Rails and C# languages;
• Life in UK;
• Whatever interesting is on my mind at the moment.

Thanks for visiting and I hope you will find something useful here. :)