NXT 1.0 Line Following and Light Sensor Calibration

I have updated the original NXT 1.0 Line Follower project at nxtprograms.com to improve the original programs a bit and include a new "proportional" line following program. I also included some separate light sensor calibration utility programs and some discussion of light sensor calibration, as calibration can be a somewhat confusing concept in practice (although it can simplify your programs and/or make your robot more flexible once you understand how to use it).

Comparing this to my new NXT 2.0 Line Follower, with essentially the same program, I notice that it doesn't perform as well. I think this is for two reasons: NXT 2.0 programs execute faster than 1.x, and my older 1.x robot design is inferior. In particular, I think the light sensor is too far ahead of the wheels. Making the wheel track (left-to-right) wider would probably also help. Give a try at making it better!

Comments

ronmcrae said…
Dave,

One of the big reasons 2.0 programs run faster is the V1.28 firmware. I'd be interested to see if your 1.0 programs run differently/better when using the V1.28 firmware.

Also, how about using the same exact 2.0 robot but with a light sensor in place of the color sensor for a side-by-side comparison?

Ron.
Armagon said…
Keep up the great work! People are always wondering how a line follower works, and I can not point them to nxtprograms.com.

Thanks!
Dave Parker said…
OK, I tried a couple of quick experiments. First, the 2.0 program and newer/better robot using a light sensor instead of the color sensor performed the same (as expected), so the color sensor in light sensor mode is similar to the light sensor (using calibrated/scaled values, not raw).

The newer/better robot design using a 1.0 brick and the 1.0 program (NXT-G 1.1 compile to 1.01 firmware) is pretty good (much better than the older/worse robot) but noticeably less smooth. So the better speed of the 1.28 firmware definitely makes a noticeable difference, but most of the problem was with the robot.

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