I had planned a lot to be done on this project but in fact it turned out to be an ambitious one. Ambitious because in these 3 months, a lot has happened. I have a full-time job and very busy family with one expecting soon! I can't believe how time has passed so quickly and a lot was to be done. Anyways, I finally hooked up Arduino Nano 33 IoT and L293DNEL293DNE to drive the stepper motor and test it. This hasn't worked. The stepper motor didn't spin, it did with Arduino Uno though, in my earlier testing. I believe there may be some issue to do with the 3.3V logic vs 5V logic. I will try to include some transistors to convert them to 5V logic - as a quick check, although L293DNEL293DNE should be fine with either of those. I will also check if the motor is getting enough power.
The setup now looks like pictures above and I plan to attach Arduino Nano 33 IoT on the seat somewhere safe so that I can use the IMU for sensor to feedback to the controller. This project is far from complete yet and even though this is my final blog for the Design challenge (with allowed time lapsed), I am determined to continue with this project further. I will continue to blog on my personal space with updates on this project and following major items are expected to be done further.
1. Test if motor power is enough to provide assistance in sit up and sit down manoeuvres.
2. Install wheels and motors to drive this inside the house.
3. Install camera so that this chair can be driven to the place where it's needed.
4. Design and build smartphone app to connect to this chair.
5. Install battery unit sufficient enough to power for at least 1 hour operation.
My huge thanks to the organisers and sponsors and all those who continue to support in this journey!