After deciding to author my own code library, I decided I should first author hardware tests because I hadn’t done that yet. I created a GitHub Repository for Ironhide and started with elementary tests utilizing the GPIO python library. After creating motortest.py and servotest.py I found that my servo worked, but without exact details on the frequency the servo operates, I wasn’t able to find the true middle value for the duty cycle. I just did train and error to find the best middle I could between duty cycle values of 2 to 12. After messing with those values, I found that the motor didn’t work at all, and I started to panic a bit. I had spent so much time on the hardware, and I barely had anything to show for it. After I encountered this roadblock I became set on fixing it, so I searched the web for documentation on interacting with DC actuators, Motor Drivers, and a Raspberry Pi. I finally found the problem, which was a missing standby connection between the raspberry pi and the motor driver.
Building a Low-Cost Autonomous Car as an Introduction to Robotics
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