Finally the Arduino UNO was replaced by a Arduino Nano for the final tests.
The Ultimate Block Diagram
Final SimpleSolar BOT
Finally Update
The final video of the SolarBot in Action. Due to lack of sunlight today the tests were done with multiple halogen bulbs to simulate the sun. And I also added an extra solar panel to boot up the power output.
The 4 Halogen Bulb setup to mimic the sun.
Test Setup
Adding 2 another Solar Panel for night mode. Total 4 panels are there. 3 are mounted and one is on the side
Finally the power rails hitting 5V after adding another solar panel on the fly (total 4) for the motor drivers to go on
All modules are ON and ready to go
Testing the Power rail of the SolarBOT. The beeping sound is from the motor driver indicating that the power to the driver board is not enough
The Working Video
The simple SolarBOT becomes a jerky SolarBOT.
Conclusion
Due to current low heat sun weather condition in northern Germany I was not lucky to get good enough sunlight at the time I finished my Simple SolarBOT. As one can see the motors are heavy duty and lack of strong current did the jerky motion in the motors. The DC/DC converter did boost the output current from the solar panels but not enough to give a smooth stable current and voltage to the motor driver.
I expect better results in strong sunlight as I saw 500mA coming out of the 2 solar panels (refer to previous blog) and now with an upgrade to 4 solar panels and a DC/DC converter behind it to boost the current; the jerky motion of the motor should stop and get regulated. I also prohibited myself from adding any extra sensors that I had tested before due to power restrictions.
This is my final submission to the contest as the deadline is today
P.S. If I get lucky in the coming days I will test it with real sun
Update: Testing in The Evening Sun
Testing video in the evening Sun
Cheers
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