Robotics at Home with Raspberry Pi Pico: Build autonomous robots with the versatile low-cost Raspberry Pi Pico controller and Python
by Danny Staple
- Length: 400 pages
- Edition: 1
- Language: English
- Publisher: Packt Publishing
- Publication Date: 2023-03-17
- ISBN-10: 1803246073
- ISBN-13: 9781803246079
- Sales Rank: #268905 (See Top 100 Books)
Design, build, and program a mobile robot platform while gaining an understanding of the Raspberry Pi Pico, Free CAD, and robot sensors using Python to code, Bluetooth to connect & smartphone to control your projects
Key Features
- Gain in depth knowledge of robotics with easy-to-follow instructions
- Build a rover platform designed for experimentation and extension
- Enhance your robot building skills through planning, building, and coding
- Purchase of the print or Kindle book includes a free PDF eBook
Book Description
The field of robotics is expanding, and this is the perfect time to learn how to create robots at home for different purposes. This book will help you take your first steps in planning, building, and programming a robot with Raspberry Pi Pico, an impressive controller bursting with I/O capabilities. After a quick tour of Pico, you’ll begin designing a robot chassis in 3D CAD. With easy-to-follow instructions, shopping lists, and plans, you’ll start building the robot. Further, you’ll add simple sensors and outputs to extend the robot, reinforce your design skills, and build your knowledge in programming with CircuitPython. You’ll also learn about interactions with electronics, standard robotics algorithms, and the discipline and process for building robots. Moving forward, you’ll learn how to add more complicated sensors and robotic behaviors, with increasing complexity levels, giving you hands-on experience. You’ll learn about Raspberry Pi Pico’s excellent features, such as PIO, adding capabilities such as avoiding walls, detecting movement, and compass headings. You’ll combine these with Bluetooth BLE for seeing sensor data and remotely controlling your robot with a smartphone. Finally, you’ll program the robot to find its location in an arena.
By the end of this book, you’ll have built a robot at home, and be well equipped to build more with different levels of complexity.
What you will learn
- Interface Raspberry Pi Pico with motors to move parts
- Design in 3D CAD with Free CAD
- Build a simple robot and extend it for more complex projects
- Interface Raspberry Pi Pico with sensors and Bluetooth BLE
- Visualize robot data with Matplotlib
- Gain an understanding of robotics algorithms on Pico for smart behavior
Who this book is for
This book is for beginner robot makers, keen hobbyists, technical enthusiasts, developers and STEM teachers who want to build robots at home. Prior knowledge of coding – beginner to intermediate programming, will be helpful.
Cover Copyright Contributors Table of Contents Preface Part 1: The Basics – Preparing for Robotics with Raspberry Pi Pico Chapter 1: Planning a Robot with Raspberry Pi Pico Technical requirements What is Raspberry Pi Pico, and why is it suitable for robotics? A microcontroller that runs Python Raspberry Pi Pico’s interfaces for sensors and devices What is CircuitPython? Planning a Raspberry Pi Pico robot An overview of robot planning A note on trade-offs Choosing a robot chassis Choosing the power systems Pin usage Test fitting a Raspberry Pi Pico robot Creating your first test-fit part Motors Power systems Creating a rough chassis Arranging the test-fit parts A recommended shopping list for robot basics Robot parts and where to find them The robot workshop and makerspaces Summary Exercises Further reading Chapter 2: Preparing Raspberry Pi Pico Technical requirements Getting CircuitPython onto Raspberry Pi Pico Preparing the CircuitPython library for Pico Coding on Pico – first steps Downloading the Mu editor Lighting the Pico LED with CircuitPython Blinking the LED with code Soldering headers to Raspberry Pi Pico Summary Exercises Further reading Chapter 3: Designing a Robot Chassis in FreeCAD Technical requirements Introducing FreeCAD The FreeCAD screen Selecting workbenches FreeCAD settings Making robot chassis sketches in FreeCAD Preparing the document Sketching the chassis outline Creating the upper parts main sketch Sketching the motor holes Designing the castor placement Modeling chassis parts from sketches Modeling the chassis plate Modeling the other parts Troubleshooting the model Modeling the castor in 3D Making FreeCAD technical drawings Setting up the page Adding parts to the drawing Preparing the drawing for print Summary Exercises Further reading Chapter 4: Building a Robot around Pico Technical requirements Cutting styrene parts Transferring CAD measurements to a plastic sheet Cutting the plastic sheet Finishing and sanding the chassis plate Assembling a robot chassis Attaching the caster and battery box Attaching the motors and wheels Wiring a Raspberry Pi Pico robot Wiring Pico and the motor controller into the breadboard Adding the batteries Wiring in the motors and encoders Powering the robot up Summary Exercises Further reading Chapter 5: Driving Motors with Raspberry Pi Pico Technical requirements Driving forward and back Testing each motor with CircuitPython Driving wheels in a straight line Steering with two motors An introduction to pulse width modulation speed control Driving fast and slow Turning while moving Driving along a planned path Putting line and turn moves together The flaw with driving this way Summary Exercises Further reading Part 2: Interfacing Raspberry Pi Pico with Simple Sensors and Outputs Chapter 6: Measuring Movement with Encoders on Raspberry Pi Pico Technical