Weekly updates

WEEK 1

In the first week, we made our groups and spent most of the class time coming up with ideas. After brainstorming for a while, we came up with the idea of LED juggling balls that change color when they come in contact with the juggler's hand, and turn red and/or make a sound when dropped on the floor. Other ideas we had included the color of the balls changing according to altitude, and the color changing depending on where the juggler touches the ball. We decided to use some kind of translucent material for the balls, so that the colors can shine through it. We're still figuring out the budget required for the project.

WEEK 2

During week two, the materials to be used were decided. The list included-

1. Arduino UNO R3 microcontroller

    Link - http://www.amazon.com/Arduino-Board-ATmega328P-Microcontroller-ATmega16U2/dp/B006H06TVG/ref=sr_1_1?s=pc&ie=UTF8&qid=1428616261&sr=1-1&keywords=arduino+uno

                           

2. Kootek Arduino GY-521 accelorometer

    Link - http://www.amazon.com/Kootek-Arduino-MPU-6050-gyroscope-accelerometer/dp/B008BOPN40/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1428616475&sr=8-1&keywords=accelerometer

3. Microtivity IBI171 170-point mini breadboard

   Link- http://www.amazon.com/microtivity-170-point-Breadboard-Arduino-Jumper/dp/B004RXINEG

     

4. RGB LED lights

    Link- http://www.amazon.com/Round-Common-Cathode-Emitting-Diodes/dp/B005VMDROS

The ball to be used as the juggling ball remains undecided.

WEEK 3

The required materials for one ball were ordered in week three in order to create a prototype ball. This included an Arduino UNO, an accelerometer and batteries. The coding for the main required process was also started. A basic layout for the approach of the code was created, in order to provide a clearer overview of the task at hand. For the prototype ball, a 4" styrofoam ball was hollowed out to fit the required components. This turned out to be too small for the Arduino. The ball was then changed to 5".

WEEK 4

During week 4, the materials required were received. The material for the ball was changed to a 5" fillable transparent christmas ornament. 

The positioning of the Arduino and the other required components was decided. 

The programming language was finalized as the original Arduino language. Research for the connections required for the accelerometer and other equipment was conducted to further speed along the assembly process.

WEEK 5

During week 5, most of the time was spent on working on the code. The layout for the code was decided as -

The wiring for the Arduino was also worked on. The layout for the wiring is as follows-

WEEK 6

Week 6 consisted of coding for the Arduino and actually building the ball by choosing the positioning of the Arduino and breadboard to be in opposite halves of the ball. The components of the ball would eventually be further padded to prevent damage on impact.

WEEK 7

The time in week seven was used to strengthen the ball, secure the contents of it, and debug the code. The inside of the ball was taped with packaging tape, and the breadboard and Arduino were placed on pieces of styrofoam to minimize impact force.  A part of the ball was taped down as a hinge to allow the ball to open and close freely. The code responded slower than it should and the acceleration values weren't as accurate as the should be.

             

WEEK 8

The ball was completed, and the errors in the coding were resolved. The ball was further strengthened with more tape, and 2 3V button cells were used to power it. The error in coding happened to be the misuse of the power button. Replacing "^2" with "pow(   , 2)" solved the problem.    

WEEK 9

Final touches were made to the project. The accelerometer values were slightly off in the z axis and required calibration, which was done in the code. The project was complete, and test runs were done to optimize performance and minimize errors.