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Multiple Arduino functions without delay

Former Member

I have literally zero coding experience but have run into the need for it at my job -- all help appreciated. Basically, I am trying to accomplish many things at once and am not sure how to translate what i need into code. What I need: a tone and a light to simultaneously flash on for 500 milliseconds and then off again for 6 seconds; water reward to be delivered (by turning on/ off a solenoid) 2 seconds after the tone/LED have turned off, with the solenoid being open for 25 milliseconds; continuous collection of data from an input potentiometer. Since i need to monitor the input from the potentiometer at all times, i cannot use "delay()" because i cannot have the board stop reading the values from the potentiometer to preform a function.

 

This is a code i attempted -- however, the issue is the timing for the LED/tone and the solenoid. I need the solenoid to always open 2 seconds after the LED/tone turn off and it needs to open for 25 milliseconds and then shut back off. i have put hours into trying to figure out a way to do this --- as the code is now, the led/tone turn on and off fine, but the solenoid has a longer delay time (because i was trying to get it to come 2 seconds after the led/tone went off) and the excess time builds onto itself and makes the timing of the solenoid vary in its proximity to the LED/tone.

 

#include <elapsedMillis.h> //the timer.

 

 

//stopwatches

elapsedMillis timer; 

 

 

int ledPin = 11;

int lick = 4;

int solenoid = 8;

int speaker = 2;

int ledOn = 500;       //milliseconds

int ledOff = 6000;

int solenoidOn = 25;

int solenoidOff = 8475;

int LickState;

 

 

int playTime = 500;  //how long speakers will play for

int freq = 8000;  //frequency for left prize speakers in hz

int toneTime = 500;

 

 

unsigned long lms;        //time from millis()

unsigned long lmsLast;    //last time the LED changed state

unsigned long sms;        //time from millis()

unsigned long smsLast;

unsigned int LedOn = 0;

unsigned int Reward = 0;

unsigned int Lick = 0;

boolean ledState;        //current LED state

boolean solenoidState;

 

 

void setup(void){

  Serial.begin(9600);

  pinMode(lick, INPUT); 

  pinMode(ledPin, OUTPUT);

  pinMode(solenoid, OUTPUT);

  pinMode(speaker, OUTPUT);

 

 

  elapsedMillis timer = 0;

}

 

 

void loop(void){

  int ledState = digitalRead(ledPin);

  int lickstate = digitalRead(lick);

  if (lickstate == HIGH){

//    Serial.println(lickstate);

    Serial.println(timer); }

  lms = millis();

    blinkLED();

  sms = millis();

    blinkLED();

   

 

} }

 

 

void blinkLED(void){

 

 

    if (lms - lmsLast > (ledState ? ledOn : ledOff)) {

        digitalWrite(ledPin, ledState = !ledState);

        lmsLast = lms;

        tone (speaker, freq, toneTime);

        Serial.print("Led");

        Serial.println(timer);

    }

    if (sms - smsLast > (solenoidState ? solenoidOn : solenoidOff)) {

        digitalWrite(solenoid, solenoidState = !solenoidState);

        smsLast = sms;

        Serial.print("Reward");

        Serial.println(timer);

    }

}

 

I have tried using if then statements to say that if the LED state is HIGH, then wait 2 seconds and deliver the reward --- the issue is the "wait 2 seconds part". how do i get the arduino to add two seconds to the current time when the LED turns off and then give my 25 millisecond reward without messing up the on/off times of the LED? Very confused.

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    FiN,         some good answers so far.  If I understand you correctly you want a continuously running process where every 6 seconds a tone and light event occurs for 500 milliseconds, then 2 seconds after the tone turns off you want a water event for 25 milliseconds.  Whilst at the same time you want to continuously monitor an analogue input.  Provided the tone is generated by a 'buzzer' for example then I think you can accomplish the above requirement using the milllis() function Peter referred to.  If you Google Arduino non blocking delays you will find some good examples of non blocking delay code.

    In principle if you want your chain of events to occur every 6 seconds then you could use current millis() + 60000 to create a trigger every 6 seconds.  At the trigger, set the tone output and LED on also set a Boolean flag to true, then do an IF with the flag and a current millis() + 500.  When this IF is true turn off the buzzer / LED and clear the flag, set another different flag and do another IF with millis() + 2000.

     

    I hope you can follow the above I am using flags and millis() to control the various outputs whilst have no delays.  The analog read would occur continuously and you do not say how you wish to process this information.  I hope this helps because you can develop your code one stage at a time.  There are undoubtedly better ways to do what you want but I think the above method is reasonably straight forward.

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  • 0

    FiN,         some good answers so far.  If I understand you correctly you want a continuously running process where every 6 seconds a tone and light event occurs for 500 milliseconds, then 2 seconds after the tone turns off you want a water event for 25 milliseconds.  Whilst at the same time you want to continuously monitor an analogue input.  Provided the tone is generated by a 'buzzer' for example then I think you can accomplish the above requirement using the milllis() function Peter referred to.  If you Google Arduino non blocking delays you will find some good examples of non blocking delay code.

    In principle if you want your chain of events to occur every 6 seconds then you could use current millis() + 60000 to create a trigger every 6 seconds.  At the trigger, set the tone output and LED on also set a Boolean flag to true, then do an IF with the flag and a current millis() + 500.  When this IF is true turn off the buzzer / LED and clear the flag, set another different flag and do another IF with millis() + 2000.

     

    I hope you can follow the above I am using flags and millis() to control the various outputs whilst have no delays.  The analog read would occur continuously and you do not say how you wish to process this information.  I hope this helps because you can develop your code one stage at a time.  There are undoubtedly better ways to do what you want but I think the above method is reasonably straight forward.

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