requirements About encoders and odometry Absolute and relative sensing Types of encoders Encoder pulse data Wiring in encoders on a Raspberry Pi Pico robot Examining the motors Examining the wiring Programming Raspberry Pi Pico PIO Introduction to PIO programming Introducing PIOASM Detecting input with PIO PIO instructions and registers Making a counter with PIO Measuring encoder count for movement Making a simple PIO change detection loop Making a bidirectional counter with PIO Making reusable encoder code Measure counts for a known time Summary Exercises Further reading Chapter 7: Planning and Shopping for More Devices Technical requirements Introducing sensors Analog sensor types Timed pulses Data bus sensors The robot block diagram Choosing device types Distance sensors Inertial measurement unit Bluetooth devices Device pin usage summary Planning what to add and where Bluetooth and IMU mounting plan Distance sensor mounting plan Shopping list – parts and where to find them Preparing the robot Designing the shelf Cutting the shelf Designing the front sensor brackets Cutting the sensor brackets Preparing the chassis plate Assembling the robot Summary Exercises Further reading Chapter 8: Sensing Distances to Detect Objects with Pico Technical requirements How distance sensing works Soldering headers and attaching them to the robot Soldering headers Mounting the sensors Introduction to I2C communication Communicating with a single distance sensor Wiring the distance sensors VL53LX theory of operation Reading a single distance sensor in CircuitPython Troubleshooting Connecting two distance sensors Troubleshooting Building a wall avoider with Raspberry Pi Pico Preparing the robot library Wall-avoiding theory of operation Distance sensor wall avoider code Troubleshooting Summary Exercises Additional reading Chapter 9: Teleoperating a Raspberry Pi Pico Robot with Bluetooth LE Technical requirements Wireless robot connection options Connecting Bluetooth LE to Raspberry Pi Pico Attaching the Bluetooth module to the robot Wiring the Bluetooth breakout to Raspberry Pi Pico Connecting to the Bluefruit LE device with UART Connecting a smartphone Troubleshooting the Bluefruit module Getting sensor data over Bluetooth LE on Raspberry Pi Pico Graphing the data Controlling the robot with Bluetooth LE Printing what we got Button control mode Decoding button control packets to drive the robot Troubleshooting Summary Exercises Further reading Part 3: Adding More Robotic Behaviors to Raspberry Pi Pico Chapter 10: Using the PID Algorithm to Follow Walls Technical requirements Introducing the PID algorithm Control and feedback Bang-bang control Distance sensing with proportional control Troubleshooting Using the integral to handle small distances Dealing with oscillations using the derivative Using PID to follow a wall Changing the sensor’s placement Wall-following code Troubleshooting PID tuning – using graphs to tune the PID Controlling motor speed The proportional component Adjusting the derivative gain Tuning the integral Closing notes on tuning Summary Exercises Further reading Chapter 11: Controlling Motion with Encoders on Raspberry Pi Pico Technical requirements Converting an encoder count into a speed Loose bolts and nuts Robot wheel geometry Encoder geometry Measuring the speed of each wheel Fixing the encoder glitches Using PID to maintain speed and a straight line The speed control system Speed control code Speed controller PID tuning Driving a known distance Theory of operation Code to control distance and speed Summary Exercises Further reading Chapter 12: Detecting Orientation with an IMU on Raspberry Pi Pico Technical requirements What is an IMU and how to choose one Components of an IMU Choosing an IMU module Connecting the IMU to the robot Preparing the BNO055 Attaching the BNO055 Wiring the BNO055 to Raspberry Pi Pico Setting up the software and connecting Troubleshooting Calibrating and getting readings Calibration code The calibration process Always face North behavior CircuitPython code for the face North behavior Troubleshooting Making a known turn behavior Summary Exercises Further reading Chapter 13: Determining Position Using Monte Carlo Localization Technical requirements Creating a training area for our robot What we will make How we will make the arena Tips for cutting Modeling the space Representing the arena and robot position as numbers Serving the arena from the robot The Bleak library Creating a Bluetooth LE wrapper library Showing the robot’s data on the computer screen Using sensors to track relative pose Setting up poses Displaying poses Moving with collision avoidance Moving poses with the encoders Pose movement probabilities Monte Carlo localization Generating pose weights from a position Resampling the poses Incorporating distance sensors Tuning and improving the Monte Carlo model Summary Exercises Further reading Chapter 14: Continuing Your Journey – Your Next Robot Technical requirements A summary of what you have learned in this book Basic robotics with Raspberry Pi Pico Extending a Raspberry Pi Pico robot with sensors Writing CircuitPython behavior code for Raspberry Pi Pico Planning to extend this robot Sensors you could add Interacting with the robot Chassis and form enhancements Electronics enhancements Outputs you could add Extending the code and behaviors Planning your next robot Form, shape, and chassis Electronics and sensors Code and behavior Further suggested areas to learn about Electronics Design and manufacturing Robotic competitions and communities Robotics systems and code Summary Exercises Further reading Index Other Books You May Enjoy
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