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1/2/08: Kickoff
After we had the kickoff for the FRC game, the electrical team attended a electrical workshop for setting up the benchtop system. During that time, we got the compressor program to work. Apparently, the problem was not programming, but wiring. The PWM cable did not match up with the label on the relay and it was connected the wrong way. Thanks to one of Waialua's mentors and Ms. Owens, we were able to diagnose this problem and the compressor program worked.
1/3/08: Day after Kickoff
We had a strategy meeting for the entire team, and during this meeting, our mentors mentioned some things about electrical and programming. It was suggested that we use the accelerometer to help measure the acceleration of the robot because the surface for the game Lunacy is like snow or ice. We deliberated and it was concluded that the electrical team had to find a way to make sure that the robot could not go over a certain speed to ensure that we can have the fastest acceleration available to us. After the strategy meeting, we decided where we were going to put our Victor speed controllers and relays on the board. After that, we tried to program the relays so we could control them with the joysticks.
1/4/08: Problems Arise
We worked on our tasks for the week. The team had to test out the servo, gyro, and other things as well. We had a problem with programming the servo. We even used the default code and the servo would still fail to start up. After a while, the digital sidecar started to have some problems and its LED lights would not shine anymore.
All problems aside, our main goal for the day was to connect the control board to the kitbot chassis the mechanical team worked on. We managed to hook up the board to the chassis. Erica and I, being the new members of the electrical team, were taught how to crimp the wires of the speed controllers and motors. So, we had a little competition between us. We had some problems wrapping the wires though. We learned how to wrap in a circle so that the electricity could run easily around the wire. But, in the end, the whole robot worked when we witnessed Sam and Erica driving the robot around with no problems.
1/5/08: Something is Wrong...
We tried to troubleshoot today, so we checked the wiring and tried to see if there was anything wrong. Apparently, we did not think anything was wrong with wiring. We deduced that it was probably the programming that prevented some of our hard ware to work. The programmers deduced that it was the Watchdog program in the WPI librbary for Labview that was causing all the problems.
The digital sidecar continued to have problems. When we put the servo and jumper in the PWM outputs, the digital sidecar even had more problems. The LED light did not show up at all and we even used the replacement digital sidecar. Same problem. We wondered if it was a digital sidecar manufacturing issue...
1/6/08: Problem Solved...But A Lesson We Must Learn
Thank you for Chief Delphi forums! Ms. Owens made a post on Chief Delphi and asked the FRC community what could be probably wrong with the digital sidecar. One person responded and said that the team should check whether the wires connected to the power distribution board were clamped on correctly. Ms. Owens checked the clamping and saw what was wrong. Apparently, the clamps were on the insulator, not the stripped wire (which can happen if you stick the wire too far in).
Due to this incident, we had to read up on the manual again and prepare for a test on Thrusday. We had a review session on clamping wires, stripping them, and cutting them. This review seesion was very helpful and learned some new things such as stripping wires 1/3 inch when they use 20/30 A circuit breakers.
Reflection:
Well, over the last few days, I learned how important it is to pay attention to detail. The small details can be essential in preventing mistakes that can delay ones progress for several days. I also learned the finer techniques of wiring this wee. Hopefully, we can be more careful and observant so that we could prevent major problems and delays again.
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Disclaimer: These are actual student posts done by students and not paid actors. We make no claims or guarantees that the information contained herewith is 100% accurate or free of grammatical/spelling errors (English is not the first language for many of our members). You have been warned. |